Mythology and Literature Flashcards
What is a myth?
Traditional stories handed down over the generations and explain some sort of physical or social phenomenon or teach a moral lesson
Who is the earliest known author of Greek literature? When was he writing
Homer in the 8th century B.C.
What is muthos?
Where the word “myth” comes from. An emotional speech to persuade someone
What did Plato contribute to mythology? When?
Distinguishes a line between myths - stories that are false - and the rational work of philosophers. 4th/5th century B.C.
What was Xenophanes’ theory of mythology?
Denied anthropomorphism. Believed the gods were nothing like humans
What was Euhemerus’ theory of mythology?
Believed that myths were historical allegories, stories about regular people that became aggrandized into gods and heroes as time went on
What is an allegory?
That a text doesn’t literally mean what it says, that there is a hidden meaning underneath
What is a physical allegory?
Myths tell something about the physical universe
What centuries texts by Homer and Hesiod originate in?
8th century to 7th century B.C.
What centuries did texts by Aeschylus, Euripides, and Sophocles originate in?
5th to 3rd century B.C.
What centuries are the Homeric Hymns from?
8th to 5th century B.C.
What centuries did texts by Catullus, Vergil, and Ovid originate?
1st century B.C. - Roman authors
What is an epic?
A long narrative poem that describes the actions of gods and humans in the past
What is a theogony/cosmogony?
Poem that describes the origin of the gods and the universe
What is a hymn?
A short poem that praises a god or goddess
What is a drama?
A dramatic play that acts out the actions of myths as if they were happening in the present
What is an epyllion?
Short narrative poem about something related to mythology (it’s a mini epic)
What is Hesiod’s Theogony composed of?
The creation of the universe, catalogues of the gods, catalogues of the children of the gods with mortals and the children of goddesses with mortals, some hymns, stories of the Titanomachy, the early kingship of Zeus and early exploits of the gods, creation of humans, great men and women of the past
What kind of myth is the Theogony?
Succession myth: a younger generation of gods overthrowing the older one until Zeus takes over
When was the Theogony written?
Around 700 B.C.
What was the Theogony intended to let people know about?
How Zeus became the permanent master of the universe
How is the underworld portrayed in the Theogony?
Depicted as down, lots of gates, towers and chains, has a throat that swallows things down. You can see the roots of the land and the sea if you look up. Horrible monsters around. The palace of Day and Night. Hades lives in the house of Hades. The river Styx flows through the underworld. Other rivers are the Acheron, Pyriphlegthon, and the Cocytus
Why does the Theogony break off after the children of goddesses with mortals?
There is another poem, called the catalogue of women (great mortal women and their offspring), but it is fragmented
What the timeline of stories in Ovid’s Metamorphoses?
The beginning of the universe up to the assassination of Caesar
How did Stoicism and Epicurianism influence Ovid’s interpretation of Chaos?
Rather than emptiness, Chaos is a disorderly mass of undifferentiated, indivisible particles
Who is Nature is Ovid?
A benevolent divinity that puts Chaos into order
Who is the first god mentioned in Ovid?
Prometheus
What are the ages of man in Ovid?
Gold, Silver, Bronze, Iron, Giants, Stone
What are the characteristics of Ovid’s golden age?
Always spring, food without agriculture, no violence, primitive
What are the characteristics of Ovid’s silver age?
Seasons, agriculture, houses
What are the characteristics of Ovid’s Bronze Age?
People are more violent, but not completely corrupt
What are the characteristics of Ovid’s Iron Age?
Wars and evils dominate, greed defines humans, children show no respect for their parents
What are the characteristics of Ovid’s Giant age?
The most corrupt race of humans, created when the giants’ blood falls on the earth after being defeated by the gods
Why did Hesiod write Works and Days?
To teach his brother Perses why humans need to work hard, why that is the nature of human life
What are Hesiod’s Ages of man?
Gold, Silver, Bronze, Heroes, Iron
What are the characteristics of Hesiod’s Gold age?
No violence, always spring, no agriculture, close to the gods. These humans became benevolent earth spirits
What are the characteristics of Hesiod’s silver age?
100 year infancy followed by violent adulthood, no sacrifice to the gods. These people become the spirits of the underworld
What are the characteristics of Hesiod’s Bronze Age?
War and violence, first people go to Hades and the afterlife
What are the characteristics of Hesiod’s age of heroes?
The ancestral heroes rid the world of monsters, voyage of the Argo, wars at Thebes, the Trojan war
What are the characteristics of Hesiod’s Iron Age?
People are immoral and unjust, the gods are very distant
What age did Ovid and Hesiod believe they were a part of?
Ovid believed he was in the Stone Age, Hesiod believed he was in the Iron Age
What kind of story are the ages of man?
Moral decline
What are tricksters and culture heroes? Why are they important?
Tricksters use deception and tricks to get what they want. Culture heroes do what is needed for civilization as we know it to exist. They’re often the ones bringing about change.
How are humans viewed in the ages of man vs by Prometheus?
Prometheus views sophistication as betterment, and the ages of man view it as a moral decline
Why does Prometheus rebel?
He disagrees with Zeus’ view of humanity
How is Zeus portrayed in Prometheus Bound?
Cruel and oppressive, he is micromanaging the universe and piling more work on the other gods, oppressing older generations of gods
What does Prometheus plan to use as a bargaining chip to secure his freedom?
Says he knows a prophecy that says Zeus is fated to be overthrown, a goddess gives birth to a son more powerful than his father, apparently the prophecy is about Thetis.
Why does Hephaestus call Prometheus a “god of mountainous thoughts”?
He’s lost touch with reality a bit and has some delusions of grandeur
What does Prometheus claim he gave to men?
Fire, blind hopefulness, human skill and science. Also claims he assigned the gods their dominions
What is added to the story of Io?
Danaus’ daughter marries the son of Aegyptus and they become the royal family of Greece. Heracles later comes from that line and frees Prometheus
What makes Hermes a culture hero?
Inventing fire sticks/flints and the lyre, which is very important in Greek culture
What did Cambridge ritualists claim explained all myths?
All myths explained something about rituals in society
What was Arnold van Gennap’s theory?
A particular form of rites of passage are the base of all rituals. People are separated from their normal lives, excluded for a while, then brought back
