Hercules and Atalanta By Trevor Horwath Jacob Warren

Hercules and Atalanta By: Trevor Horwath Jacob Warren Colin Ludwig

Hercules n n n Greece’s greatest hero and the son of Zeus and Alcmena Strongest man on Earth and possessed an endless amount of courage, which gave him great self-confidence. Considered himself equal to the gods and they actually required his help occasionally. For example, when the gods defeated the Giants. However, he lacked intelligence and had a furious temper that caused him to kill people accidentally numerous times. Hera continually attempted to kill him or cause sorrow in his life as revenge for Zeus’ actions.

Hercules n n n Married the Theban Princess Megara, but after the birth of three sons Hercules went mad and ended up killing his children and his wife. This rage of madness was the direct result of Hera’s actions. When he attempted to commit suicide, in response to his actions, his friend Theseus convinced him not to as it was not the way of a hero and convinced him to return to Athens with him. After arriving there, he quickly set off to see his cousin Eurytheus, King of Mycenae, at the urge of the oracle at Delphi to purify himself. The twelve tasks that Eurytheus sent him off on become known as “The Labors of Hercules. ”

The Twelve Labors of Hercules n n n The first task was to kill the lion of Nemea, who could not be wounded by weapons. Hercules eventually choked the lion to death. The second labor was to kill the Hydra, a nine-headed monster, one of which was immortal, and the others heads doubled in number every time one was cut off. He succeeded by burning the heads off with a brand burying the immortal head under a rock. The third labor was to capture a stag with horns of gold alive that was sacred to Artemis. The fourth task was to bring a boar back alive, which he did by trapping it in deep snow. The fifth labor required him to clean out the Augean stables in a single day. Hercules accomplished this by diverting the path of two rivers into the stalls, thus washing away all the filth.

The Twelve Labors of Hercules n n n The sixth task was to force the Stymphalian birds away from the people of Stymphalus, which he did by shooting them with arrows. He received help from Athena during this feat. The seventh labor was to bring a bull back to Eurystheus by boat from the island of Crete and Minos’ possession. The eighth task was to take from King Diomedes of Thrace his maneating mares. The ninth labor was to bring the girdle of the Queen of the Amazons, a group of female warriors, back to his cousin, which Hera complicated by making the warriors think Hercules is going to kidnap their leader. The tenth labor was to bring back a monster with three bodies called the cattle of Geryon.

The Twelve Labors of Hercules n n The eleventh task was to find the Golden Apples of the Hesperides, which was difficult because only Atlas knew the location of them. Hercules volunteered to take the weight of the sky off Atlas’ shoulders if he retrieved the Golden Apples and Atlas accepted this offer. However, upon his return he decided he would take the apples to Eurystheus himself and leave Hercules there. In the end, Hercules succeeded by tricking Atlas into holding up the sky while he “found a pad for his shoulders” therefore, leaving the apples free for Hercules to pick up and leave Atlas there holding up the sky. The twelfth and final labor caused Hercules to venture to the lower world, where he had to free Theseus from the Chair of Forgetfulness and bring Cerberus, the three-headed dog, to Mycenae and then right back to his usual location.

Hercules n n Even after his labors he continued to accomplish amazing feats, such as beating the Giant Antaeus in a wrestling match, saving the king of Troy’s daughter from death, and freeing Prometheus by killing the eagle that endlessly harassed him. Also, to win over his second-wife, Deianira, he conquered the river-god Achelous in a fight and broke off one of his horns since he took the form of a bull. The last accomplishment of his was to go to the lower world and retrieve his friend’s wife, Alcestis, who had just sacrificed herself to let him live, and bring her back to him. In the end, Hercules’ death was brought upon by himself. He chose to kill himself, after his wife killed herself because she sent him a robe that caused him torture, since nothing else could manage to do that.

Allusions to Hercules n n n There are thousands of allusions to Hercules, including a television series called Hercules: The Legendary Journeys, which referred to his twelve labors, that played during the late 1990’s. There was a Disney movie about Hercules that was very popular, though it was not accurate when compared to the actual myths. The phrase “It was a Herculean task” came from his success in the twelve labors and means that the task was extremely difficult or nearly impossible. A card company is named The Hercules Company and their slogan is “Strength, quality, and performance” three of Hercules’ traits. Countless other businesses also refer to Hercules, including a plumbing, tire, chemical, rope, and rubber company.

Atalanta n n n She was raised by a she-bear after her father left her to die on a mountainside. She was the one who received the honors of killing the great Calydonian boar; when all of the men panicked after it rushed them she was the first to recover and wound the beast. Some myths and writers claim that she was one of the Argonauts who sailed with Jason to retrieve the Golden Fleece, while others say that Jason persuaded her not to. Eventually, she went to live with her parents who gladly welcomed her. She had many male suitors and promised that she would marry whoever could beat her in a race on foot.

Atalanta n n After countless challengers, a man named either Melanion or Hippomenes defeated her with the help of Aphrodite. Though he could not match her in speed, he won the race by distracting her with three beautiful golden apples that she stopped to pick up every time he rolled one near her. After having one son, Parthenopaeus, the couple were changed into lions. Allusions: Robin Hood, as both were very skillful with the bow and arrow

Higher Level Questions n n n Do you still consider Hercules the greatest hero of Greek mythology even though he was responsible for the death of so many innocent people? Why or why not? Compare and contrast Hercules’ traits with those of other great Greek hero’s. Why do you think Atalanta promised to marry whoever could beat her in a foot race?