“Politically incorrect” meaning of flowers
As you know, we have been working on developing a new product line called “Emotion Series” of bouquets, based on the meaning of each flower. In the process of investigating the meanings of flowers and their mythologies, I have encountered so far three instances of rather graphic stories, involving things like murder, jealous rage, adultery, pedophilia, etc, – all those things that we usually choose not to associate with flowers.
For example, do you know that meaning of Anemone, Anticipation or Forsaken, has something to do with the tragic death of a Greek God Adonis, one of many lovers of flirtatious Aphrodite (or Venus, see left)? Read our “Emotion Series – Anemone.”
The Persian love story about Red Tulip is also intense and bloody, involving a love triangle among a husband, his wife and her lover. And there’s this story about Hyacinth – Do you know that the name “Hyacinth” comes from a Greek hero “Hyacinthus”, a boy lover of pedophilic Apollo who accidentally killed the boy?
I actually have thought about “sanitizing” these stories, just so that they would better conform to our commercialized ideas about flowers. But I decided not to sanitize it. The choice was between being politically correct and being truthful, and I think the true story must not be hidden. In fact these stories are fascinating to read, hopefully giving you a deeper understanding of a long, long history of human interaction with flowers. Greek mythologies, after all, are more than 2,500 years old…
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