48 pages 1 hour read

Anonymous

Homeric Hymns

Fiction | Novel/Book in Verse | Adult

A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.

Hymn 1

Chapter Summaries & Analyses

Hymn 1 Summary: “To Dionysus”

Only fragments of Hymn 1 remain, but they tell the story of the birth of Dionysus, god of wine and ecstasy. Dionysus is the son of Semele, a mortal woman impregnated by Zeus (unknown to Hera, his goddess wife). Semele, still pregnant, is burned to death when she insists Zeus visit her in his true lightning-bolt form, but Zeus takes the unborn Dionysus and stitches him into his thigh. Dionysus is thus the “stitched-in god” (1) or the “seam-born” (2). The poem ends by praising Dionysus and his mother Semele. 

Hymn 1 Analysis

Context is important for this hymn, as only fragments remain. When Zeus stitches the unborn Dionysus into his thigh until the gestating god is ready for birth, it offsets traditional gender roles, with the male god carrying and birthing his own children. In so doing, he breaks the vicious cycle his father (the Titan Cronus) and grandfather (the deity of the heavens, Uranus) fell victim to, that is, the eventual fatal usurpation by a strong male offspring.

Hera, the wife and sister of Zeus and goddess of marriage, is also briefly referenced.

Related Titles

By Anonymous

Study Guide

logo

Arden of Faversham

Anonymous

Arden of Faversham

Anonymous

Study Guide

logo

A Woman in Berlin

Anonymous

A Woman in Berlin

Anonymous

Study Guide

logo

Bible (New Testament)

Anonymous

Bible (New Testament): English Standard Version

Anonymous

Study Guide

logo

Bible: Old Testament

Anonymous

Bible: Old Testament: English Standard Version

Anonymous

Study Guide

logo

Diary of an Oxygen Thief

Anonymous

Diary of an Oxygen Thief

Anonymous

Study Guide

logo

Do Not Stand at My Grave and Weep

Anonymous

Do Not Stand at My Grave and Weep

Anonymous

Study Guide

logo

Lazarillo De Tormes

Anonymous

Lazarillo De Tormes

Anonymous

Study Guide

logo

Nibelungenlied

Anonymous

Nibelungenlied

Anonymous

Study Guide

logo

One Thousand and One Nights

Anonymous

One Thousand and One Nights

Anonymous

Study Guide

logo

Sir Gawain and the Green Knight

Anonymous

Sir Gawain and the Green Knight

Anonymous