What I've Learned

Molly was Odin and she taught me that he was always craving to gain more wisdom. He would do anything to learn, even hang from a tree for nine days. He also gave up his eye for knowledge.

Hannah was Balder and she taught me that Balder died from mistletoe but he was loved by many. Balder was murdered by Loki who tricked a blind god into throwing the plant. 

Freya, the lovely Freya was Rylee. She taught me about her necklace and that she'd gotten it from a few dwarves. She told us how her husband went missing and then later was found but killed by the other gods. 

Emma was Frigg and she told a sad story about her son, Balder. She did everything to keep him safe except to ask the mistletoe to leave him be. She made an awful mistake in telling an old woman about the plant. 

Guanyin was Lia and she taught me about the rice and why it's white. She helped the farmers and always heard peoples cries for help. 

Carly was Hermes and he was the son of Maia and Zues. He was also the god of messengers and once stole my brother's cows! 

Brynn was the wonderful Isis and she taught me that she was Ra's granddaughter. She also found out his secret name and poisoned Ra with snake venom. 

Loki, the trickster, was Emily. I learned that Loki was a murderer and that he was very clever. I also learn that he could turn into a fish. 

Jazlyn was Osiris and he was killed by his brother. He was also cut into pieces and then revived. 

Lindsey was Ra and he is the sun god, the kind of all gods. He gave up his secret name to his granddaughter 

Erin was Set, the god of chaos. He was also brother to Isis and Nyphthys  

Claire was Thor and he had a hammer that was all powerful. Thor once dressed like a bride and got married to get his precious hammer back!

Last Post

I am Artemis, Goddess of the Hunt, the moon and all the wild creatures of this world and I have a story to tell. It is a tragic tale of a girl and a boy, separated by promises, kept apart by fate. It is the story of my beloved Orion's death.

He and I were close from our many daytime hunts and night time campfires. It was at one of our fires that we fell asleep alongside one another after telling many of our life's experiences and stories.Upon morning Apollo, happened across our sleeping figures and became enraged. He, of all people, thought I'd given up my pledge to chastity. Once we'd awoken, my twin pretended to not have seen us sleeping. He greeted us and I left to attend to my many nymphs, leaving Orion and Apollo alone.

Apollo and Orion grew close in that day, my brother had forgotten about his anger from earlier. When Orion brought up my name, Apollo remembered his rage. As Orion realized what the sun god was mad about, he immediately told Apollo he would never jeopardize my promise of staying chaste.

Apollo was obdurate, couldn't admit that he was wrong. He sent Orion home and tormented him with dreams of awful scorpions. When Orion awoke the next day, the scorpion was at his door. To escape, my friend jumped into the water and swam. Apollo came rushing to me, saying that the man swimming in the water had attacked one of my nymphs. Rage took over and I put an arrow through the head of my very best friend. Upon seeing him, lifeless, I lost it. I tried everything to revive him but he was too far gone, my Orion was dead. I put him in the stars, to remember him and remember my mistake. I also put the scorpion that caused him to run in the sky to remind my brother of his misdeed.

Another look at Artemis:

Resolution

The resolution of this story is probably the death of Orion and the time right after it when Artemis places her friend in the sky as a constellation. This is a resolution to Artemis's grieving and her guilt, it helps her to cope with her feelings. It's also a resolution to Apollo who had wanted revenge on Orion for finding him with his sister.

Climax

In the myth involving Orion's death, the climax would probably be the point at which Apollo runs to get Artemis and tricks her into killing her beloved friend. This is due to the fact that the whole story revolves around how Orion's death came about and Artemis's role in it. Apollo's anger and egotistical attitude about the situation caused for the climax to be as bad as being the cause of murder.

Conflict

The source of conflict in the myth all started when Apollo saw his sister and Orion laying next to one another. He, like most others would have, assumed that Orion had caused Artemis to give up her pledge to chastity. A second source of conflict is Apollo's pride. He was too egotistical to admit that he had been wrong by assuming the two were more than friends. Last but not least is the fact that Apollo tormented and indirectly caused Orion's death at the end of the story.

Character Development

Many people helped to develop Artemis to become the goddess many of us know still to this day. Three characters that helped the huntress to grow the most would have to be Leto, Apollo and Zues.

Leto, Artemis's mother, was a favorite lover of Zues. She became pregnant with his children and was carrying the twins while Zues and his wife, Hera, were married. Hera chased Leto away with a serpent and made it almost impossible for her to give birth. When Leto did finally finding a resting place, she gave birth to Artemis who was very attached to her mother. The goddess helped her own mother through 9 days of labor before Apollo was born.

Apollo was Artemis's twin brother. The two were close and fiercely protective of their mother though Apollo often got jealous of others who were close with his sister. He even tricked her into killing Orion who was one of Artemis's best companions.

Zues was Artemis's loving father. He took an early liking to the huntress and gave her anything she wanted for her third birthday. He tried to protect the twins from Hera's hate but his wife was a very jealous goddess.

Setting

When Artemis was only three years old, her father promised her anything she wanted for her birthday. One of the gifts she received was all the mountains in the world where she spent her time. The stories usually don't say any specific locations but the idea of the setting is clear, Artemis liked to be in the trees. She loved being secluded, able to be alone or in company of Orion or many of her nymphs.

Pine needles crunch beneath the huntresses feet. Her companion, Orion, keeps up with his equally stealthy pace. The air, oh the air smells like freedom. A mix of rain and the distinct scent of pine trees. The echo of a brook is heard, the distant water is no doubt clear as glass. Artemis can taste the thrill of her hunt on the tip of her tongue, racing between the trees. No one was to know that soon, her twin Apollo would trick her into killing her very own best friend.

Three Cultural References

Throughout the ages, Artemis has been a muse for many artists and writers as well as others. Most of the earlier references of Artemis in culture are paintings or sculptures of the goddess such as this one: This painting was done by Andrea Camassei.    and is called "The Hunt of Diana" it was done in 1639.  

Other things inspired by Artemis are groups that identify feminine issues such as Artemis Magazine: 

Artemis obviously is a very strong female figure and has inspired many women's rights groups and that is why the creators and readers of Artemis Magazine.

Artemis is also a name of a natural pet food company. They specialize in healthy and natural pet food for for dogs and cats. Click here to visit their website: http://www.artemiscompany.com/

Myth Summary: The Death of Orion

Artemis once met a friend, also a lover of the hunt, in the woods one day. The noble man called himself Orion and the two shared a wonderful summer of hunting, racing, storytelling and laughing. One night, the two fell asleep by one of their evening fires. Apollo stumbled across his sister and the great hunter Orion. He immediately assumed that Orion had caused Artemis to betray her life long pledge to virginity, he masked his anger and began to whistle a tune until the two woke. Once the goddess and hunter were awakened, they looked to Apollo and invited him to breakfast as they didn't know of his true feelings.

Later, Artemis went to talk with her beloved nymphs in the woods and left her brother and friend to converse. The man and the god enjoyed their day of bonding, speaking together of their secret loves and past friendships. Soon, Orion mentioned his excitement that Artemis would soon return and the three would be great friends. Apollo became angry, remembering his earlier feelings toward Orion. More emotion was added to the god's outburst as well, he now felt jealous. Orion quickly explained to Apollo that Artemis was a great friend but he'd never betray her pledge to chastity. Apollo realized that the man's words were true but he refused to acknowledge his mistake. He stormed away, making sure to torment Orion with dreams of a deadly scorpion when he fell asleep that night.

Once Orion awoke, he walked from his house to speak with Artemis but he was confronted by the scorpion from his dream. He fought valiantly but his arrows and spears could not pierce the scorpions armor. Orion fled to the water, swimming from the beast. While this event happened, Apollo went to Artemis and said that an terrible man named  Candaon had attacked one of Artemis's beloved nymphs. Apollo then continued to say that the man was swimming away, trying to escape Artemis's wrath. The infuriated goddess took off, shooting what she thought was Candaon's head and killing him. The man she killed turned out to be her cherished friend Orion and the grieving goddess set him in the stars as a reminder of their wonderful friendship.

Character Introduction and Overview

Artemis is a major Greek goddess. She is the fraternal, twin sister to Apollo and the daughter of Zues and Leto. She is the goddess of hunting, wilderness, wild animals and the moon. Artemis also protects younger girls until they marry and is a master archer. The goddess also has the ability to send plagues, transform herself and others into other figures and heal wounds. Artemis has owned all the mountains in the world since Zues gifted them to her one the goddesses third birthday. He also gave her a silver bow and eternal virginity.