Did Kratos Care For Athena? Unraveling the Complex Relationship
Yes, Kratos, the Ghost of Sparta, did care for Athena, though the nature of his affection was complex, evolving, and often fraught with conflict. It wasn’t a simple, familial love. Instead, it was a tangled web of obligation, respect, resentment, and, arguably, even a sliver of genuine affection buried deep beneath layers of rage and trauma. Understanding their relationship requires delving into the nuances of the God of War narrative, examining their interactions, and considering the motivations of both characters throughout the series.
The Foundation of Their Relationship: Dependence and Guidance
In the early games, Athena serves primarily as Kratos’s guide and benefactor. She bestows upon him missions and offers him the promise of absolution from his past sins, particularly the unintentional murder of his family. Kratos, fueled by vengeance and haunted by nightmares, relies on Athena to direct his rage and provide him with purpose. This dependence fosters a sense of obligation. He respects her power and her position as a goddess, even if he doesn’t entirely trust her.
Athena, in turn, seems to view Kratos as a powerful weapon, a means to an end in her own divine machinations. She recognizes his potential and his ruthlessness, qualities she can exploit for her own purposes. However, there are hints of a deeper connection. The novelizations of God of War and God of War II suggest that Athena harbors a significant amount of concern for Kratos, frequently defending him and worrying about his actions, regardless of the consequences. This level of concern goes beyond mere utility and indicates a more personal investment in his well-being.
The Turning Point: Betrayal and Distrust
The relationship between Kratos and Athena takes a significant turn during the events of Ghost of Sparta. Kratos learns about the existence of his brother, Deimos, and Athena attempts to prevent him from rescuing him. This perceived betrayal fuels Kratos’s growing distrust of the gods, including Athena. He begins to see her not as a benevolent guide but as another manipulative deity using him for her own selfish goals.
This resentment deepens as Kratos continues his path of destruction, unleashing chaos and death upon the ancient world. Athena remains a recurring presence, offering guidance and warnings, but her words are increasingly met with skepticism and defiance. Kratos realizes that the gods, including Athena, are not interested in justice or redemption but only in maintaining their own power and control.
The Sacrifice and its Aftermath: Regret and Haunting
The climax of God of War III marks the ultimate rupture in their relationship. When Kratos attempts to kill Zeus, Athena intervenes and takes the blow herself. Her dying words reveal her own ambitions for the power contained within Pandora’s Box, further cementing Kratos’s disillusionment with the gods. The article indicates that Athena is the number one person that Kratos did not mean to kill, and showed great regret upon doing so. When he met her in the Underworld, he seemed dearly sorry that he had impaled her. Also, she seemed to be the only god he would listen to, save Hephestaus.
Kratos’s reaction to Athena’s death is complex. He feels remorse for unintentionally killing her, a figure who, despite her flaws, had played a significant role in his life. However, he also recognizes that her death was a consequence of her own actions and her own pursuit of power.
Even after her death, Athena’s presence continues to haunt Kratos. She appears as a spectral figure in God of War (2018), taunting him about his past and reminding him of the monster he once was. This suggests that Kratos cannot fully escape his relationship with Athena, even in death. Her memory serves as a constant reminder of his past actions and the choices he has made. In his actions in the Norse saga, he is trying to prevent that version of himself from resurfacing in Atreus.
Conclusion: A Complicated Affection
In conclusion, Kratos’s feelings for Athena were far from simple. While he resented her manipulation and distrusted her motives, he also held a degree of respect and perhaps even affection for her. Their relationship was shaped by obligation, betrayal, and ultimately, tragedy. He was saddened by the fact that he stabbed her when he tried to kill Zeus. Athena’s death weighed heavily on him, not because of any simple love, but because it was the culmination of his destructive path and the embodiment of the gods’ corruption. It’s a testament to the complex and nuanced storytelling of the God of War series that their relationship continues to be debated and analyzed by fans. Exploring these complex relationships is one of the many ways that video games can provide powerful learning opportunities. Resources such as the Games Learning Society at https://www.gameslearningsociety.org/, explore the educational potential of gaming.
It was a love filled with obligation, betrayals, and tragedy. Their relationship wasn’t easy, and their complex dynamic is fascinating.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
Here are 15 frequently asked questions about the relationship between Kratos and Athena, providing further context and insight:
1. Biologically, what is the relationship between Kratos and Athena?
Athena is Kratos’s older half-sister. Both are children of Zeus, making them siblings.
2. Did Athena genuinely care about Kratos?
According to the game developers and novelizations, Athena did care about Kratos, arguably more than he cared for her, often defending him and worrying about his fate. In the Gow2 novelization its constantly shown that she keeps defending kratos no matter what crimes he’s done, worrying about him all the time.
3. Why did Kratos grow to dislike Athena?
Kratos’s dislike for Athena stemmed from her perceived manipulation and betrayal, particularly during Ghost of Sparta, where she tried to prevent him from saving his brother, Deimos. From his point of view, she was just another God that had used him, therefore she was evil/bad.
4. What happened to Athena after Kratos left Greece?
After Kratos’s death in God of War III, Athena ascended, seemingly free to pursue her own plans for Greece and humanity, potentially becoming an iron-fisted ruler.
5. Did Athena forgive Kratos for his sins?
In God of War, after Kratos killed Ares, Athena revealed that he was forgiven of his sins, but not relieved of his nightmares.
6. What did Athena ultimately want from Kratos?
Athena wanted Kratos to return the power of Hope, contained within Pandora’s Box, to her.
7. Was there ever a romantic relationship between Kratos and Athena?
There is no canonical evidence to suggest a romantic relationship between Kratos and Athena, although the promiscuity of the gods makes it a possibility.
8. Why did Athena taunt Kratos in God of War (2018)?
Athena taunted Kratos to remind him of his monstrous past, a past he was trying to hide from his son, Atreus.
9. Why did Kratos refuse Odin’s offer in God of War Ragnarök?
Kratos refused Odin’s offer because he cared about Freya, whom Odin threatened, and he trusted Mimir’s warnings about Odin’s untrustworthiness. That and he definitely would not want to make another deal with another God.
10. Did Kratos intentionally kill Athena?
No, Kratos did not intentionally kill Athena. She jumped in front of Zeus to protect him from Kratos’s attack.
11. What would have happened if Kratos had given Athena the power of Hope?
Athena would have become an absolute ruler, potentially restoring Greece but at the cost of human potential and free will.
12. Did Zeus ever love Kratos?
While Zeus may not have loved Kratos, Kratos’s remorse for killing him likely stems from his ashamed to be a father killer and while Zeus didn’t love Kratos, Kratos actually loves Atreus and doesn’t want his son knowing that he killed his father because he is.
13. Was Athena more popular than Ares in ancient Greece?
Yes, the Greeks generally preferred Athena over Ares due to her wisdom and strategic abilities, as opposed to Ares’s brutality.
14. Who was stronger, Ares or Athena?
Athena was considered stronger than Ares, both in personal strength and indirect power, according to Homer’s Iliad.
15. How did Kratos become a god?
Kratos became a full god, the God of War, after killing Ares.
These FAQs, along with the main article, should provide a comprehensive understanding of the complex and evolving relationship between Kratos and Athena in the God of War series.