Famous Crimes and Punishments in Mythology
Greek mythology is full of figures famous for their terrible crimes and for the
imaginative ways the gods found to punish them. Below are four interesting
crime and punishment situations.
Case 1
For betraying a secret of Zeus and tricking Hades, Sisyphus was
condemned for eternity to roll a gigantic stone up to the top of a steep hill.
Whenever he reached the top, the stone rolled back down the hill. Then
Sisyphus had to start rolling it up the hill all over again.
Case 2
In an attempt to deceive the gods, King Tantalus killed his own son, Pelops, and
served him to them at a banquet. After his awful crime was detected, the gods
condemned Tantalus to Hades to suffer eternal hunger and thirst. Tantalus stood
forever in a lake of water that lowered whenever he wanted to drink. He was also
surrounded by lush trees, whose branches lifted up whenever he reached for their ripe
fruit.
Case 3
The Danaides were forty-nine sisters who married husbands on
the same day and then killed them that very night! As punishment,
they were condemned eternally to draw water to fill a large vessel with
many holes in the bottom. Of course, the water drained out of the pot as
fast as they poured it in. Thus, they were never able to wash away their
sin.
Case 4
For attempting to carry off Hera, Ixion was condemned by Zeus to be fastened to a
flaming wheel with four spokes, one for each arm and leg. The wheel whirled round and
round forever, never stopping.