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Was Persephone kidnapped?
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Persephone chose to eat the fruit

Everyone knew that eating anything from Hades would tie them to the Underworld, including Persephone. Her own choice to eat the fruit sealed her fate.
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The Argument

Not only did Persephone willingly eat the fruit, but she seemed as if she wanted to. Various myths state that Persephone had the chance to get out, but seemed to eat them just before she left. According to one source, "We know she didn’t do it because she was hungry. It says in the Illiad that gods do not require bread or wine as mankind does"[1]. Persephone didn't need to eat the seeds, but the fact that she chose to infers her love. She very selectively ate six seeds-she knew what she was doing. Persephone wanted to come back to him. She was not kidnapped.

Counter arguments

Perhaps she just felt bad. Perhaps she wanted to keep Hades company, because she pitied the poor lonely soul that he was.

Proponents

Premises

[P1] Persephone chose to eat the seeds. [P2] She was not forced to eat. [P3] She was not kidnapped.

Rejecting the premises

References

  1. https://therkalexander.com/post/115119176352/persephone-ate-the-pomegranate-seeds-willingly
This page was last edited on Friday, 5 Jun 2020 at 22:13 UTC

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