Introduction to
Mythology
Sheltered English I
Mrs. Biggs and Mrs. Garcia
Spring, 2011
What is Mythology?
• The body of stories associated with a culture,
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institution, or person.
Stories concerning the origin of the people,
history, deities, ancestors and heroes.
Stories of forgotten or vague origin, basically
religious or supernatural in nature, which seeks
to explain or rationalize one or more aspects of
the world or a society
Gods and Goddesses of Early
Civilizations
The Aztec Gods and Goddesses
• Religion was extremely important in Aztec life.
• They worshipped hundreds of gods and
goddesses -
http://www.river-styx.net/aztec-myth-gods.htm
– each ruled one or more human activities or aspects of
nature
– many agricultural gods
• They believed that the balance of the natural
world, the processes that make life possible - like
the rain or solar energy - and that the destiny of
people depended on the will of these gods.
Tenochtitlan
•One of the main
cultural centers for
the Aztec
civilization.
•All religious
ceremonies were
directed on the main
temples.
The Creator Gods
•Huitzilopochtli
•Tezcatlipoca
•Quetzalcoatl
•Tlaloc
Huitzilopochtli
• Also called the
“Hummingbird Wizard”
• War and Sun God
• Main God of the Aztecs
• Conquered warriors
were sacrificed to him
yearly. As many as
20,000 a year may have
been killed.
Tezcatlipoca
• Also called “Smoking
Mirror”
• God of Night and all
material things.
Quetzalcoatl
• “The Plumed Serpent”
• The god of civilization,
priesthood and learning.
• http://www.youtube.c
om/watch?v=V9age8
gGR5A
Tlaloc
• The Rain God
• Children were drowned
as sacrifices to him.
• Main agricultural god.
The Mayan Gods and Godesses
• The ancient Mayans had a complex
pantheon of deities whom they
worshipped and offered human sacrifices.
• Rulers were believed to be descendants of
the gods and their blood was the ideal
sacrifice
• 117 gods and goddesses are documented
for the Mayan culture - http://www.river-styx.net/maya-mythgods.htm
Tikal
• 60-square-mile site
holds numerous
pyramids, shrines,
and ball courts, where
Mayans played a
sometimes dangerous
version of soccer,
reportedly using
human skulls as balls
Itzamná
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Creator of the world
“The alligator god”
He symbolizes this universe
Presides over the divine society
God of medicine, earth and fire
Inventor of writing and books
Sends rain down to Earth
Four gods in one
Ixchel
• Itzamna's companion
• Goddess of the Moon,
fertility, medicine,
weaving, rainbows,
songs and childbirth.
• Also watches over
bodies of water - "Lady
of the Sea"
Resources
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www.crystalinks.com/aztecgods.html
http://www.river-styx.net/maya-myth-gods.htm
http://www.river-styx.net/aztec-myth-gods.htm
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V9age8gGR5A
www.students.sbc.edu/gosline05/aztecpowerpoint.ppt
Greek and Roman
Mythology
A Review
of
The Principal Gods and Goddesses
What is a myth?
• A traditional story rooted in primitive folk
beliefs of cultures
• Uses the supernatural to interpret natural
events
• Explains the culture’s view of the universe
and the nature of humanity
The Principal Gods
• Cronos and Rhea
were parents of
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Zeus (Jupiter, Jove)
Poseidon (Neptune)
Hades (Pluto)
Hera (Juno)
Hestia (Vesta)
Demeter (Ceres)
• Other Olympians include
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Athena (Minerva)
Ares (Mars)
Hebe (Juventas)
Hephaestus (Vulcan)
Apollo (Apollo)
Artemis (Diana)
Hermes (Mercury)
Aphrodite (Venus)
Dionysus (Bacchus)
Persephone
The Olympians
Zeus
• Roman Name:
Jupiter (also Jove)
• Supreme god of the
Olympians.
• Fathered many
characters in
mythology
Zeus
Hera
• Roman Name:
Juno
• Zeus’s sister and
wife
• Jealous protector
of marriage
• Punished the
women Zeus fell
in love with
Poseidon
• Roman Name:
Neptune
• God of the Seas
and Waters
• “The Earthshaker”
Hades
• Roman Name:
Pluto
• God of the
Underworld/
Dead
• Kidnapped
Persephone
Hestia
• Roman Name:
Vesta
• Goddess of
Home
• Powerful
Protector
Demeter
• Roman Name:
Ceres
• Goddess of
the Harvest
• A Goddess of
the Earth
Athena
• Roman Name:
Minerva
• Goddess of
Wisdom and
War
• Sprang from
Zeus’s head
Ares
• Roman Name:
Mars
• God of War
• Son of Zeus and
Hera
• Bloodthirsty and
merciless
Hephaestus
• Roman Name:
Vulcan
(Mulciber)
• God of
Fire/Forge
• Son of Zeus and
Hera
• Kind, unlike his
brother
Apollo
• Roman Name:
Apollo
• God of
Light/Sun and
Music
• Brother of
Artemis
Artemis
• Roman Name:
Diana
• Goddess of
the Moon/
Hunt
• Sister to
Apollo
Hermes
• Roman Name:
Mercury
• Messenger of
the Gods
• Appears in
more myths
than any other
character
Aphrodite
• Roman Name:
Venus
• Goddess of
Love and
Beauty
• Sprang from
the ocean
foam
Dionysus
• Roman Name:
Bacchus
• God of Wine
• Patron god of
the Greek stage
• A God of the
Earth
Persephone
• Roman Name:
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Proserpina
Goddess of the
Underworld
Daughter of Zeus
and Demeter
Abducted by
Hades
Eros
• Roman Name:
Cupid
• Young God of
Love
• Son of Aphrodite
and Hephaestus
Iris
• Goddess of the
Rainbow
• Messenger for
Zeus and Hera
• Daughter of the
titan Thaumus
and the nymph
Electra
The Muses
• Nine daughters of
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Zeus and Mnemosyne
Inspired artists of all
kinds
• Goddesses who
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presided over the
arts and sciences
“He is happy whom
the muses love.”
Clio, Urania, Thalia, Melpomene, Erato, Calliope, Euterpe, Terpsichore, Polyhymnia
The Graces
• Three Goddesses of
Grace and Beauty
• “They give life its
bloom.”
• Aglaia (Splendor)
• Euphrosyne (Mirth)
• Thalia (Good Cheer)
The Erinnyes (The Furies)
• Roman Name: Furiae
or Dirae (The Furies)
• Three Goddesses of
Vengeance
– Tisiphone
– Alecto
– Megaera
• They punish evildoers.
The Fates
• Roman Name: Parcae, Moirae
• Three sisters
– Clotho (“The Spinner”)
– Lachesis (“The disposer of lots”)
– Atropos (“The cutter”)
• They weave, measure, and cut the thread
of life for humans.
The Satyrs
• Gods of the woods
and mountains
• “Shepherd gods”
• Goat men (like Pan)
• Companions of
Dionysus
• They like to drink,
dance, and chase
nymphs.
The Gorgons
• Three snake-
haired monsters
• Medusa is most
well-known
• Their look turns
men to stone.
The Centaurs
• Half man, half
horse
• Savage creatures
(except Chiron)
• Followers of
Dionysus
Sources
• Graphics in this presentation were taken from
the following web sites:
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http://www.bulfinch.org/fables/search.html
http://www.pantheon.org/
http://www.messagenet.com/myths/
http://mythman.com/
http://web.uvic.ca/grs/bowman/myth/index.html
http://www.paleothea.com/
http://www.entrenet.com/%7Egroedmed/greekm/myth.html
• This presentation is for educational purposes
only; it has not been and should not be sold or
used as a vehicle to make money.