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Greek and Roman Religions > Exam I Flashcards > Flashcards

Exam I Flashcards

1
Q

Ancient Greece includes what modern-day countries?

A

Turkey, Italy, and North Africa.

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2
Q

A polis

A

an urban core, self-governed political community, ethnic community, and religious community.

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3
Q

An epithet

A

a nickname or specification. Ex. Poseidon Hippios (“of horses”)

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4
Q

A locale

A

a placename. Ex. Poseidon Soter of Sunium.

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5
Q

Cultural forces associated with Hellenism tended to…

A

…consolidate and systemize the endless local variety of gods.

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6
Q

Embeddedness

A

People pray, perform rituals, celebrate festivals, or otherwise honour the gods frequently in everyday life.

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7
Q

Polytheism

A

Polytheism is bout having many gods but it’s also about how the gods are related to each other and to humanity.

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8
Q

Religious Specialists

A

People who claim expertise or authority in religious matters.

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9
Q

Poets

A

singers of songs about the gods/heroes (including epic songs).

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10
Q

Seers

A

experts in divination.

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11
Q

Priests

A

experts in religious rituals, especially sacrifice; oversees sanctuaries.

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12
Q

What kinds of beings are the gods?

A

Gods are immortal. Gods can be imprisoned but never destroyed. Gods have certain superpowers.

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13
Q

Ouranic Gods

A

associated with the sky, the upper world of living humans; received a particular style of sacrifices.

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14
Q

Chthonic Gods

A

associated with the earth, the lower world of the dead; received a different style of sacrifices than Ouranic gods.

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15
Q

Olympians

A

the central dieties in Greek religious life, most frequently worshipped or celebrated in myth and art.

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16
Q

The children of Kronos and Rhea

A

Zeus, Hera, Poseidon, Demeter, Hestia

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17
Q

The children of Zeus

A

Athena, Apollo, Artemis, Aphrodite, Hermes, Dionysus, Hephaestus, Area

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18
Q

Heroes

A

a complicated category in-between gods and humans that received chthonic rituals. After their death, Heroes continued to exert a power for good or evil.

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19
Q

Timai

A

the core of a god’s identity.

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20
Q

The god’s functions

A

the god’s functions divide up all the domains of human experience.

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21
Q

The god’s system

A

the gods form a (messy) system defined by a complex distribution of functions among the gods based on their timai.

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22
Q

Zeus’ functions

A

God of the sky; the cloud gatherer.

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23
Q

Hera’s functions

A

Goddess of Marriage and Birth; Goddess of Fertile Plains.

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24
Q

Poseidon’s functions

A

God of the Sea; Master and Helper of Fishermen; Husband of Earth; Father of the Horse.

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25
Athena's functions
The Armed Maiden; Goddess of Carpenters; Inventor of Wool-Working; Inventor of the Chariot, Bridle, First Ship.
26
Apollo's functions
God of Healing and Plague; God of Poetry, Song, and Dance; Sun God; Epitome of the Threshold of Manhood.
27
Artemis' functions
Mistress of the Animals; Mistress of the Whole of Wild Nature, of the Fish of the Water, the Birds of the Air.
28
Aphrodite's functions
Goddess of Love; Mistress of the Animals.
29
Hermes' functions
Divine Trickster; Messenger of the Gods; Patron of Herdsmen, Thieves, Graves, and Heralds; Giver of the Good.
30
Demeter's functions
Earth Mother; Corn Goddess; Mistress of the Dead.
31
Dionysos' functions
God of Wine and Intoxicated Ecstasy.
32
Hephaestus' functions
God of Blacksmiths; Craftsman God.
33
Ares' function
God of War and Battle
34
Zeus' abilities
He commands an invincible thunderbolt, which can control the weather. This weather often reflects his temperament.
35
Hera's abilities
She is commonly seen wearing a high crown. She has the power of mind control, which she often uses to interfere with one's sanity.
36
Poseidon's abilities
He commands the sea and water to move at his word. Wields a trident harpoon. He can control natural disasters, like earthquakes and sea storms.
37
Athena's abilities
She is commonly seen with a helmet, shield, and a raised weapon. Whenever she raises up, her enemies are overtaken by panic and soon are lost.
38
Apollo's abilities
He often appears with a bow and arrow. He held three Charities, the graces, in his right hand, and the bow in his left hand; this signified that the favour of the god is prior to, and stronger than the destructive power.
39
Artemis' abilities
She has eastern lions in her train. She is a goddess, often with wings, standing between symmetrically arranged wild animals. She is usually accompanied by a stag or doe.
40
Aphrodite's abilities
She is represented at a naked goddess. Fine attire her specialty, most notably necklaces and occasionally brightly coloured robes intended to give an oriental effect.
41
Hermes' abilities
He glides across the waves in his golden shoes, shown on paintings as winged sandals, and with a magical staff which causes men to sleep or wake at his will.
42
Demeter's abilities
She appears in a wreath of ears of corn, with more of them in her hand. Her mother-daughter relationship becomes the pivot for the human level, with the anguish of the mother at the loss of her child, and her joy when they are reunited.
43
Dionysos' abilities
He may be represented by a mask which is hung on a column and arrayed with a piece of cloth, almost like a scarecrow.
44
Hephaestus' abilities
He has an intimate association with fare as his name stands for fire itself. He has crippled feet, making him an outsider among the perfect Olympians.
45
Ares' abilities
An armoured, brazen warrior whose war chariot is harnessed by fear and terror. He is depicted with a spear and shield.
46
When was Theogony composed and what is it?
It is a song composed around 700 BCE.
47
Why is there tension between religious variety and religious consolidation in Ancient Greece?
Because having a variety of gods of hyper-specific areas of life allows for all aspects of humanity to be tended to, but consolidation allows for more practical and intimate daily prayers and practices for the humans.
48
What role did epic songs play in religious consolidation?
Epics (from poets like Homer or Hesiod) provide the depictions of the gods that exerted a standardising influence on Greek Religious experience.
49
What does Theogony ("theogonia") mean?
theoi (gods) + gonē (birth/generation) = gods birth/ gods generation
50
What is Theogony about?
It tells the story of how the gods were created, how they fought with each other, and how the Olympian gods gained control of the cosmos.
51
What was Zeus' solution to succession of generations (incorporation)?
Giving allied gods timai, eating Metis, and promoting procreating with humans to create demigods.
52
Why is there tension between gonē and order in the Theogony?
Gonē is a messy process but the world that we curently inhabit seems stable, ordered, and amenable to human life.
53
What is a locative worldview?
A locative worldview emphasises keeping one's place and reinforcing boundaries.
54
What are some examples of how Greek religion policed boundaries?
Policed boundaries between gods and humans, between the living and the dead, and between territories and private estates.
55
How does Zeus' struggles in Theogony reflect locative values and ideas?
He distributed timai to allied gods and imprisoned incorrigible gods to stabalise the cosmos to grant a place to/maintain order for the gods.
56
What does the Greek sanctuary term "hieron" mean?
Hieron means "a sacred place".
57
What does the Greek sanctuary term "temenos" mean?
Temenos means a cut off place.
58
What are the two essential features of a sanctuary?
A boundary and an altar.
59
What is a suppliant and why are they able to seek protection in sanctuaries?
A suppliant is a person who seeks asylum from pursuers. They are protected because they are in a liminal space.
60
What are dedications or votive offerings and how are they connected to sanctuaries?
A dedication is a sacrifice made by worshippers to the god/gods of the sanctuary. Votive offerings are offerings that are promised to a god if a future endeavour is successful.
61
What was the function of temples in sanctuaries?
It is meant to store a statue of the god/gods of the sanctuary plus other expensive dedications.
62
What does "liminality" mean and how does that relate to Greek sanctuaries?
A boundary or portal that represents the concept of betweenness or a passage. Greek sanctuaries reside in the liminal space between the human world and the divine world.
63
What was the Pythia?
The priestess who performed the role of Apollo's prophet.
64
Where does the Pythia practice divination?
The sanctuary of Apollo.
65
How did divination work in the Oracle of Delphi?
The Pythia interpreted divine signs from Apollo to answer practical questions from Greecian people.
66
What was the Parthenon and where was it located?
The Parthenon is a temple devoted to Athena, which is located on the acropolis.
67
What was the Areopagus and where was it located?
The Areopagus is a hill containing the oldest Athenian court of law and was located immediately west of the acropolis.
68
What is purification of suppliants?
A cleansing of spiritual contamination or pollution

Greek and Roman Religions (2 decks)

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