Introduction & Overview of Hymn to Aphrodite by Sappho

Hymn to Aphrodite Introduction

Sappho's "Hymn to Aphrodite" is the only poem from her many books of poetry to survive in its entirety. The actual text of the poem was quoted by Dionysus, an orator who lived in Rome about 30 b.c. He quoted Sappho's poem in full in one of his own works, which accounts for the poem's survival. Sappho's poem consists of a plea from a forlorn individual to help secure the ardor of a reluctant lover. Such requests were common for the period in which the poem was written, but Sappho's poem also provides a dialogue, since it provides the goddess's response to the poet's plea. Sappho's devotion to Aphrodite is reflected in this personal response, which suggests an intimacy, and thus a uniqueness, among such works. As is the case with "Hymn to Aphrodite," many of Sappho's poems focus on love and marriage, often addressing pleas to the...
(read more)