An Intro to Mythology
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Myth…defined
a. Stories created to
answer questions; they
explained where things
came from or why they
exist
b. Traditional tales of
typical people
c. Stories passed from
generation to generation
4 essential
elements of
mythology
Every myth will have one or all of
these characteristics
a. The intervening of
dieties in human
affairs
b. Supernatural
Characters
c. Fantastic Creatures
d. Extraordinary Events
Ancient Greek myths evolved over hundreds of years.
They were first told from one person to another.
Details changed with each telling of the story (think of it
as an ancient version of the telephone game!)
The Olympians (AKA the most
powerful Greek gods)
Lived atop Mount Olympus
Had human feelings like love, jealousy and anger.
All Olympians were descended from Kaos
They are ruled by Zeus—without him, the other
Olympians would be held captive in their father,
Kronus.
They were only a small part of the family of
immortals who ruled over the earth and the sky.
They were immortal (could never die.)
Cronus
And
Rhea
Demeter
And
Poseidon
Zeus
Persephone
Hades
Hestia
Athena
Ares
Hera
and
Zeus
Poseidon
Hebe
Hephaestus
And the story goes…
• The earth was once ruled by the Titans,
Giants and Cyclops. Kronus was their
leader. Kronus and his wife Rhea had 5
children.
• Kronus feared that he would lose his power,
so he devoured his children.
• Rhea gave birth to a sixth child, she
decieved Kronus by swaddling a stone.
So….
• The 6th child, Zeus was saved.
• Zeus grew up and sought revenge
• Got Kronus to take a potion and he vomited
up the children he swallowed
• Siblings raged war against the Titans
• Kronus and Titans were chained up and
then hurled into oblivion
• Zeus and family became the guardians of
the universe
The 12 Great Olympians
The Greek Deities and their Roman counterparts
Zeus
Jupiter
Poseidon
Neptune
Hades
Pluto
Ares
Mars
Vulcan
Apollo
Apollo
Hermes
Mercury
Artemis
Diana
Hera
Aphrodite
Hestia
Athena
Juno
Venus
Vesta
Minerva
Hephaestus
12 Great Olympians
Zeus/Jupiter: king of the gods; thunderstorms
Poseidon/Neptune: sea, earthquakes,
horses
Hades/Pluto: underworld
Ares/Mars: War
Hephaestus/Vulcan: fire, craftspeople
Apollo/Apollo: sun, music, poetry, prophecy
12 Great Olympians continued
Aphrodite/Venus: love
Athena/Minerva: wisdom, practical arts, war
Hermes/Mercury: messenger, trade, thieves
Hera/Juno: queen of the gods, marriage
Hestia/Vesta: hearth/home, community
Artemis/Diana: the moon, hunting
Minor Deities
Dionysus/Bacchus: revelry, wine
Demeter/Ceres:
harvest/agriculture
The gods had certain standards (rules) that were told
through myths.
Some rules were: man and woman had to show
hospitality to strangers and they had to keep
their pride in check.
In the eyes of the gods, excessive
pride (hubris) was the worst offense
possible and it deserved the worst
punishment. Just ask Odysseus!
Let’s talk about the epic!
An epic is a story of a civilization’s
values and meanings
It is a long narrative (The Odyssey is
24 books long.)
Characteristics of the epic
Usually told in poetic form
Has set conventions
Has heroes
Heroes embody the values of the civilization
and engage in battles that reflect the issues
of the civilization
The actions of the heroes are significant
They affect their people
They reveal meaning in life and death
All Greek epics were put together with the
same “ingredients” called epic conventions
Story begins in medias res (in the middle of
things)
The writing begins with the invocation the the
muse
Epic Conventions
Begins with statement of theme
Has epithets (nicknames)
Uses catalogues
Long winded characters
Gods intervene in the affairs of humans
Journey to the underworld
Epic transgressions
Vast settings
Epic similes
Arming of the hero
Heroes embody the values of their civilization
These conventions can be applied to all epics in one
way or another!
Modern Epics
Tragic Hero
Born of noble birth with potentially heroic
qualities
Fated by the gods to doom and destruction
Struggles against fate
Cannot accept diminished view of self and,
because of a personality flaw, the hero fails in
his/her struggle.
Hero is enlightened through suffering
Has his/her true identity revealed
Tragic Flaw
All tragic heroes have a tragic flaw. A tragic flaw is an
error or defect in the tragic hero that leads to his downfall.
Pride or ambition could be tragic flaws.
Flaw may be the result of bad character, bad judgment,
and inherited weakness. The hero isn’t perfect!
Oedipus—the Ultimate Tragic Hero
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Laius, the King of Thebes learns from the Oracle that his child would
one day kill him and marry his wife, Jocasta.
Eventually, they have a son and Laius left him abandoned on a
mountaintop to die.
Baby is rescued by a shepherd and adopted by the king and queen of
Corinth.
When Oedipus grows up, he learns from the Oracle that he is destined
to kill his dad and marry his mom, so he leaves Corinth.
When leaving, he meets an old man in a chariot. Neither were willing
to give up the right of way, so they fight and Oedipus kills the man.
Oedipus travels to Thebes, answers the riddle of the Sphinx, and
becomes the new king (marrying the queen)
25 years later, a plague hits Thebes and Oedipus is told the only way
to lift the plague is to find and banish or kill the person who killed
Laius.
Finds out that he was adopted and the man he killed on the road was
Laius (his father) and he had married Jocasta (his mother)—the
prophecy came true.
Jocasta commits suicide and Oedipus blinds himself and exiles himself
from Thebes forever.
FYI…
Although a very old form of literature,
mythology and epic aspects still contribute to
our lives today. Don’t believe us? Look at
advertising, movies, and television, you’ll see
what we mean!
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