I.
Greek and Roman Mythology
a. What is a myth?
i. A traditional story rooted in primitive folk beliefs of cultures
ii. Uses the supernatural to interpret natural events
iii. Explains the cultures view of the universe
b. In the beginning
i. …was chaos (shapeless nothingness)
ii. chaos had 2 children- night(darkness) and erbus (death)
iii. Mysteriously, love was born out of darkness and death
c. and then…
i. love created light and day
ii. Then earth was created
iii. The earth bore heaven to cover her and be a home for the gods.
d. The first parents
i. Mother earth = Gaea (Gaia)
ii. Father Heaven= Ouranos (Uranus)
iii. They had three kinds of children
1. Three monsters with 100 hands and 50 heads
2. 3 Cyclopes
3. the titans
e. The titans (The Elder Gods)
i. Enormous size, incredible strength
ii. Cronos (Saturn): ruler of the titans
iii. Rhea- wife of Cronos
iv. Ocean- river that encircled the world
v. Iapetus- father of Prometheus
f. Principal Gods
i. Cronos and Rhea were parents of:
1. Zeus (Jupiter)
2. Poseidon (Neptune)
3. Hades (Pluto)
4. Hera (Juno)
5. Hestia (Vesta)
6. Demeter (Ceres
ii. Other Olympians include
1. Athena (Minerva)
2. Ares (Mars)
3. Hebe (Juventas)
4. Hephaestus (Vulcan)
5. Apollo (Apollo)
6. Artmis (Diana)
7. Hermes (Mercury)
8. Aphrodite (Venus)
g. Zeus
i. Roman name: Jupiter (also Jove)
ii. Supreme god of the Olympians
iii. Fathered many characters in mythology
h. Hera
i. Roman name: Juno
ii. Zeus’s sister and wife
iii. Jealous protector of marriage
iv. Punished the women Zeus fell in love with
J. Poseidon
i. Roman name: Neptune
ii. God of the seas and waters
iii. Earth shaker
k. Hades
i. Roman name: Pluto
ii. God of the underworld/dead
iii. Kidnapped Persephone
L. Hestia
I. Roman name: Vesta
ii. protector of wives
M. Demeter
i. roman name: Ceres
ii. goddess of the harvest
iii. goddess of the earth
n. Athena
i. roman name: Minerva
ii. Goddess of Wisdom and war
iii. Sprang from Zeus’s head
o. Area
i. roman name: Mars
ii. God of war
iii. Son of Zeus and Hera
iv. Bloodthirsty and merciless
p. Hephaestus
i. Roman name: Vulcan
ii. God of fire/forge
iii. Son of Zeus and Hera
vi. Kind, unlike his brother
q. Apollo
i. Roman name: Apollo
ii. God of light/ sun and music
iii. brother of Artemis
r. Artemis
i. Roman name: Diana
ii. Goddess of the Moon/Hunt
iii. Sister to Apollo
s. Hermes
i. Roman name: Mercury
ii. Messenger of the Gods
iii. Appears in more myths than any other character
t. Aphrodite
i. Roman name: Venus
ii. Goddess of Love and Beauty
iii. Sprang from the ocean foam
u. Dionysus
i. Roman name: Bacchus
ii. God of Wine
iii. Patron god of the Greek stage
vi. A God of the Earth
v. Persephone
i. Roman name: Proserpina
ii. Goddess of the Underworld
iii. Daughter of Zeus and Demeter
vi. Abducted by Hades
w. Hebe
i. Roman name: Juventas
ii. Goddess of Youth
iii. Cupbearer to the Gods
vi. Restored youth to the aged
x. Eros
i. Roman name: Cupid
ii. Young God of Love
iii. Son of Aphrodite and Hephaestus
y. Iris
i. Goddess of the rainbow
ii. Messenger for Zeus and Hera
iii. Daughter of the titan Thaumus and the nymph Electra
z. The Muses
i. Nine daughters of Zeus and Mnemosyne
ii. Inspired artists of all kinds
iii. Goddesses who presided over the arts and sciences
vi. He is happy whom the muses love
aa. The Graces
v. Three goddesses of Beauty
vi. Aglaia (Splender)
vii. Euphrosyne (Mirth
viii. Thalia (Good Cheer)
bb. The Erinnyes (The Furies)
I. Three Goddesses of Vengeance
II. They Punish evildoers
cc. The Fates
i. Roman name: Parcae, Moirae
ii. Three sisters
iii. They weave measure and cut the thread of life for humans
dd. Pan
music
i. Roman name: Faunus
ii. God of sherpherds and flocks, woods, hunting and rustic
iii. Lover of nymph who typically ran from his advances
iv. Invented pan pipes
v. Hindquarters, legs, and horns of a goat
ee. The Satyrs
ix. Gods of the woods and mountains
x. Goatmen
xi. Companions of Dionysus
xii. They like to drink
ff. The gorgons
xiii. Three snake- haired monsters
xiv. Medusa is most well-known
xv. Their look turns men into stone
gg. The Centaurs
xvi. Half man, half horse
xvii. Savage creatures (Except Chiron)
xviii. Followers of Dionysus