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Classics > Heracles > Flashcards

Heracles Flashcards

1
Q

Acheloüs

A

River-God; Shape-shifter; Bull-Horned

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2
Q

Admetus and Alcestis

A

Parergon: Alcestis
§ Heracles entertained by Admetus § Wife, Alcestis, recently deceased
§ Heracles wrestles Thanatos ‘Death’ § Brings Alcestis back from dead § Euripides’ Alcestis

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3
Q

Alcmena

A

Zeus lusts after Alcmena
§ Grand-daughter of Perseus

Zeus Disguised as Amphitryon
§ Alcmena bears twins
§ Heracles: son of Zeus
§ Iphicles: son of Amphitryon
Jupiter comes to Alcmena disguised as Amphitruo
§ Mercury disguised as Amphitruo’s servant, Sosia
§ Alcmena gives birth to twins: Heracles & Iphicles

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4
Q

Amphitryon

A

Husband of Alcmena

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5
Q

Antaeus

A

an African giant who was invincible as long as he touched the ground, but was lifted into the air by Hercules and crushed to death.

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6
Q

Athloi

A

12 Athloi
§ Athloi: ‘Contests’ with prizes § Prize: Immortality
§ Performed while Eurystheus’ Slave
§ Sometimes alone; sometimes aided
§ Athena
§ Iolaüs (nephew)
§ Numerous ‘Side-Deeds’
§ G. Parerga
§ During and after Labours

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7
Q

Atlas

A

Metopes of T emple of Zeus @ Olympia
§ Aided by Athena and Atlas § Heracles supports heavens § Atlas fetches Apples

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8
Q

Busiris

A

fictional Egyptian king of the central Delta who was killed by Heracles

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9
Q

Cerberus

A

3 headed hell-hound

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10
Q

Cercopes

A

Heracles & Cercopes § Pair of Dwarfs
§ Attempt to rob Heracles
§ Mother had warned them:
§ ‘Beware of the Black-bottomed Man!’ § Suspends them upside-down
§ Good view of his posterior!
§ They crack jokes about his . . .
§ Lets them go
§ Later turned into apes (or stones) by Zeus

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11
Q

Chiron

A

Chiron, wise centaur, wounded in melee
§ Exchanges immortality with Prometheus

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12
Q

Deïanira

A

Heracles marries Deïanera § ‘Man-slayer’
§ First wrestles Acheloüs
§River-God; Shape-shifter; Bull-Horned § Breaks off horn in fight
§ Becomes ‘Horn of Plenty’ § Variant:
§ Exchanges Acheloüs’ horn for Amalthea’s

Deïanera in Love
§ Learns of Heracles’ love for Iole
§ Dips robe in poisoned blood of Nessus § Believes it’s love potion
§ Heracles severely burned § Cannot remove robe
§ Funeral Pyre prepared on Mt. Oeta § Deïanera commits suicide
§ Bow & arrows to Philoctetes’ Father § He alone dared to light funeral pyre

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13
Q

Electryon

A

mother of Heracles, whose father was the god Zeus. Alcmene was also referred to as Electryone

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14
Q

Erythia

A

Island of Erythia ‘Red-Land

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15
Q

Eurystheus

A

Jealousy of Hera § Zeus’ Boast:
§ My Descendant born that day § T o rule over all
§ Hera delays Heracles’ birth
§ Hastens Eurystheus’ birth § Grandson of Zeus
§ Heracles becomes Eurystheus’ slave § Performs Labours for Eurystheus

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16
Q

Eurytion

A

giant herdsman

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17
Q

Eurytus, Iole, and Iphitus

A

Heracles & Iole
§ Daughter of Eurytus
§ Eurytus refuses to yield daughter § Heracles returns to Tiryns
§Kills Iole’s brother, Iphitus, at Tirnys § Goes to Delphi seeking purificiation
§ Pythia refuses to answer
§ Heracles attempts to steal tripod § Wrestles with Apollo
§ Zeus intervenes
§ Heracles sold into slavery for 1 year

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18
Q

Geryon

A

geryon was the son of Chrysaor and Callirrhoe. Chrysaor had sprung from the body of the Gorgon Medusa after Perseus beheaded her, and Callirrhoe was the daughter of two Titans, Oceanus and Tethys

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19
Q

Gilgamesh

A

demigod who was said to have lived an exceptionally long life (the Sumerian King List records his reign as 126 years) and to be possessed of super-human strength

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20
Q

Hebe

A

Heracles Deified
§ Mortal flesh burned away
§ Immortal spirit ascends to Olympus
§ Reconciliation with Hera §Marries Hebe ‘Youth’
§ Odyssey Book 11
§ Heracles’ Ghost
§ Ambiguity of status: Mortal or Divine?

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21
Q

Heracles (L. Hercules)

A

‘Glory of Hera’ - Hera: implacable nemesis

Local Hero or Import? § Prince of Tiryns?
§ Vassal of Mycenaean King § Fame spreads
§ End of Mycenaean Age: Enters Greece? § Pan-Hellenic Hero
§ Particular Locales
§ But ranges throughout Greek world § Italy
§ Hercules
§ Incorporated into state religion

The Choice of Heracles
§ Or: Heracles at the Crossroads
§ Parable told by Prodicus of Ceos
§ Xenophon Memorabilia. 2.21-34; Cicero, On Duty 1.118
§ Choice between Pleasure and Duty §Allegorized as Two Women
§ Heracles chooses Duty
§ Paradigm of Roman Stoic

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22
Q

Hesperides

A

‘Daughters of Evening’

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23
Q

Hippolyta

A

Queen of Amazons §Hippolyta = ‘Horse-Tamer’
§ Girdle: belt worn above hips

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24
Q

Iolaüs

A

nephew, aided Heracles in slave tasks
Cauterizes stump of hydra

25
Q

Iphicles

A

son on Amphitryon and Alcmena

26
Q

Ladon

A

serpent protecting apple tree

27
Q

Linus

A

Heracles kills music teacher, Linus, with lyre

28
Q

“Master of Animals”

A

Heracles
Numerous exploits:
§ Man vs. Beast

Associations with Eastern Myth
§ E.g., Indra vs. 3-headed Visvarupa § ‘Primitive’ Qualities
§ Brute Strength
§ Wields Club & wears Lion-Skin

Zeus gives infant Heracles to Hera to suckle
§ Heracles bites down so hard Hera pulls away
§ ‘Milky Way’ created
§ Galaxy from G: Galakt- ‘Milk’
Hera unleashes serpents
§ Heracles throttles serpents in crib

‘He was a troubled young man …’
§ Numerous Mentors
§ Kills music teacher, Linus, with lyre
§ Sent away to Mt. Cithaeron
§ Several feats of prowess
§ ‘Now about that stud fee …’ § 50 Daughters of Thespius
§ Sleeps with 1 each night
§ Variant: all 50 on 1 night!

29
Q

Metopes (Temple of Zeus @ Olympia)

A

Canonical 12 Labours § Some T raditions:
§ Only 10 counted
§ 2 discounted as ‘cheating’

Canonical 12
§ On Metopes of T emple of Zeus § At Olympia
§1st 6: Set in Peloponnesus
§ Centred upon Mycenae § Man vs. Beast

30
Q

Megara

A

Megara, daughter of Creon, King of Thebes
§ 1st wife with whom he has 3 kids

Hera drives him mad
§ Murders entire family
§ Seeks purification at Delphi § Pythia’s instructions
§ Go to Tiryns
§ Perform 12 Labours for Eurystheus
§ In expiation for killing family
§ If all accomplished: immortality

31
Q

Mt. Oeta

A

Funeral Pyre prepared on Mt. Oeta

32
Q

Mycenae

A

Boeotia
§ Birth & some adventures
Trachis
§ Final adventures & Death

33
Q

Nereus

A

Must first wrestle with Nereus to Find apples of hesperides

34
Q

Nessus

A

Heracles vs. Centaur Nessus §Nessus Helps Deïanera across river
§Attempts to rape her midstream §Heracles kills him with poisoned arrow
§Before dying:
§Convinces Deïanera Blood is Love Potion §To prevent Heracles from loving Another
§ Blood later causes Heracles’ death

35
Q

Omphale

A

In Bondage . . . and in Drag! § Bought by Omphale
§ Queen of Lydians
§ They become Lovers
§ Also Exchange Clothes § T ransvestism
§ Connected with ‘Rite of Passage’?

36
Q

Orth(r)us

A

2-headed watch-dog

37
Q

Parergon (pl. Parerga)

A

side-deeds, during or after labours

38
Q

Pholus

A

Pholus the Centaur
§ Entertains Heracles with wine
§ Other centaurs attack; killed by Heracles § Chiron, wise centaur, wounded in melee
§ Exchanges immortality with Prometheus

39
Q

Pillars of Heracles

A

Monument to 10th Labour
§ Identified with Rocks of Gibraltar (Europe) & Ceuta (Africa)
§ Boundary Between Known & Unknown; Life & Death

40
Q

Poeas and Philoctetes

A

Philoctetes was the son of Poeas, king of Meliboea in Thessaly. He came into possession of the bow and arrows of Heracles after assisting the hero in ending the agony of the shirt of Nessus—Philoctetes, or in some versions his father, lit the pyre on which Heracles immolated himself and became immortal

41
Q

Prometheus

A

Chiron, wise centaur, wounded in melee
§ Exchanges immortality with Prometheus

42
Q

Theseus and Pirithoüs

A

Theseus was successful in kidnapping the young Helen, Pirithous’ plan to abduct Persephone from Hades in the underworld was less successful. Both men would be trapped for years and attacked by the Furies. Though the hero Heracles would eventually free Theseus, Pirithous remained trapped for eternity.

42
Q

Thespius

A

50 daughters, all sleep with Heracles

43
Q

Tiryns

A

Boeotia
§ Birth & some adventures
Trachis
§ Final adventures & Death

44
Q

Trachis

A

final adventures and death

45
Q

Milky Way

A

Zeus gives infant Heracles to Hera to suckle
§ Heracles bites down so hard Hera pulls away
§ ‘Milky Way’ created
§ Galaxy from G: Galakt- ‘Milk’

46
Q

Nemea

A

Nemea (N.W . of Mycenae) §Task:
§ Kill lion; bring back skin § Kills with club
§ Later versions: with bow & arrows § Variant:
§ Lion: Invulnerable
§ Strangles Lion
§ Skins with own claws
§ Club & Lion-skin § Iconic

47
Q

Lerna

A

S.E. of Mycenae) § Hydra: ‘Water Serpent’
§ 9 Heads: 8 mortal; 9th immortal
§ For every head cut off, 2 more grow
§ Aided by Iolaüs: Cauterizes stump § Hera sends an enormous crab
§ Buries immortal head beneath boulder § Dips arrows into Hydra’s venomous blood
§ Hera transforms crab into constellation ‘Cancer’

48
Q

Cerynean Hind

A

Mt. Cerynea (in Arcadia)
§ Hind (= Deer) sacred to Artemis
§ Golden antlers
§ A.ka. ‘Golden Hind’ §Tracks it for 1 Year
§ Must not harm it
§ Otherwise: Artemis’ wrath
§ Variant:
§Pindar’s 3rd Olympian Ode
§ Heracles goes to land of Hyperboreans § Conquest over Death

49
Q

Erymanthian Boar

A

Mt. Erymanthus (in Arcadia)
§ Ravaging countryside §Trapped with nets
§ Parergon ‘Side Deed’ § Pholus the Centaur
§ Entertains Heracles with wine
§ Other centaurs attack; killed by Heracles § Chiron, wise centaur, wounded in melee
§ Exchanges immortality with Prometheus

50
Q

Augean Stables

A

Augeas, King of Elis (N.W. Peloponnesus) § Owned vast herd of cattle
§ Had never cleaned stables!! § ‘A River Runs Through It’
§ Heracles cleans them by diverting 2 rivers § Had negotiated 1/10 of herd for himself
§ Augeas reneges on deal; later killed by Heracles § Labour sometimes discounted
§ Not to be done for his own gain
§ Olympic Games said to be instituted by Heracles
§ Cf. Pelops

51
Q

Stymphalian Birds

A

Lake Stymphalus (in Arcadia)
§ Flock of birds
§ Various attributes
§ E.g., Arrow-Shooting Wings § Heracles flushes them out
§ With castanets given him by Athena § Shoots them all

51
Q

Labours 7 - 9

A

All outside of Peloponnesus
§7: S. to Crete
§ 8: N. to Thrace
§ 9. E. to Land of Amazons
§ Last 3 Labours
§ All connected with Conquest of Death

52
Q

Cretan Bull

A

Island of Crete
§ Beyond Peloponnesus
§ Bull Rampaging throughout Crete
§ Overpowers Bull
§ Rides it back to mainland
§ Bull later escapes
§ Ultimately killed by Theseus § Athenian Hero
§ Theseus & Bull of Marathon

53
Q

Mares of Diomedes

A

Diomedes, King of Thrace
§ Son of Ares
§ Mares feed on … human flesh!!
§ Heracles feeds them their master § Parergon: Alcestis
§ Heracles entertained by Admetus § Wife, Alcestis, recently deceased
§ Heracles wrestles Thanatos ‘Death’ § Brings Alcestis back from dead § Euripides’ Alcestis

54
Q

Girdle of Hippolyta

A

Hippolyta: Queen of Amazons §Hippolyta = ‘Horse-Tamer’
§ Girdle: belt worn above hips
§ Hippolyta offers Heracles Girdle
§ Sign of sexual submission
§ Hera intervenes
§ Disguised as an Amazon
§ Announces Heracles’s Abduction of Hippolyta
§ Amazons attack Heracles & companions
§ Heracles strangles Hippolyta

55
Q

Cattle of Geryon

A

3-Bodied Monster
§ Offspring of Callirhoë & Chysaör
§ Lives on Island of Erythia ‘Red-Land’ § Eurytion: giant herdsman
§ Orth(r)us: 2-headed watch-dog
§ Helius aids Heracles
§ Gives him lift in Golden cup along River Ocean
§ Heracles kills them all § Brings Cattle Back East

56
Q

Apples of Hesperides

A

Hesperides:
§ ‘Daughters of Evening’
§ 3 Daughters live in Far West
§ Guard T ree bearing Golden Apples § Apples
§ Originally wedding gift from Ge to Hera § T ree also Protected by:
§ Serpent § Ladon

But First:
§ Heracles & Nereus
§ Must first wrestle with Nereus to Find Them § Variant:
§ Heracles kills Ladon
§ Gets apples on his own
§ Metopes of T emple of Zeus @ Olympia
§ Aided by Athena and Atlas § Heracles supports heavens § Atlas fetches Apples

57
Q

Cerberus

A

Cerberus: 3-Headed Hell-Hound § Aided by both Hermes & Athena
§ Most difficult of all Labours
§ Most clearly Conquest of Death
§ Meets Theseus & Pirithoüs §Rescues only Theseus
§ Brings Cerberus to Eurystheus § Returns Cerberus to Underworld

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