Ares leaves Aphrodite after the couple is discovered. Do you think he should have stood by her, defying Zeus, or did he do the right thing by ending the relationship?
I wanted so badly for him to stay but I think leaving was his way of protecting Aphrodite. Ares knew that if he stayed, they would never be allowed to live a life together and that she would forever be a target. From that perspective, he did the right thing.
I don’t think anyone wants to cross Zeus. Also, Ares has patience which works well for him but drives Aphrodite crazy!
Ares and Aphrodite were like oil and vinegar and there is no way their relationship wouldn’t be tumultuous.
They were both shunned by society at that point, so if he did stay, he’d be putting her in an even worse position as she was already married to Hephaestus. They still did manage to have several children together. It’s ironic I thought that the goddess of love and the goddess of war came together. This novel is really a meditation on love in all it’s forms-romantic, destructive, and transformative.
Ares was always conflicted about his relationship/attraction to Aphrodite. Zeus was a tyrant. I think Ares thought it best to end the relationship but he could have done better in the way he went about it.
I’d have preferred he stay by Aphrodite but in the writing of this story, she and Ares seemed like star-crossed lovers, so I was not surprised. Plus, I felt Ares really didn’t understand love. When you’re so war focused - a very unloving way to live - I don’t think you can indulge yourself with love.
While I would have liked to have seen them stay together, I think they needed a break, and acutally maybe that’s why their relationship survives, as they part so often!
I think it was necessary for Aphrodite to come to terms with what happened and decide how to move forward on her own.
Ares should have spoken up for Aphrodite. Even if he didn’t want to continue their relationship, he should have said something while they were being berated.