Chapter 3 Creation Myths Flashcards
Aether
The upper atmosphere born from a mingling of Night with Erebus (the gloominess of tartarus)
Aphrodite
(aphros or “foam”) When Cronus castrates his father Uranus the blood falls into the foam of the ocean and births aphrodite
Apollo and Artemis (Phoebus and Phoebe)
god of the sun and goddess of the moon, not initially these bu they basically usurp the roles of the previous gods(Hyperion, Helius) and goddess (Selene)
castration complex
for the Freudian’s it is the unconscious guilt because of the unrecognized hatred for the father and desire for his mother
Chaos
suggests a “yawning void” the primal source of creation
Cronus
the youngest son of Ge and Uranus, he was the “crafty” one and the “most horrible of them all” who “hated his lusty father”. Plots with mother to castrate father and usurp his power. Becomes supreme ruler (skygod) and takes his sister Rhea as his wife. She essentially usurps gaia’s power and role.(earth mother)
Curetes
attendants and priests of Rhea and the bodyguards of Zeus. Rhythmic raucous chants and dances accompanied by drums and banging of shields was ritualistic and often explained by the story of making loud noise so that Cronus would not hear the cries of the baby Zeus.
Cyclops
Three children of Gaia and Uranus who had one eye in the center of their head but otherwise were similar to gods and had might and skill. They were Brontes “Thunder”, Sterops “Lightning”, and Arges “Bright”
Day
born from Night and Erebus
Endymion
The mortal love interest of Selene, she would visit him in his sleep. Zeus made him sleep forever with eternal youth; either as a punishment for Selene for neglecting her moon duties or as a favor to Selene as the wish for her lover
Eos
(Aurora) goddess of the dawn and third child of Hyperion and Theia (titans)
Erebus
the gloominess of Tartarus, later can be equated with tartarus itself
Eros
the procreative urge, physical attraction, lust, overwhelms reason (for the romans:cupid or amor)
Ge/Gaia/Gaea/Earth
the earth which came from chaos, births pontus and Uranus (sky) herself and consequently marries him eventually giving birth to the twelve titans, three cyclopes, and three hecatonchires
Helius
a sun-god, son of Helius and Theia. Bascially take over the role of his father
Hera
Sister and wife of Zeus daughter of Cronus and Rhea, she replaces Rhea as earth mother just like she replaced Gaia
Hesiod
(700 BC) theogony and works and days are his accounts of Genesis, the first comprehensive accounts and considered the classic greek version
hieros gamos
The “sacred marriage” between masculine and feminine energies. Three instances:
Gaia and Uranus
Rhea and Cronus
Hera and Zeus
Homer
(800 BCE) oceanus and tethys , he assumes a flat earth with a dome sky over it and the stream Oceanus encircles the earth. Sun god lives in the east rides his chariot across the sky lands in the west and sails back to the east chariot and all.
Mount Olympus
A mountain in the pelopponese where zeus will eventually rule
Muses
Daughters of Zeus therefore their inspiration and revelations come from the infallible knowledge of the supreme god.
Night
born from chaos and mates with Erebus (tartarus) to create Day and Aether
Ovid
(43 BCE-17 CE) roman poet wrote Metamorphoses and provides another classic account of genesis. More poetic than Hesiod, to him myth was just poetic fodder. Chaos not a void but a crude unformed mass of the four elements that were formed by some higher being into the universe.
Phaethon
Son of Helius and Clymene, Grandson of Hyperion. Helius gave him anything he wished for so that he would have no doubts who his father was and he wanted to drive his father’s chariot. He was not strong enough to handle it and was cast down by Zeus to stop the destruction.
Selene
Daughter of Hyperion and Theia, goddess of the moon, fell in love with Endymion.
Tartarus
Deep darkest pits of the earth.
Theogony
Hesiod’s account of the geneology of the gods and how they and nature came into being. Later Works and Days adds significant details. Very religious
Rhea
(Cybele) Daughter of Gaia and Uranus, sister and wife of Cronus, becomes the earth mother/goddess in place of her mother. Conspires with her parents against Cronus to save her youngest son Zeus
Titans
12 of them, six male and six female. The children of Gaia and Uranus. Mostly important because of their progeny although some gain their own significance.
Uranus
Sky god, Son and Husband of Gaia, Father of the Titans, Cyclopes, and Hecatonchires. Castrated by Cronus.
usurpation
common theme of younger generation taking over the role of the older generation
Tithonus
love interest of Eos goddess of the coming Dawn, asked Zeus to make him live forever but forgot to ask for eternal youth as well. As soon as he started to age she stopped lying with him and eventually locked him away in a room.
Zeus
Son of Cronus and Rhea, destined to usurp father’s throne and rule as the next sky god with his sister Hera.
