Greek Gods Flashcards
Ares
The Greek god of war; the son of Zeus and Hera, and half brother to Athena. Roman form: Mars
In the Iliad and Odyssey:
Iliad - sides with the Trojans
Odyssey - limited role
Cronus
n
1. (Classical Myth & Legend) Greek myth a Titan, son of Uranus (sky) and Gaea (earth), who ruled the world until his son Zeus dethroned him. Roman counterpart: Saturn
Poseidon
The Greek god of the sea; son of the Titans Kronos (Cronus) and Rhea, and brother of Zeus and Hades. Roman form: Neptune
In the Iliad and the Odyssey:
Iliad - sides with the Greeks
Odyssey - against Odysseus; does not want him to get home; throws many obstacles his way, including a storm; father of Polyphemus, the cyclops
Hera
The Greek goddess of marriage; Zeus’s wife and sister. Roman form: Juno.
In the Iliad and the Odyssey:
Iliad - sides with the Greeks; despises Paris, who spurned her by choosing Aphrodite
Odyssey - small role
Helios
the ancient Greek god of the sun, represented as driving a chariot across the heavens; identified by the Romans with Sol.
In the Iliad and the Odyssey:
Iliad - small role
Odyssey - angry when Odysseus’ men eat his precious cows
Aphrodite
The Greek goddess of love and beauty. She was married to Hephaestus but loved Ares. Roman form: Venus.
In the Iliad and the Odyssey:
Iliad - sides with the Trojans; Loves Paris because he chose her over Athena and Hera
Odyssey - small role
Demeter
The Greek goddess of agriculture, a daughter of the Titans Rhea and Kronos (Cronus). Roman form: Ceres.
In the Iliad and the Odyssey:
Iliad -
Athena (Athene)
The Greek goddess of wisdom. Roman form: Minerva.
In the Iliad and the Odyssey:
Iliad - sides with the Greeks; spurned by Paris when he chose Aphrodite over her; cunning; manipulative of Trojans, Hector
Odyssey - large role in getting Odysseus home; helps him; disguises herself as Telemachos’ friend and encourages him to go looking for his father
Helen
of Troy; the beautiful daughter of Zeus and Leda and wife of Menelaus whose abduction by Paris was the cause of the Trojan War.
In the Iliad and the Odyssey:
Iliad - cause of the Trojan war; “the face that launched a thousand ships”
Odyssey - brief role when Telemachos comes to see Menelaus and she greets him and notes the likeness between him and his father
Hermes
The Greek god of travelers, communication, and thieves; son of Zeus. Roman form: Mercury.
In the Iliad and the Odyssey:
Iliad - messenger; deliverer of messages
Odyssey - “ “
Hades
According to Greek mythology, ruler of the Underworld and god of the dead. Roman form: Pluto.
In the Iliad and the Odyssey:
Iliad & Odyssey - very small roles, except when Odysseus comes into the Underworld in the Odyssey. Even then, he’s not a big character.
Zeus
The Greek god of the sky and King of the gods. Roman form: Jupiter.
In the Iliad and the Odyssey:
Iliad - sides with the Trojans; large benefactor of the Trojans
Odyssey - helps Odysseus get home
Apollo
The Greek god of the sun, prophecy, music, and healing; the son of Zeus, and the twin of Artemis. Roman form: Mars.
In the Iliad and the Odyssey:
Iliad -
Odyssey -
Calypso
The goddess nymph of the magical island of Ogygia; a daughter of the Titan Atlas. She detained the hero Odysseus for many years.
In the Iliad and the Odyssey:
Iliad - none
Odyssey - Odysseus’ captor for seven years; in love with him
(and Leo in House of Hades…but that’s irrelevant)
Homer
Greek poet who wrote the Iliad and the Odyssey
Prometheus
a Titan, the father of Deucalion and brother of Atlas and Epimetheus, who taught humankind various arts and was sometimes said to have shaped humans out of clay and endowed them with the spark of life. For having stolen fire from Olympus and given it to humankind in defiance of Zeus, he was chained to a rock where an eagle daily tore at his liver, until he was finally released by Hercules.
Agamemnon
Classical Mythology. a king of Mycenae, a son of Atreus and brother of Menelaus. He led the Greeks in the Trojan War and was murdered by Clytemnestra, his wife, upon his return from Troy.
In the Iliad and the Odyssey:
Iliad - leader of the Greeks; King; stole Achilles’ “prize”, Briseis
Odyssey - killed by his wife Clymenstra upon return from the war; brief appearance when Odysseus sees all the spirits
The Furies
Roman goddesses of vengeance; usually characterized as three sisters - Alecto, Tisiphone, and Megaera; the children of Gaia and Uranus. They reside in the Underworld, tormenting evildoers and sinners. Greek form: the Erinyes.
The Titans
A race of powerful Greek deities, descendants of Gaea and Uranus, who ruled during the Golden Age and were overthrown by a face of younger gods, the Olympians.
The Fates
In Greek mythology, even before there were gods, there were the fates: Clotho, who spirits the tread of life; Lachesis, the measurer, who determines how long a life will be; and Atropos, who cuts the thread of life with her spears.
The Sirens
The Sirens were beautiful but dangerous creatures that lured the sailors with their beautiful voices to their doom, causing the ships to crash on the reefs near their island. They were the daughters of the river god Achelous
In the Iliad and the Odyssey:
Iliad - none
Odyssey - Another well-known encounter is that described in the Odyssey; Odysseus, advised by Circe, plugged the crew’s ears with wax and ordered them to bind him on the mast of the ship. He also told them that no matter how much he begged, they should not untie him. When they passed near the Sirens’ island, Odysseus started begging his shipmates to let him go, but none heard him; instead, they tied him even more. After they passed, Odysseus let them know that they were now in safe waters.
Penelopia
Odysseus’ wife
In the Iliad and the Odyssey:
Iliad - none, besides being Odysseus’ wife
Odyssey - evades proposals by claiming she will marry someone when she is finished weaving a shrove for her father - the catch, however, she weaves by day but unweaves it all at night
Priam
Paris’ father; King of Troy
In the Iliad and the Odyssey:
Iliad - collects Hectors body at the end of the book
Odyssey - none
Telemachos
Odysseus’ son
In the Iliad and the Odyssey:
Iliad - none
Odyssey - looks for his father; fights by his father’s side when he (Odysseus) returns against the suitors
Tantalus
In Greek mythology, this King was such a good friend of the gods that he was allowed to dine at their table - until he spilled their secrets on earth. He was sent to the Underworld, where his curse was to be stuck in a pool of water under a fruit tree, but never to be able to drink or eat.
Briseis
Achilles’ prize
In the Iliad and the Odyssey:
Iliad - Achilles’ prize, stolen by Agamemnon, causing a feud between Achilles and Agamemnon, such that Achilles withdraws from the war until Patroclus dies
Teiresias
Tiresias died by an arrow of god Apollo at the tainted spring Tilphussa. His soul went to the first level of Hades, where he was visited by Odysseus and gave him advice on how to continue on his voyage to Ithaca.
Cupid
cherubic god of love
