Johanna’s presentation is called “Three Faces of Love”
The heart is a biological organ and metaphorical receptacle of love. It has inspired great art, great music, great poetry, stories, great passion, and at times, responses to suffering. The heart is a great mystery, however, it is the center of what it means to be human, to be alive, or to be a god. There are many myths of creation, marriage, and revenge that suggest how we might understand this organ, this
receptacle of love. Myths that tell us that goddesses and gods “so loved the world” they created the earth and all that sustains us. These are acts of love. Yet, the heart that is violated or hurt could be motivation to destroy the world, humankind. The myths tell us this as well. In reading myths, we come to see the complex and universal expressions of love, heart-center expressions that point to rapture, agape, eros, and sometimes redemption.
This paper will trace these expressions of love in three powerful myths, the myth of Isis, the great Mother Goddess of the Universe, Aphrodite, the queen of heaven and earth, and Freyja, the Germanic goddess of love and war.
About Johanna
Johanna Fisher is professor of English at Canisius University. She also serves as co-director of Women and Gender Studies. Johanna lives in both U.S. and Germany. She writes extensively for Europeana, an online repository for digital images from leading museums in Europe. Currently, she is writing a series of articles about the place of public memorials and art with a focus on the work of German public artist, Gunter Demnig. Johanna is also a poet and dancer who has taught ballet to young adults for many years.