Eris (goddess)

This article is about a Greek goddess. For the dwarf planet, see Eris (dwarf planet).

Eris

Eris (Greek: Ἒρις, "Strife") Eris is a Greek goddess who shows what happens when people fight and argue. She is not liked by many gods because she likes to make trouble and cause problems wherever she goes. Eris is very famous because of a story about her Golden Apple of Discord. This apple caused a big fight that started the Trojan War. Eris is the daughter of Nyx, the goddess of the night, or sometimes people say she is the daughter of Zeus and Hera. She has a brother named Ares, the god of war, and she often went with him into battles, riding in his chariot. In the old Greek stories, Homer said Eris is Ares’ sister, so she is the daughter of Zeus and Hera. But most stories, like Hesiod’s Theogony, say Eris was the last child of Nyx. Eris had many children too, and all of them showed the bad things that come from fights and trouble. These children were things like hard work, forgetfulness, hunger, pain, battles, murders, lies, quarrels, and people breaking promises.

Eris is a very mean goddess. Most gods do not like her and stay away from her. Only her brother Ares likes her, and he rides with her into battles. In Homer’s Iliad, Eris walks on the earth making both the Trojan and Greek soldiers angry at each other. Unlike Ares, she never chose a side in the Trojan War. Zeus once sent Eris to Odysseus’ ship, and her loud voice made the Greek soldiers want to fight and stopped them from going home. She even stayed on the battlefield to watch all the fighting because she loved it so much. Some stories, like Hesiod’s Works and Days, say there are two Erises. The younger one is cruel and causes trouble for humans, but the older one can be helpful. The older Eris encourages people to work hard and compete in a fair way, instead of fighting.

In old Greek art, Eris is not seen very often. One writer, Pausanias, said he saw a decorated chest with a picture of Eris standing ugly between two warriors. Sometimes she is shown with wings. The most famous story about Eris is the story of the Golden Apple of Discord. It started at the wedding of Peleus, a Greek hero, and Thetis, a sea nymph. All the gods were invited, but Eris was left out. She was angry and wanted to cause trouble. She rolled a golden apple to three goddesses, Athena, Hera, and Aphrodite. The apple said, “To the fairest.” All three goddesses wanted it and argued. Zeus told them to go to Paris, a prince of Troy, and let him decide who was the fairest. Each goddess promised Paris something if he chose her. Hera promised him power over the world, Athena promised him glory in war, and Aphrodite promised him the most beautiful woman in the world, Helen of Sparta. Paris chose Aphrodite, and this led to him taking Helen and the start of the Trojan War.

Eris also caused trouble in other stories. One story is about Polytechnos and his wife Aëdon. They said they loved each other more than Zeus and Hera, and Hera sent Eris to punish them. Eris made them fight and compete, and this caused a tragedy. Aëdon accidentally killed their son Itys and fed him to Polytechnos. Later, Zeus turned the whole family into birds to stop more problems. Eris also caused trouble at another wedding, the wedding of Pirithous and Hippodamia. She was not invited, but she still made trouble. The centaurs drank too much wine and tried to hurt the bride. Pirithous stopped them, and this fight started a long feud between the Lapiths and centaurs, which was all part of Eris’ plan with her brother Ares. Eris is always linked to fights, arguments, and trouble, and she shows how even small actions can lead to big problems.