Queer Greek Gods

[AVEN #1 fan]

So, who's interested in talking about the sexuality of mythological greek gods, here are some statements, pls correct me if i'm wrong: :)

- Artemis, goddess of hunt, was either aroace or a lesbian according to many people.

- Zeus, god of the thunder, was bisexual.

- Poseidon, god of the seas, was bisexual.

- Dionysus, god of the parties, was bisexual.

- Apollo, god of the sun, was bisexual.

- Hermes, menssager of the gods, was bisexual as well.

- Athena, goddess of widsom, was a lesbian.

- Hermaphrodite, god(dess) of androgyny, was intersex, androgynous and nonbinary

Anyone would like to add anything i missed? Feel free.

[m4rble]

Artemis didn't want to get married or have sex with men because in those days a woman attaching herself to a man would mean giving up her autonomy and independence. Artemis was very wild and independent. This doesn't necessarily mean she was gay or aro ace. Athena was likely a virgin goddess because people equated intelligence and wisdom with manliness. Hermaphrodite was actually male(the son of Hermes and Aphrodite) but he was fused with a nymph who fell in love with him and became a symbol of marriage(the literal fusing of a man and woman).

[Luftschlosseule]

I think of the most greek gods as pansexual, no pun intended.
Why would Zeus care which sex he has sex with, as he has sex with everything that's available? Also, we're talking about beings that had not exclusively sex with humans, meaning not only mythical creatures but animals, or being themselves in animal form and having sex.

[AVEN #1 fan]

most gods were polygamous as well.

[m4rble]

most gods were polygamous as well.

Well most of them cheated on their spouse anyway.

[=NolePtr]

In greek culture heterosexual males would engage in sexual activities with each other. It was not considered repulsive or wrong, unless you were on the receiving end, then you were considered to be of lesser status and submissive.

Edit: Totally different meaning without the "with each other" clause

[bysshe]

As I remember younger men would couple with older men prior to marriage in Greek culture.  It was sort of like marriage prep and mentoring, plus the cult of youth and beauty (nothing changes, eh?)  The "lesser status" applied to men past adolescence who continued to be on the receiving end of things.  Also, the older-younger thing had a class dynamic.  People of the ruling class - think Plato, for example - got to participate in ephebeophilia, to coin a word.  Didn't seem to be as much of a phenomenon among the rest of society in old Greece. 

[danvers]

Are there any myths where Artemis or Athena fell in love with women? I thought of both of them as asexual (and Artemis was an aro ace arrow ace, haha!)

[Emmi]

I personally think Artemis was Demiromantic Asexual. In one myth, she she fell in love with the hunter Orion, but only after being friends for a while. Overly Sarcastic Productions on YouTube touches on this topic briefly in their video on Endymion. It's one of my favorite videos on the channel. 

[danvers]

On ‎8‎/‎11‎/‎2017 at 4:50 PM, Emmi said:

I personally think Artemis was Demiromantic Asexual. In one myth, she she fell in love with the hunter Orion, but only after being friends for a while. Overly Sarcastic Productions on YouTube touches on this topic briefly in their video on Endymion. It's one of my favorite videos on the channel. 

I forgot about Orion! Based on that version of Orion's story (like pretty much every other myth, there are lots of different versions, and Artemis doesn't fall in love with Orion in all of them), demiromantic asexual makes a lot of sense.