Greek Mythology: Lecture Notes Flashcards
Mythos
“word, speech, tale or story”
Culture
Oral Tradition
Misleading definition of myth
Untruth, fiction, or lie
Joseph Campbell
Hero with a thousand faces
Myth reflects
the “inner landscape” which is the soul of man
Myth and Religion
- Polytheistic (worship/ belief of more than one god)
- These myth stories were primarily concerned with the gods and humans, and the relationship that they shared
- Included tales of the afterlife
Etiology
The cause or origins of phenomenon
Hero with a thousand faces
Joseph Campbell
Myths attempt to explain
- Physical
- Emotional
- Spiritual matters
Not only literally and realistically, but figuratively and metaphorically as well.
Etymology
the origins of words or parts of words
Myths attempt to explain…
Myths attempt to explain the origin of our physical world, where human beings came from and the dichotomy between body and soul; the source of beauty and goodness, and of evil and sin; and the nature and meaning of love.
In the beginning
there was KAOS
Who was there in the beginning?
Gaia (earth goddess, Mother Earth) and Ouranus (Father Sky)
The spawn of Gaia and Ouranus
12 Titans, 3 Cyclopses, and 3 Hecatonchires
What did Cronus do to his brothers?
Lock them up in the Tartarus
How many children did Rhea give birth to and what are they called?
6 children: Olympians
What did Cronus do to his children?
Eat them
Who did Rhea save and how?
Rhea gives Cronus a swaddled rock, and saves Zeus
The return of Zeus
- Zeus is Cronus’ cup bearer
- Poisons Cronus
- Cronus regurgitates Olympians
- Epic battle ensues
The six original Olympians
Hestia, Demeter, Hera, Hades, Poseidon, Zeus
The other Olympians
Athena, Apollo, Artemis, Hermes, Hephaestus, Ares, Aphrodite, Dionysus
The Titan Prometheus’ name means
Forethought
What character is considered the great benefactor of mankind by giving them fire?
Prometheus
Why did Zeus withhold fire from mankind?
Prometheus stole the heavenly fire in a fennel stick, and gave it to man
What did Zeus make Hephaestus do?
He has Hephaestus create the first woman out of earth and water; she was beautiful, alluring, and drop dead sexy
What does Pandora mean?
All gifts
According to Hesoid, _______, the first woman, was created to inflict misery on man.
Pandora
Which age of man depict humans as demigods, valiant in war, just, and godlike, and who preceded our own race on earth?
The Age of Heroes
Besides withholding fire, creating Pandora and the jar, what is another Punishment Zeus inflicted on Prometheus?
Prometheus was bound to a rock, where Zeus sent an eagle that tore out Prometheus’ liver. Every night, his liver would grow back, so that his torment might continue.
What are the Five Ages of Man?
Age of Gold, Age of Silver, Age of Bronze, Age of Heroes, Age of Iron
Whose was the face “that launched a thousand ships”, and is considered the prize of the Trojan War?
Helen
Who is the goddess of sexual desire, and is credited with causing the Trojan War?
Aphrodite
The mythological character whose existence explains the origin of the grasshopper is:
Tithonus
Which god is considered to be the first father figure?
Ouranus
The Gorgons were deadly creatures living at the edge of the world, possessing the power to turn people into ____ if they dared to look into the Gorgons’ eyes.
Stone
Zeus would often change shape to seduce, trick, or even rape women. Which other god was well known for this behaviour?
Poseidon
Before Athens decided on their patron god, they held a contest between Athena and ____
Poseidon
“When he let loose his great voice from his chest, the words fell like winter snowflakes, then no man alive could rival _____”
Odysseus
Aphrodite was born of ____
The genitals of Ouranus
The actions of the Greek gods and goddesses:
demonstrate complex and contradictory natures
What is NOT generally a prominent theme of Greek mythology?
Life-long fidelity
According to ancient myth: the Age of Iron to which we currently belong, is characterized by:
warring cities and countries
What is not a folkloric element found in heroic Greek myths?
Finding true love
Who killed the first Greek to set foot on the beaches of Troy?
Hector
After judging a music contest in the favour of Pan instead of Apollo, King Midas was cursed with:
the ears of an ass
An important part of Greek theater was performance of mythological stories in the format of ___ providing the audience a cathartic experience
the tragedy
The Greek gods were driven by certain human-like motivations; except:
concern for human dignity
Helios’ son, Phaethon, failed to control the Sun god’s chariot, resulting in the origin of ___
deserts
The Greek character doomed to murder his father and marry his mother was:
Oedipus
T or F: The Greeks used their mythology, particularly the stories of their heroes, to define their past.
True
T or F: The Greeks viewed their gods as elemental beings who ruled the surrounding natural environment.
True
T or F: In Homer’s Illiad, the gods are seen as more anthropomorphic or human, highlighting their jealousies, vanity, and divided loyalties.
True
T or F: In Greek folklore, the rite of passage in which a young girl enters womanhood was of prime importance.
False
T or F: “A young man enters a dark cave…” is a perfect example of an age-old folkloric motif.
True
T or F: The word etymology refers to the cause or origins of phenomenon
False
T or F: Oedipus embodies the notion of a tragic hero
True
T or F: Greeks who received a prophecy, could not avoid it, unless they received special help from the gods.
False
T or F: Hector was considered the greatest of all the Greek heroes.
False
T or F: The ancient Greeks lived in a monotheistic culture.
False
T or F: The Greeks had an oral tradition, transmitting their history and culture through stories and plays.
True
T or F: The word motif means recurring element
True
T or F: The heliotrope got its name from Helios, because this flower cannot stand direct sunlight, and thus it shies away whenever the sun is present.
False
T or F: If someone deserved a special punishment in mythology, they would be sent to Tartarus.
True
T or F: The most important thing for any true Greek hero is fame and glory.
True
T or F: In the Illiad, Achilles was willing to sail away from the Trojan War and, indeed, fame and glory with his lover, Briseis
False
T or F: The word cathartic means learning through suffering.
True
T or F: Greek tragedy exists so that we, the audience, will never have to ‘cross the line’ ourselves
True
T or F: We got our word aristocratic from the Greek words aristos cratos, which defines the social class to which the Greek heroes of old belonged - these words literally mean “the power of the rich.”
True
T or F: The typical epic Greek hero lived larger than life, defeated terrible monsters, loved beautiful women, and died in some epic struggle or in some other impressive manner
False
Age of Gold
- a golden race of mortal humans
- existed when Cronus was king in heaven
- lived in harmony with all living things
- lived as gods with carefree hearts completely without toil or trouble
- the land was fertile and fruitful
Age of Silver
- olympians made the second race of man
- inferior to those of the Golden Age, both mentally and physically
- lived only a short period of time
- arrogant, they failed to acknowledge and worship the immortals
Age of Bronze
- Zeus then made another race of mortals, not like those of the Silver Age
- They were mighty and terrible, living out the painful and violent deeds of Ares
- They were made of bronze, lived in bronze houses and used bronze tools
- When they were destroyed by their own hands, they went down into the dark house of Hades
Age of Heroes
- Once gone, Zeus made a fourth race
- Valiant in war and more just than those of the Bronze Age, these were a godlike race of heroic men called demi-gods, and who preceded our own race on the vast earth
- Evil war and dread battle destroyed many of them
- Some, Zeus sent to live their eternal lives on the Islands of the Blessed (also known as Elysium)
- Ruled by Cronus, who was freed from Tartarus for this task
Age of Iron
- Zeus made yet another race who live on the nourishing race
- They never cease from toil and woe by day, nor from being destroyed in the night
- Good and evil will be mingled; a father will not be in harmony with is children, nor guest with host, nor friend with friend, nor brother with brother
- They will have little little respect for the gods
- One city will destroy another; mortals will praise the arrogance Zeus will destroy this race of mortals as well and wickedness of others
Heroic myths tend to be about
mortals
Aristos means; cratos means
aristos - the best; cratos -power
Tragedy is often seen as a _____ experience
cathartic (healing/ learning through suffering)
