Hephaestus and the Love Net
When he caught his wife with her lover, the ugly blacksmith of the gods showed that he was not without his pride.
When he caught his wife with her lover, the ugly blacksmith of the gods showed that he was not without his pride.
While Odysseus is in the court of King Alcinous, a court musician entertains them with the story of Hephaestus. He was the lame and ugly blacksmith to the gods, whom Zeus instructed Aphrodite to marry so that the other gods would stop fighting over her — a solution which did not solve anything at all.
SO very desirable was Aphrodite, that to bring peace to Olympus Zeus ordered her to marry Hephaestus, the lame and ugly blacksmith of the gods. But the peace was soon broken, for Helios, the sun-god, saw Aphrodite kissing Ares, god of war. He told Hephaestus, who stomped off to his workshop to brood.
At length, Hephaestus fashioned a cunning net so fine it could not be seen, yet so strong it could not be broken. He draped it about his marriage bed, and left for Lemnos, his favourite haunt. Ares watched him go, then slipped indoors to Aphrodite. They giggled their way into bed, and were instantly snared in Hephaestus’s net.
Hephaestus went with gloomy satisfaction to Zeus, to demand compensation for his wife’s proven infidelities. The other gods laughed till they cried. Hermes and Apollo offered to swap places with Ares, net or no net.
At last, Poseidon agreed to compensate the blacksmith for his injured pride, and a humiliated Aphrodite swept off to Paphos on Cyprus, to be pampered by the Graces.
Suggest answers to this question. See if you can limit one answer to exactly seven words.
How did Hephaestus find out about Aphrodite and Ares?
Express the ideas below in a single sentence, using different words as much as possible. Do not be satisfied with the first answer you think of; think of several, and choose the best.
Hephaestus was lame and ugly. Zeus made Aphrodite marry him. Aphrodite resented it.