# Erisichthon explained — Bulfinch’s Mythology

> Chapter companion for Bulfinch’s Mythology by Thomas Bulfinch.

## What happens

Erisichthon, a profane man, defiles a sacred grove of Ceres by cutting down a massive oak tree inhabited by a Dryad, despite warnings and a divine voice. In punishment, Ceres sends Famine to afflict him with insatiable hunger, which consumes his wealth and drives him to sell his daughter repeatedly. Through Neptune's aid, his daughter escapes each sale by shape-shifting, but Erisichthon's hunger ultimately drives him to devour his own body until death.

## Themes in this chapter

### Hubris and Divine Retribution

Erisichthon's arrogant defiance of Ceres and her sacred grove leads directly to his horrific punishment by insatiable hunger, exemplifying the theme of hubris punished by the gods.

### Mortality and Immortality

The contrast between the immortal Dryad (who perishes when the tree is felled) and the mortal Erisichthon (who suffers a gruesome death) highlights the boundaries between mortal and divine.

## Character check-ins

### Erisichthon

A profane man who cuts down a sacred oak of Ceres, leading to his punishment by insatiable hunger.

### Ceres

Goddess of agriculture whose sacred grove is violated; she orders Famine to torment Erisichthon.

### Neptune

God who answers the prayers of Erisichthon's daughter, granting her shape-shifting abilities to escape slavery.

## Key lines

> Erisichthon was a profane person and a despiser of the gods. On one occasion he presumed to violate with the axe a grove sacred to Ceres.

Erisichthon, a man who scorned the gods, once dared to chop down a grove dedicated to Ceres.

_Introduces the protagonist's impiety and the central conflict._

> She planned a punishment so dire that one would pity him, if such a culprit as he could be pitied—to deliver him over to Famine.

Ceres devised a punishment so severe that even a villain might be pitied: she handed him over to Famine.

_Highlights the goddess's deliberate and extreme retribution._

> His hunger was like the sea, which receives all the rivers, yet is never filled; or like fire, that burns all the fuel that is heaped upon it, yet is still voracious for more.

His appetite was insatiable, like the sea that swallows rivers without end or a fire that consumes all fuel and still craves more.

_Vivid simile emphasizing the relentless nature of his hunger._

> By this base method the starving father procured food; but not enough for his wants, and at last hunger compelled him to devour his limbs, and he strove to nourish his body by eating his body, till death relieved him from the vengeance of Ceres.

Through this shameful means, the starving father got food, but it was never enough; eventually, hunger forced him to eat his own flesh, and he tried to feed his body by consuming it until death ended Ceres's vengeance.

_Describes the grim conclusion where Erisichthon's punishment culminates in self-cannibalism._

## Links

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