Perseus
Shivani Baisiwala
Janvi Chawla
Ovid’s Metamorphoses
• Perseus’ story is told in the
Metamorphoses
–Book 4 has the stories of Perseus and
Atlas and of Perseus and Andromeda
–Book 5 contains the story of Perseus
and Phineas
Parentage
• Perseus (Περσεύς) was the son of Jupiter and Danaë,
daughter of Acrisius (King of Argos) and Eurydice
• Acrisius (monstrous mortal) went to the oracle to
find out what the future of his throne would be.
Instead of hearing happy news, he was told that a
child from his daughter was destined to kill him.
As a result, he imprisoned Danae in a
tower. However, Zeus appeared in the
form of shower of gold, and nine months
later, Perseus arrived.
Parentage
• Apollodorus
indicated another
version of Perseus'
conception, writing
that the real father
was Proëtus, brother
and rival of Acrisius.
• Proëtus had seduced
his niece, so that
Danaë became
pregnant
Perseus and Medusa
• Having found that Danaë had given birth to a son,
Acrisius locked both mother and child in a chest
and threw them into the sea.
• However, Zeus asked his brother, Poseidon, to
guide the chest to the island of Seriphus, where
the fisherman Dictys found them.
Perseus and Medusa
• When Perseus grew into a strong young man,
Polydectes, who was Dictys' brother and the king
of Seriphus, fell in love with Danaë. Polydectes
wanted to marry her, but did not want or like her
son, Perseus, and the feeling was mutual!
• Polydectes invited Perseus to a celebration where
he had falsely announced his plan to marry a
daughter of Oenomaüs, Hippodameia.
• Every guest brought a gift
except for Perseus. When
berated for failure to bring a
gift, Perseus rashly promised
the king that he would bring
anything the king wished.
• Polydectes jumped at this
chance to get rid of Perseus
and he said that he wanted
the head of Medusa, a
hideous monster, called a
Gorgon, whose very gaze
could turn you to stone!
The Graeae
• First, with the guidance of Hermes
and Athena, Perseus sought out the
Graeae, sisters of the Gorgons.
• Their names are Enyo, Pephredo, and
Deino and they are the daughters of
Phorcus and Ceto.
• They possessed only one eye and one
tooth among them.
• Perseus stole the eye and tooth and
promised to return them after the
Graeae had revealed how he could
find the Gorgons and certain nymphs.
• However, when they gave him the
information, he flung the eye into
Lake Triton so they could not inform
their sisters of his arrival.
The
Nymphs
• From the nymphs, Perseus
got a pair of winged
sandals, a bag for Medusa’s
head and a helmet of
invisibility.
• Also, Hermes gave him an
adamantine sickle. Some
accounts also say that it
was Hermes, rather than
the nymphs, who gave
Perseus the winged
sandals.
The Gorgons
• Now invisible, Perseus flew to the Gorgons.
• They are Stheno, Euryale, and Medusa.
• Their heads are covered in snakes, they have
wings of gold, and they could turn people into
stone just by looking at them
• Medusa is the only mortal one
– Why? Well, Poseidon was in love with her and they
“played scrabble” on the floor of Athena’s temple. Out
of anger, Athena changed Medusa into a monster.
How Perseus Does It
• Perseus, with Athena’s guidance, kept his eyes on the
reflection in his bronze shield (which Athena had given
him) rather than looking at Medusa.
• When he saw the image of Medusa, he beheaded her
and left, still invisible so that the other Gorgons
couldn’t catch him.
• When he beheaded Medusa, Pegasus and Chrysaor
came out – children as a result of her union with
Poseidon.
Libya
• As Perseus flew back,
he flew over Libya.
• Drops of blood fell from
Medusa’s head down to
the desert, changing
into deadly serpents.
Atlas
• When Perseus had reached
the western limit of the
earth, he wanted to stop
and rest.
• This was the realm of Atlas,
who had golden trees
bearing golden fruit.
• Perseus told him that he
was a son of Zeus, and Atlas
was immediately wary
because he had been told
that a son of Zeus would
one day rob him of his
golden apples.
• Therefore, he tried to kick
Perseus out.
• Perseus then raised the head of Medusa and
turned Atlas to stone.
• Atlas became a mountain and then, because
the gods willed it, he supported the sky.
• Hercules was the person meant by the
prophecy who would one day steal the Golden
Apples.
Andromeda
• Flying on, Perseus arrived in
Ethiopia where Cepheus, King of
Joppa, ruled.
• Unfortunately, his wife, Cassiopeia,
had bragged that she was more
beautiful that the nymphs of the
sea.
• In punishment, every year
Poseidon sent a monster out of the
sea to lay waste to the country.
• When the king asked an oracle
what he should do, the oracle said
that he must sacrifice his daughter,
the beautiful Princess Andromeda.
• So, he chained her to a rock and
left her for the monster to devour
her.
Perseus and Andromeda
• When Perseus flew by and saw Andromeda, he flew near her
and took off his cap of invisibility.
• Having landed in Joppa and having heard what was going on,
he resolved to save her on the condition that she would marry
him. King Cepheus agreed.
Killing the Monster
• When the monster, who was named Cetus, came out of the
sea, Perseus once again began to fly. However, the monster
saw his shadow on the water and began to attack it.
• Then, Perseus swooped down and struck his sword through
the monster’s shoulder and through its hide.
• Finally, the monster died and Perseus took Andromeda back
to palace.
More Adventures
• Then, he returned the cap, the bag, and the
shoes to the nymphs and went back to get the
Gorgon’s head and Andromeda.
• However, Cepheus had already made another
marriage proposal for Andromeda – he had
betrothed her to her uncle, Phineas.
• When Perseus
entered the palace
and saw what was
happening, he lifted
out Medusa’s head
and turned all those
challenging him to
stone.
• Then, he took
Andromeda with him
and continued on.
The Killing of Polydectes
• When he reached Seriphos again, Perseus entered
the palace and announced to Polydectes that he
had brought the head of Medusa
• Polydectes, not believing that this was true
challenged Perseus to show him the head.
• Perseus obliged, and immediately everyone who
had remained to mock Perseus was turned to stone.
Aftermath
• Perseus then made Dictys the King of Seriphos.
• He gave the Gorgon’s head to Athena, who placed it
in the center of her shield.
• Perseus and Andromeda were happily married and
they had a son named Perses, who gave rise to the
Persian people.
Returning (Continued)
• Meanwhile, Acrisius had heard about Danae and Perseus and
realized that they were still alive.
• Therefore he fled to Thessaly, where Perseus and Andromeda
had, alas, gone as well.
• Both he and Perseus ended up at a set of funeral games.
• Perseus was participating in the discus throw.
• His throw accidentally flew into the crowd, where it struck
Acrisius, who died.
• Immediately, the people called out “Acrisius, King Acrisius”
and Perseus knew that he had killed the king and could not
hope of taking over his kingdom.
The Death of Acrisius