‘The experience of love and desire is presented by Sappho as overwhelming and painful.’
To an extent Sappho does present love and desire as overwhelming and painful as in L31 she
presents many physical manifestations of her feelings. Sappho claims her ‘tongue breaks’ and she
‘can see nothing’ but ‘there is a buzzing’ in her ears, which fits with the language of paralysis used in
reference to love. This language shows how love is an overwhelming sensory experience that
renders the person feeling these emotions powerless and love is presented somewhat as an illness,
which would be in line with Homeric ideas of desire. Also the verb ‘breaks’ emphasises the painful
nature of the physical experience. However also in the poem there is a ‘delicate fire’ described
running under Sappho’s skin. This phrasing is oxymoronic as fire is generally considered to be wild
and destructive if not controlled. The idea of a ‘delicate fire’ could contribute to the image of love as
bittersweet or painful but also in a strange way, delightful.
The idea that love is bittersweet (therefore painful but not completely) is supported by L130 as love
is describes as a ‘bittersweet, invincible creature‘ ’that loosens the limbs’. The idea of limbs
loosening might portray growing comfort around the beloved and bringing down physical
restrictions however this is contrasted by the idea of love shaking Sappho. The shaking sounds more
violent and sudden that could be categorised as more overwhelming and painful. Love is
characterised as a creature , which may align love with more animalistic and ruthless traits. Also by
calling love ‘invincible’ it suggests that the lover has no control over when love will seize them and
can’t combat these emotions in any way. Love is presented as an irresistible external force that
mortals are victims of. In this way, love is presented as an overwhelming and painful experience.
Love is also presented as an irresistible and overwhelming force of nature in L47 as it’s compared to
a ‘wind buffeting oak trees on a mountain.’ The simile of the wind reinforces love being something
powerful beyond human control and the verb ‘buffeting’ portrays love as relentlessly violent and
therefore painful. If the oak tree is a representation of the self , the buffeting could be symbolic of
someone’s logic and principles being effected by the overwhelming power of love (the wind) and
them acting differently as a result. Love is also potentially alluded to as painful as the setting of a
mountain is dangerous and exposed , which could be symbolic of emotional vulnerability that
happens when you experience love and desire for someone. However this could be a commentary
on isolation caused by love, which may be a result of having to process overwhelming feelings that
have many effects on the pursuer. The idea that ‘love shook’ Sappho’s soul shows the excessive
physical repercussions that are also affecting her at an inner level. This fits into the idea of love being
presented as overwhelming and painful , in a more spiritual way than L31.
However L48 present an alternative view that desire (not love) is painful and overwhelming. Love is
described as soothing the soul ‘which was burning with desire’. Desire is once again associated with
imagery of fire but this time the fire seems to be more destructive and directly painful to Sappho.
This destructive force was working internally on her soul however in contrast, love has acted as a
healing balm for the pain of the fire. Love is presented as the cure to desire’s intense nature. So
overall desire is presented as overwhelming and painful and love is the opposite.
In contrast , L16 presents love as overwhelming as ‘Helen , the most beautiful woman on earth,
abandoned her husband’ as she was led astray. This shows that love is so overwhelming that it can
drive you to leave the oikos , which threatens societal duties being performed. This is dangerous for
the family unit as Helen notoriously left her daughter behind as well as her husband. In this poem,
Sappho says she would rather see her lover’s ‘lovely walk’ than ‘look at all the chariots of the
Lydians’. By comparing love to war and even placing it higher in personal importance , this subverts
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