Unit 2: Character Research

After thinking of my character profile, I realised I had given it a gender without researching anything into potential influences for the characters design such as Gods and Goddesses that could influence the character, it's environment, gender and aesthetics.

When thinking of potential character sketches, I decided to search for Pagan Gods to see if any Gods/Goddesses appeared that had anything to do with nature or the Earth. I came across 2 different female Goddesses named: Demeter and Gaia 

Demeter -
Demeter (called Ceres by the Romans) was one of the most widely regarded Goddesses in Ancient Greece. She was worshipped more in rural areas than in cities, partly because rural areas relied more on good harvests. She is the goddess of harvest, grain, marriage, Sacred Law, the Earth, the seasons and the cycle of life. Most importantly, the is the goddess of the fruit-bearing earth; some believe the name to be derived from "ge meter" (Earth Mother).

Figure 1

Figure 2

Gaia -

In Greek mythology, Gaia (also Gaea or Ge) was the Earth, the mother of all gods and a great goddess in her own right. In Greek mythology, she was born of the emptiness that was before time, along with the Sky (Aether), and various other beings (the specifics vary by author, but usually include some form of the Underworld). After joining with the sky, she gave birth to the Titans (the second generation of Greek deities), who in turn gave birth to the Gods. She is considered one of the earliest "Great Mothers", earth goddesses that are found in almost all pre-Christian cultures. 


Today, this Great Mother is worshipped as the Spirit or the Earth, and is frequently associated with both the Wiccan Goddess, and with many ecological preservation movements. Depending on the tradition followed, She can be the Earth itself, the Planets, the Universe or the transcendent spirit of any of the three.

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Bibliography
Demeter information taken from: http://www.theurbanpagan.com/demeter.html
Gaia information taken from: http://www.theurbanpagan.com/gaia.html 

Images
Figure 1 - http://images.art.com/images/products/regular/12494000/12494474.jpg 
Figure 2 - http://24.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_l0tplzwdRA1qbz35lo1_400.jpg 
Figure 3 - http://sidhere.files.wordpress.com/2008/11/goddess_gaia1.jpg
Figure 4 - http://orderwhitemoon.org/goddess/Gaia/GAIA%20by%20RiverHawk_files/image001.jpg
Figure 5 - http://www.cackaloo.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/04/gaia.jpg