Greek Mythology
•Greek Mythology is a group
of traditional tales told by the
ancient Greeks about the
deeds of gods and heroes
and their relations with
ordinary human beings.
1
the
Titans
2
the
Gods
3
other
Deities
the Titans（十二泰坦）
Cronus(克罗诺斯) : 天空之神。
Rhea(瑞亚) : 时光女神。
Oceanus(俄刻阿诺斯) : 水之神。
Tethys(泰西斯) : 沧海女神。俄刻阿诺斯之妻。
Crius(克瑞斯) : 生长之神。
Lapetus (伊阿佩托斯) : 灵魂之神 。阿忒拉斯、普罗米修斯、厄庇米
修斯和墨诺提俄斯之父。
Phoebe(福柏) : 月之女神。月之女神勒托与阿斯特瑞亚之母。
Coeus (科俄斯) : 智力之神。
Themis (忒弥斯) : 秩序和正义女神。宙斯第二位妻子,时序三女神母 。
Mnemosyne(谟涅摩叙涅) : 记忆之神。宙斯第五位妻子,九缪斯之母 。
Hyperion(许配利翁) : 光之神
Thea(忒亚) : 许配利翁之妻。
the Gods（十二主神）
Zeus(宙斯):
the god of the sky.
Hera(赫拉):
the goddess of marriage and childbirth.
Poseidon(波塞冬):
the god of the sea,protector.
Hades(哈迪斯):
the god the dead andwealth.
Hestia(赫斯提亚):
the goddess of the Hearth(灶台).
Ares(阿瑞斯):
the god of war.
Hermes(赫尔墨斯):
the god of thieves and commerce.
Hephaestus(赫斯菲托斯): the god of fire and the forge(熔炉).
Apollo(阿波罗):
the god of light.
Artemis(阿尔忒弥斯): the goddess of chastity,virginity,the hunt,
the moon,and the natural environment.
Athena(雅典娜):
the Greek virgin goddess of reason,
intelligent activity,arts and literature.
Aphrodite(阿弗洛狄德): the goddess of love,desire and beauty.
Gods
The ancient Greeks worshiped
many gods.
Greek gods can be divided into
several groups.The earliest
group was Titans,led by Cronus.
The most powerful group was
the Olympians.
The Olympians
The Olympians are a group of 12
gods who ruled after the
overthrow(颠覆） of the Titans. All
the Olympians are related in some
way. They are named after their
dwelling place Mount Olympus.
Zeus
Zeus was the god of the sky and ruler of
the Olympian gods.
He was the rain god, and the cloud
gatherer, who holds the terrible
thunderbolt.
his bird the eagle, his tree the oak
He is married to Hera but, is famous for
his many affairs
He is also known to punish those that lie
or break oaths
Poseidon
God of the sea, protector of all waters.
Poseidon is the brother of Zeus
He was widely worshiped by seamen.
His weapon is a trident（三叉戟）,
which can shake the earth, and shatter
any object. He is second only to Zeus
in power amongst the gods.
Hades
Hades is also the brother of Zeus,
ruling over the dead.
He is also the god of wealth, due to
the precious metals mined from the
earth.
He has a helmet that makes him
invisable. He rarely leaves the
underworld.
Hestia
Hestia is Zeus’ sister.
She is the Goddess of the Hearth（灶
台）, the symbol of the house around
which a new born child is carried
before it is received into the family.
Of all the Olympians, she is the
mildest, most upright and most
charitable（仁慈的）.
Hera
Hera is Zeus’ wife and sister.
She is the supreme goddess,
goddess of marriage and childbirth
and takes special care of married
women.
Most stories concerning Hera have
to do with her jealous revenge for
Zeus‘s infidelities（不信神，不忠）.
Ares
• Ares is the son of Zeus and Hera
• He is the god of war. He is considered
murderous（行凶的） and bloodstained（
血污的） but, also a coward.
• He was disliked by both parents.
Athena
• Athena is the Greek virgin goddess of
reason, intelligent activity, arts and
literature.
• Athena is the daughter of Zeus. She sprang
full grown in armour（盔甲） from his
forehead, thus has no mother.
• She is fierce and brave in battle but, only wars to
defined the state and home from outside enemies.
• She is the goddess of the city, handicrafts, and
agriculture. She invented the bridle（缰绳）, the
trumpet, the flute, the pot, the plow, the yoke, the
ship, and the chariot. She is the embodiment（化身
） of wisdom, reason, and purity.
• She was Zeus's favorite child and was allowed to
use his weapons including his thunderbolt. Her
favorite city is Athens. Her tree is the olive. The owl
is her bird.
Apollo
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Apollo is the son of Zeus
He is the god of music, playing a golden lyre.
The Archer, far shooting with a silver bow.
The god of healing who taught man medicine.
The god of light. One of Apollo's more importaint
daily tasks is to harness his chariot with four horses
and drive the Sun across the sky.
• The god of truth, who can not speak a lie.
Aphrodite
• Aphrodite is the goddess of love, desire and
beauty.
• In addition to her natural gifts she has a
magical girdle that compels （迫使）anyone
she wishes to desire her.
• She represented sex, affection, and the
attraction that binds people together.
Hermes
• Hermes is the son of Zeus
• He was the cleverest of the Olympian gods,
and messenger to all the other gods.
• He is the fastest of the gods. He wears
winged sandals, a winged hat, and carries a
magic wand（棒）
• He is the god of thieves and god of
commerce. He is the guide for the dead to go
to the underworld.
Artemis
• Artemis is the daughter of Zeus and her twin
brother is Apollo
• She was goddess of chastity, virginity, the
hunt, the moon, and the natural
environment
• She is the protector of the young.
Hephaestus
• Hephaestus is the son of Zeus and Hera
• He is the god of fire and the forge（熔炉）.
He is the smith and armorer(兵器制造者）
of the gods
• He is kind and peace loving
• He is the only god to be physically ugly. He is
also lame.
Other gods
• Prometheus
• Atlas
A Titan condemned by Zeus
to support the heavens upon his shoulders
• Dionysos
The god of wine and of an orgiastic（狂欢的
） religion celebrating the power and fertility
（肥沃，丰产） of nature
Heros
• Greek heroes were almost as important as
the gods in Greek mythology.Heroes were
bigger,braver,and more beautiful than
ordinary men and women.In most cases their
fathers or grandfathers were gods,but their
mothers were mortals,so they were often
called demigods(half-gods).
• Heracles
The son of Zeus
and Alcmene, a hero of extraordinary
strength who won immortality by
performing 12 labors demanded by Hera
• Achilles
The hero of
Homer’s Iliad（伊利亚特）, the son of
Peleus and Thetis and slayer of Hector
• Perseus
The son of Dana and Zeus, and husband of
Andromeda who killed the Gorgon（蛇发女妖）
Medusa
• Theseus
Theseus was
Athens's great hero. While having all the qualities
of a traditional hero, such as strength and courage,
he was also intelligent and wise. His early
adventures benefited the city and region. He was a
successful king.
Greek Mythology Is Unique
• The Greek gods and goddesses resembled human
beings in their form,but this form was stongly
idealized.They also resembled human beings in
their emotions and experienced jealousy,love and
grief.They shared with humans a desire to assert（
主张） their own authority and to punish anyone
who defied it.
• There were several groups of minor（未成年的）
gods in Greek mythology.Nymphs（小仙女） were
minor goddesses or spirits of nature,living in
oceans,lakes,rivers,mountains and trees.
• Three goddesses called Fates controlled the destiny
of every man.
• The Muses ,nine daughters of Zeus,were goddesses
of literature,music and dance.The Horae were
goddesses who controlled the seasons.
• The Furies were terrible goddesses who pursued
those who had murdered their friends or relatives.
Great Influence
• The Greek mythology is an important part of
the ancient culture which has vast and deep
influence on the whole western culture. Its
great influence upon the English language
and literature is beyond description. A great
number of words and idioms in the English
language come from the Greek mythology.
1.Achilles’ heel
• Named after the Greek hero Achilles. When he was
a small child, his mother dipped him into the river
Styx, which made him invulnerable (= he could not
be injured). She held him by his heel, which
therefore was not touched by the water. Achilles
died after being wounded by an arrow in the heel.
• An Achilles’ heel is a fatal weakness in spite of
overall strength, actually or potentially leading to
downfall.
2. A sword of Damocles
• something unpleasant,dreadful, etc that seems to
be about to happen to sb, and causes a feeling of
apprehension and imminent danger
• Greek courtier to Dionysius the Elder, tyrant of
Syracuse, who according to legend was forced to sit
at a banquet table under a sword suspended by a
single hair to demonstrate the precariousness of a
king's fortunes
3. Oedipus complex
• From the Greek story of Oedipus, whose father
Laius had been told by the oracle that his son would
kill him. Laius left Oedipus on a mountain to die,
but a shepherd rescued him. Oedipus returned
home many years later but did not recognize his
parents. He killed his father and married his mother
Jocasta.
• feelings of sexual desire that a boy has for his
mother and the jealous feelings towards his father
that this causes