Greek Mythology Introduction The Greek Gods and Goddesses

Greek Mythology Introduction The Greek Gods and Goddesses

The Early Gods of the Earth • The Titans – 6 Early gods of Earth and Sky – Cronus and his crew – Laid foundation for early civilization

The Titans • Cronus – God of time, deposed his father the Sky and seized rule. However, lived in fear of the prophesy that one of his children would do this to him so swallowed his children whole as soon as Rhea – his sister/wife Earth goddess would present him with a child. Rhea managed to save Zeus by giving him a rock to swallow and hiding Zeus on the island of Crete.

Prophesy Fulfilled • She also saved Poseidon in some myths by exchanging him for a horse. Zeus will then fulfill the prophesy by rising against his father, with his mother’s help, and bring about the rule of the Olympians.

Tethys & Oceanus • Tethys – Goddess of fresh water, wife of Oceanus • Oceanus – God of the Oceans • These were the parents of the Naiads and other water nymphs

Hyperion & Eos • Brother of Cronus/His son Helios is also known by his name as Sun God • Eos – Goddess of the Dawn

Themis and Iapetus • Themis – Goddess of Law and Justice • Iapetus – Brother of Cronus helped overthrow his father God of the lifespan

Atlas & Prometheus • Atlas -- 2 nd generation Titan led a rebellion against Zeus and was punished by being made to hold up the sky. • Prometheus – friend to man, gave man fire and was also punished by Zeus

Mnemosyne • Goddess of memory and inventor of language and words

The Olympians • Group of twelve gods and goddesses who rule from Mount Olympus • Consists of the children of Cronus and Rhea and then their children • Some like Aphrodite however just appear and are accepted into the group

Zeus • King of the Olympians • Killed Cronus his father • Married his sister Hera • Lord of the sky • Wielded his thunderbolt

Poseidon • Lord of the Sea • Brother to Zeus and Hera • Carries a trident • Important to the Greeks as they were a sea-traveling people

Hades • King of the Dead • Stole his queen, Persephone from her mother • God of hidden wealth —minerals, gold & silver

Hestia • Virgin goddess of the hearth and the home

Hera • Queen of the Gods • Sister of Zeus her husband • Goddess of marriage and the home

Ares • God of war, pestilence, poverty, plague and all that goes with war • Violent, dishonest • Cheats with Aphrodite

Athena • Goddess of wisdom and the mind • Springs full grown from Zeus’s head • Virgin warrior goddess • Goddess of weaving and war

Apollo • God of light, truth and the lyre • Later myths is also god of the sun but incorrect • Twin brother to Artemis

Aphrodite • Comes to Olympus on the sea foam • Marries Hephaestus the son of Zeus and Hera • Goddess of Love and Beauty

Hermes • Greek god of thieves • Messenger god, with winged hat and sandals • Son of Zeus • Shrewd, cunning

Artemis • One of the warrior/hunter virgin goddesses • Goddess of the moon • Sister of Apollo

Hephaestus • God of the forge • Husband of Aphrodite • Ugly, lame but can create items of wondrous beauty

Lesser Gods of Olympus • Eros- god of love (Cupid) sometimes a baby with wings sometimes a beautiful young man • Hebe- goddess of Youth • Iris- goddess of the rainbow, another messenger god • The Graces- 3 daughters of Zeus, Splendor, Mirth, Good Cheer • The Muses- 9 daughters of Zeus, govern history, astronomy, tragedy, comedy, dance, epic poetry, love poetry, lyric poetry, and songs to the gods

Hebe Iris Muse with a lyre Eros The Graces

Gods of the Waters • Poseidon -- ruler of the sea • Ocean – lord of the great river that circles the earth (a titan) • Nereus – old man of the sea has 50 daughters known as nymphs • The Naiads – water nymphs who live in brooks, springs, and fountains

Sea nymph (Nereid) riding a dolphin Naiad (fresh water nymph) and river god Nereus the Old Man of the Sea

Gods of the Underworld • Hades – Ruler of the Underworld • Persephone – Queen of the Underworld, daughter of Demeter • Tartarus – deep underworld; prison of the Titans • Erebus – early god of the darkness of the underworld; where the dead pass as soon as they die • Charon – boatman to the underworld

Hades and Persephone

More in the Underworld • Cerberus – 3 headed dog, permits spirits to enter, but not to leave • River Styx – river of the underworld, gods swear unbreakable oaths by it • River Lethe – river of forgetfulness in the underworld

Hercules battling Cerburus

Lesser Gods of Earth – Demeter • Early mother/Earth goddess that was taken over by the Titans and Olympians • She was in charge of the harvest—very important for survival of the people

Dionysus • He and Demeter represent the cycle of death and rebirth • God of the wine and vine • Shows 2 sides: cruel yet creative

More Earth Gods • Pan – Hermes’ son; part goat; goat-herd god; ears, hind legs, tail of a goat; word panic comes from his name • Silenus – Pan’s brother or son • Castor and Pollux – lived ½ of earth, ½ in heaven; Pollux divine, Castor mortal; protected sailors • Sileni – part man/horse walked on 2 legs

Silenus Pan Satyr Centaur

• Satyrs – goat men; legs and feet of goat, short horns and bodies covered with hair • Aeolus – king of the winds • Centaurs – half men/half horse; Chiron • Gorgons – dragon-like with wings; 2 immortal; Medusa was mortal • Graiae – sisters of the Gorgons; 3 gray women with 1 eye they share between them • Sirens – beautiful singers who lure sailors to their deaths • Fates – 3 Clotho spun the thread of life; Iachesis assigned man his destiny and Atropos cut the thread of life; more important than the gods

Gray Women Graiae Gorgon Medusa

The Sirens Aeolus

Two Great Gods of the Earth • Demeter goddess of grain controlled growth of crops • Daughter stolen by Hades while picking flowers • Demeter stops all production of grain • Journeys to Eleusis • Taken in by a kind family – tries to make son immortal

More on Demeter • Zeus enters the picture and devises a compromise • This then explains the changing seasons on Earth

Dionysus • Mother wanted to see Zeus in all his splendor but this kills her • Zeus has Dionysus in his side until he is ready to be born • Sailors try to kidnap him; he turned them into dolphins • Pentheus is torn apart by a group of women made mad

Dionysus & Demeter • Dionysus represents the good and bad sides to wine and alcohol • Both Demeter and Dionysus are earlier gods who represent the cycle of death and resurrection

Creation Myths • Myths serve the purpose to explain natural phenomena that cannot be explained to a pre-scientific society • One such question is where we come from and who created us • Several creation myths answer this question in all civilizations

Greek Creation Myths • One such explanation is this: Chaos Night Erebus Love Light Day Earth Heaven 3 Monsters with 100 hands and 50 heads 3 Cyclops Titans

More Creation myths • Story of Cronus – Rebels against his father and kills him – Zeus then kills Cronus • Prometheus and Epimetheus – Epimetheus gives all of the good gifts to the animals – Prometheus gives man ability to walk upright and fire; gets punished by Zeus

Yet more myths • Races of man – – – Golden Silver Brass Bronze—heroes Iron—time in now • Pandora – – Zeus creates her to punish man Given a box told not to open Opens it and releases all of the evils on man Expression is to start something which will cause problems for many

Deucalion and Pyrrha • Deucalion is Prometheus’s son • Warned of a flood • Told to build a wooden chest; survive flood and land on Mt. Parnassus • Create a new race by throwing stones behind them as they walk along

Earliest Heroes • Zeus and Io – Turned Io into a heifer to hide the affair from Hera – Hera suspects anyway and asks for the heifer as a gift – Hera turns into a gad-fly to torment her – She wanders through Europe and reaches the Nile – Bears a son; his descendant will be Hercules

Io’s sons will also found the cities of Thebes and Argos. Here is a picture of her on an amphora as a heifer.

Zeus and Europa • This time Zeus turns himself into a bull and Europa climbs onto his back. • He takes her to Crete • Her sons are Minos and Rhadamanthus who were made judges of the dead

Europa with Zeus as a bull

The Odyssey excerpt • Polyphemus is a Cyclops who lives on an island is very violent • Odysseus and his men meet him when they are shipwrecked on the island • Polyphemus eats many of Odysseus’s men, they escape the cave by blinding the Cyclops with a sharpened spear and hiding with the sheep as they are let out to pasture

Narcissus • • A beautiful youth who loved only himself Fell in love with his own reflection Fell into the water and drowned A flower was created where he died

Hyacinthus • Companion of Apollo • Killed when a discus Apollo threw for him hit him in the head • Where his blood flowed the flower sprang up

Adonis • • Loved by both Aphrodite and Persephone Spent half the year with each Killed by a wild boar while hunting Where his blood flowed the anemone sprang up • An “adonis” is a young handsome man

Cupid and Psyche • Venus hates Psyche because of her beauty • Sends Cupid to make her fall in love with a hideous beast • He falls in love with her himself and takes her to live in a beautiful home on the mountain with servants to care for her

Trouble in Paradise • Her sisters visit her • They plant seeds of doubt in her mind due to their jealousy of her happiness and fortune • They tell her to look at him while he sleeps • She does and he disappears

To Win Him Back • She goes to Venus for help • Venus gives her 4 tasks – Separate great quantities of seed • Ants help her – Get fleece from sheep of gold • Reed helps her; tells her to wait by briar patch – Get black water from a waterfall • Eagle helps her – Carry a box to Persephone to get her beauty • Persephone helps her

How does it end? • She opens the box and falls into a deep sleep • Cupid forgives her • Takes her to Olympus • Zeus orders Venus to accept her • They get married • She is given ambrosia (food of the gods) • This makes her immortal

Detail of Cupid and Psyche The Story of Cupid and Psyche, by Jacop del Salaio

Wedding of Cupid and Psyche pleading for help from Venus PALAZZO DEL TE (1525 or 15261530) of GIULIO ROMANO (1492 -1546)

Pyramus and Thisbe • Live in adjoining houses; not allowed to marry • Speak to each other through a chink (hole in the wall) • Decide to meet at the tomb of Ninus • Thisbe gets there first sees a lioness with bloody jaws; leaves but drops her cloak • Pyramus sees the bloody cloak and assumes the lion has eaten Thisbe

A Sad Ending – He kill himself; dying the white berries of the mulberry tree red – Thisbe returns; sees Pyramus dead and kills herself – Ashes of both are combined into one urn

Orpheus and Eurydice • Orpheus had great power when he played his lyre • Famous for sailing with Jason on the Argo – Refreshed the men with his music – Drowned out the Sirens’ song • Married Eurydice; she was stung by a viper and dies • Grief-stricken he goes to the Underworld and pleas for her release

She Can Leave But. . . • Gets permission to take Eurydice out, but he cannot look upon her until they are both completely out of the darkness • He looks back too soon and she is lost forever • He cannot go back a second time • Wanders the Earth and was killed by wild women

Ceyx and Alcyone • • Ceyx makes a voyage across the sea Leaves Alcyone at home Storm breaks out and he is drowned Alcyone waits for him and makes him a robe • Juno sends Somnus, god of sleep, to tell Alcyone in a dream of Ceyx’s death • He sends Morpheus who assumes Ceyx’s shape and tells her

They are changed • She goes to the shore where she sees his body wash ashore • She is changed into a bird and Ceyx’s body is also changed into a bird • Every year there are 7 days of perfect calm when she hatches her eggs: halcyon days

Pygmalion and Galatea • Pygmalion is a sculptor and a womanhater • He creates a statue of the most perfect woman • He falls in love with his creation • He prays to Venus • Venus makes the statue come to life • They marry and live happily

Pygmalion and Galatea, ca. 1890 Jean-Léon Gérôme (French, 1824– 1904

Baucis and Philemon • Jupiter and Mercury want to find out how hospitable the people of Phrygia are • They disguise themselves as travelers and seek help from the people • The only ones who will let them in are an old poor couple • They make dinner for them and offer wine; noticing that the bowl never empties

• When they notice this; they pray • Philemon tries to catch a goose for the guests • The gods flood everything; make a temple; and ask the couple what they would like • They ask only to be their priests and to let them die together • When they die they turned into trees a linden and an oak whose trunks are entwined together

Endymion & Daphne • Endymion – Beautiful shepherd – Selene (Artemis) fell in love with him and put him in a magic slumber – Came every night to kiss him • Daphne – – – Apollo’s first love Chased her as she ran away She calls to her father the river-god, Peneus, for help He turns her into a laurel tree Apollo is sad, but decides she will be his tree and uses her leaves to crown victors

Endymion sleeping

Alpheus and Arethusa • Arethusa is a young huntress and follower of Artemis • One day while swimming a god saw her and began pursuing her • When she could not escape she called for Artemis to help her • She changed her into a spring of water and made a tunnel from Greece to Sicily where the spring bubbles up and is sacred to Artemis • The river-god followed her and his water mingles with hers in the fountain

Odysseus facing the Scylla and Charybdis

Sirens luring sailors to their deaths with their beauty and their deadly song.

Phaethon • Son of Clymene, a mortal, and the Sun • Wants to drive the Sun’s chariot for one day • Sun tells him he cannot; not even Zeus can do this • Phaethon still insists and the horses take over scorching the world and turning the springs into steam • Zeus strikes Phaethon dead with his thunderbolt • The flames are put out and the world goes back to normal • This teaches of the dangers of hubris

Pegasus and Bellerophon • Athena helps him get the winged horse • Uses a golden bridle to tame him from Athena • Proteus’s wife falls in love with Bellerophon—he refuses her • She tells her husband he has wronged her • Husband sends him to the King of Lycia who sends him on a quest to kill the Chimaera

He aims too high • Chimaera is a lion in front a serpent behind a goat in the middle • Shoots arrows at it without getting close • Fights the Solymi, mighty warriors, and conquers them and the Amazons • Oversteps when he wants to fly to Mt. Olympus • Pegasus bucks him off; left to wander alone • Pegasus goes to the stalls of Olympus and brings Zeus his thunder and lightning

Daedalus • Daedalus helps Ariadne help Theseus escape the labyrinth and is imprisoned there • Makes wings for himself and son, Icarus • Fly out, but Icarus doesn’t heed his warning not to fly too high and the wax holding the feathers begins to melt • He flies too low and the feathers get wet • Icarus falls into the sea and drowns • Daedalus flies on to Sicily where the king there keeps him safe from Minos’s wrath

Daedalus and Icarus

Perseus • King Acrisius – Has a daugher, Danae, told that she will have a son who will kill him – To prevent this he puts her in a bronze house that is sunken underground • Zeus enters in a shower of gold – She gets pregnant and has Perseus – Keeps him secret – King finds out and exiles both of them

Exiled • King places her in a chest and casts it out to sea • Zeus has Poseidon protect them • They land—Dictys, a fisherman, finds them • He and his wife take care of them • Polydectes, Dictys’s brother, notices Danae’s beauty and wants her—not Perseus

Polydectes’ Challenge • Makes Perseus feel badly that he doesn’t have a wedding gift for him • Tells him he wants Medusa’s head • Perseus offers to go get it for him • Hermes and Athena help him • Goes to Delphi first to find out about Medusa • Told to go to Dodona

Gray Women • Encounters Hermes in Dodona – Tells him he