Characters Flashcards
Metaneira
Mother of the baby Demeter tried to make immortal
Demophoon
The baby Demeter tried to make immortal by placing him in the fire and feeding him ambrosia
Semele
Mother of Dionysus, Zeus showed full glory to=death
Ariadne
Abandoned by Theseus, Loved by Dionysus, Crown in Stars
Maenads/Bacchantes
Dinoysus’s followers, tore people apart
Pentheus
King, Dionysus’s cousin, who didn’t believe D was a god, mom tears him apart
Teiresias
blind prophet of Thebes
Gaea
Mother Earth
Ouranos
Father Heaven
Cronus (Saturn)
Titan King, father of original 6, overthrown by Zeus
Rhea
Cronus’s wife
Atlas
Titan, holds up world, Very stupid
Typhon
Flaming monster with 100 heads, fought against gods, Zeus struck with bolt
Cimmerians
Mysterious people, unknown island filled with endless night
Hyperboreans
People living in remote North, give Perseus gifts
Prometheus
“Forethought,” Very wise, helps create mankind, gives man fire and best cuts of meat
Epimetheus
“Afterthought,” Scatterbrained, Originally created humans, but failed, marries Pandora
Pandora
“Gift of all,” first woman, opened box and released plagues on the world
Chiron
Centaur, immortal, died for Prometheus
Deucalion
Prometheus’s son, survives flood, throws rocks=stone people
Pyrrha
Daughter of Pandora and Epimetheus, survives flood, throws rock=stone people
Io
Lover of Zeus, turned into a cow, Hera forces to go mad, ancestor of Hercules
Argus
100 eyes, watched Io, when killed by Hermes-eyes put on peacock by Hera
Europa
Zeus lover, Zeus turned to bull for her, suffered none, mother of Minos and Rhadamanthus (future judges of the dead)
Rhadamanthus
Europa’s son, brother to Minos, judge of the dead
Minos
son of Europa, judge of the dead
Odysseus
Hero in the Odyssey, stabs out polyphemus’s eye
Polyphemus
Cyclops, Odysseus stabs out eye, in love with Galatea
Galatea
Sea nymph, loved by polyphemus
Doris
Galatea’s sister, loved polyphemus
Narcissus
Handsome, falls in love with reflection (cursed by Nemesis)=death, has a Narcissus flower
Echo
Beautiful nymph, fav of Artemis, cursed by Hera to only repeat, hid away in a cave
Nemesis
Goddess of Righteous Anger, curses Narcissus
Hyacinthus
Apollo’s BFF, killed by Apollo from hit in head with discus, flower Hyacinth
Zephyr
West Wind
Adonis
loved by Aphordite in spring & summer, Persephone in Fall and Winter, killed by boar, Adonis flower
Psyche
“Soul” boasted being prettier than Venus, falls in love with Cupid, performs tasks for Venus, marries Cupid, Mortal->Immortal
Pyramus
Lover of Thisbe, finds thisbe’s cloak messed by lion, kills himself, mulberry tree color
Thisbe
Lover of Pyramus, finds pyramus dead, kills self, mulberry color
Orpheus
Prince, son of a Muse, saved heroes through music, lover of Eurydice, takes her from underworld, cant look, looks, looses her, killed by Maenads
Eurydice
lover of Orpheus, killed by Viper, couldn’t be taken from Underworld
Ceyx
Lover of Alycone, killed in shipwreck, turned into birds
Alycone
Lover of Ceyx, Morpheus shows her Ceyx died, finds Ceyx’s body, turns into bird, nests for a week on water=ocean calm
Morpheus
son of God of Sleep, can take any form, tells Alcyone of Ceyx’s death
Sommus
God of Sleep
Pygmalion
scuplter, hates women, sculpts woman, falls in love with statue, prays to Venus, statue comes to life
Galatea
Sculpted by Pygmalion, turns to human, gives birth to Paphos
Paphos
Son of Galatea and Pygmalion, name of Venus’s fav city
Baucis
Lover of Philemon, poor, houses Jupiter and Mercury, home->temple, becomes priest of temple, becomes oak/linden tree from one stump
Philemon
Lover of Baucis poor, houses Jupiter and Mercury, home->temple, becomes priest of temple, becomes oak/linden tree from one stump
Endymion
Beautiful youth, forever asleep b/c Selene cursed him so she could always watch him (rise and set of moon)
Selene
The moon, loves Endymion, curses him, visits every night (rise and set of the moon)
Daphne
Apollo’s first love, daughter of river-god Peneus, turned into laurel tree by dad
Peneus
River-God, father of Daphne, turns her into laurel
Alpheus
Loves Arethusa, river-god, mixes with Arethusa’s spring water
Arethusa
follower of Artemis, loved by Alpheus, turned into water spring, brought from greece to sicily
Athamas
Greek King, tries to sacrifice son to stop drought –> golden ram appears
Ino
Second wife of King Athamas, tries to kill son of 1st wife so her son could be heir, parched seed-corn=no corn
Nephele
1st wife of Athamas, frightened he would sacrifice her son, prays to Hermes to help
Phrixus
Son of Nephele and Athamas, tried to be sacrificed, Golden ram from Hermes saves him and sis (Helle), brought to AEetes kingdom and gives him ram fleece
Helle
Daughter of Nephele and Athamas, sister to Phrixus, falls of golden ram over a strait –> The Sea Of Helle/ Hellespoint
Pelias
Took away kingdom from Phrixus’s uncle, sends Jason off to get the fleece, gets cut up by daughters hoping to restore his youth
Jason
Pelias’s cousin, goes to fetch fleece, liked by Hera,
Hypsipyle
from Lemnos, saved father the king by shipping away in a box, help argonauts
Hylas
Hercules’s armor bearer, drowned by a water nymph
Harpies
“Hounds of Zeus,” hooked beaks and claws, stank, ate Phineus’s food, killed by sons of Boreas
Boreas
North Wind
Phineus
Apollo prophet, punished by Zeus b/c Zeus likes mystery, can’t eat, tells Argonauts how to get through Clashing rocks w/ dove
Medea
Witch, loves Jason, venegeful, cunning, kills sons b/c she kills Jason’s wife
King AEetes
Medea’s dad, has Jason fight bronze bulls and fight those who rose from crops
Apsyrtus
Medea’s brother, lead great army, killed by Medea,
Talus
last man of bronze race, invulnerable except for ankle, lift pointed crag and hits ankle=death
Phaethon
son of the sun, drives sun chariot, lights world on fire, bolted by Zeus to protect world
Helios
Sun
Heliades
Daughters of helios
Glaucus
son of sisyphus, fed horses human flesh=gods throw him form chariot and horses eat him
Bellerophon
wanted to ride Pegasus, slayed Chimaera
Pegasus
Born from Medusa’s blood, winged horse,
Polyidus
seer of Corinth, tells bellerophon to sleep at athena’s temple
Anteia
wife of King Proteus, falls in love w/ bellerophon but he doesn’t love her, angry she tries to get hubby to kill bell
Otus
brother giant of ephialtes, son of Poseidon, arrogant, wanted to carry off hera
Ephialtes
bro of Otus, son of Poseidon, thought he loved Artemis
Daedalus
Architect, constructs labyrinth, built wings for him and son, escapes, figures out how to thread shell using an ant
Icarus
Daedalus’s son, flies to high with wings and melts glue=death
Danae
Perseus’s mom, Zeus lover, zeus appears as golden rain, cast out in crate w/son
Perseus
son of Danae and Zeus, slays gorgon Medusa
Polydectes
Ruler of island where Perseus and Danae wash up, brother of Dictys, loves Danae, convinces Perseus to slay Medusa
Dictys
Fisherman who found Danae and Perseus, raises as his own children
Gray Women
three gray ladies, one eye to share, tells Perseus where to find the Hyperboreans
Gorgons
great wings, bodies w/ golden scales, hair a mess of snakes, 2 immortal, 1 mortal, turn those who look into stone
Queen Cassiopeia
Boasted to be more beautiful than daughter of Nereus the Sea God, has daughter (Andromeda) punished for her mistake
Andromeda
Punished for mom (Cassiopeia) mistake, tied to rock as serpent offering, marries Perseus
Acrisus
Father of Danae, locks her away so her son wont kill him, dies when perseus accidently hits him with a discus
Electryon
Son of Perseus and Andromeda, grandpa to Hercules
Aegus
Athenian King, father of Theseus, killed himself in sea= Aegean Sea
Theseus
son of Aegus, cousin of Hercules,
Pasiphae
Minos’s wife, mother of Minotaur
Aridane
Minos’s daughter, loved theseus, gave hint from daedalus about how to escape maze, left behind
Hippolyta
Queen of amazons, mother of hippolytus
Hippolytus
Son of Hippolyta and Theseus, loved by Phaedra, cursed by Poseidon
Pirithous
theseus’s rash friend, adventures but not good at it
Hercules
strongest man on earth, rash, blunderingly stupid, quickly regretful, temper temper, son of Zeus and Alcmena, born in thebes
Amphitryon
Hercule’s mortal father, distinguished general,
Alcmena
Herc’s mom
Megara
Herc’s first wife, he killed her and their sons when he went mad b/c of hera
Eurystheus
Herc’s cousin, King of Mycenae, purged Herc through the 12 labors
Achelous
River-god, herc fought to win wife, took a horn
Deianira
Herc’s 2nd wife, daughter of Achelous
Antaeus
giant who forced visitors to wrestle
Queen Omphale
Had Herc as a servant for 1-3 years, made him dress like a girl
Admetus
King, had to have someone die for him to live, wife took his place, wife comes back thanks to herc, he dies
Alcestis
Admetus’s wife, died for him, brought back from underworld thanks to herc=Admetus’s death
Iole
daughter of king eurytus,used to trick Deianira into thinking Herc didn;t love her
Philoctetes
Herc’s youthful follower, set Herc on fire for death