How does the parent/child relationship seem to be portrayed?

A number of different parent/child relationships are depicted in our selections.  How does the parent/child relationship seem to be portrayed?  How does the representation in these texts compare to your own upbringing and attitudes toward this relationship?  Does there appear to be a gender difference in parental roles?  Is the parental relationship the same as the maternal one?  How do children relate to their parents?

Classmates answer

Parent/Child Relationship

The section titled Ceres and Proserpina gives us two interesting views into this type of relationship. Venus and Cupid’s relationship is very conspiratorial , with the pair setting the events of the tale into action in an attempt to further their own domain. Ceres and Persephone’s relationship is shown as more tender. Ceres searches an searches for her daughter, and when she discovers what has happened she in not shy about confronting Jove. Jove is, of course, the patriarch of the Olympians, so he acts in a patriarchal way and considers the abduction a marriage. They come to compromise and the seasons are developed. The fundamental and frightening love Ceres has for her daughter is very human and can be found in most mothers across the globe. The willingness to destroy the earth in order to protect her child, in my opinion, makes Ceres one of the better divine mothers in the Greek/Roman pantheon.