Download The Greek Gods

Greek Mythology
An Introduction
What is mythology?
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• Mythology refers to a
body of literary stories or
tales explaining how the
world and humankind
came to be.
• Most cultures have their
own mythologies.
• Before the myths were
written down, they were
told orally through
poems, or depicted
through art such as
vases
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• The oldest known Greek
literary sources of
mythology are the epic
poems Iliad and
Odyssey by Homer.
• Both poems tell stories of
the Trojan War, and
include tales of gods,
goddesses, heroes,
monsters, battles, and
adventures-- all common
themes in mythology.
Ancient Greek vases
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What are myths?
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• A myth is a story with a
purpose.
• The purpose of Greek
myths was to explain
everyday occurrences
the Greeks didn’t
understand, especially
weather and natural
disasters.
• They also taught the
Greeks important
lessons about life and
how to behave.
What were the myths
about?
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• Greek myths are
fascinating, adventurefilled stories of gods,
goddesses, heroes, and
monsters.
• Myths were about
adventures, triumphs,
tragedies, devotion, and
vengeance.
• Some taught the
Greeks about how to
live a life that would
please the gods.
Why gods?
• The Greeks created gods
and goddesses to explain
the natural phenomena of
their daily lives
• Wind
• Ocean waves
• Thunder
• Earthquakes
• Fire
Major and Minor gods and
goddesses
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• Some of the lesserimportant gods are
called minor gods.
• The major gods, or
Olympians, were the 14
gods and goddesses
who lived on Mount
Olympus.
• All of the major gods
were in some way
related to each other.
Mount Olympus
Greeks believed that
the major gods lived
on top of Mount
Olympus, a mountain
so high and steep that
no man could climb it
and see them in their
shining palace.
The real Mt. Olympus
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• Mount Olympus is
the tallest mountain
in Greece.
• It has 52 summits.
• The tallest summit
has an elevation of
9,570 feet.
• (Mt. Greylock is
3,489 feet)
They looked like humans
The gods looked like
people and acted like
them, too, only they
were taller, handsomer, and could do
no wrong. They also
had super-human
abilities, or powers.
The gods could shape shift
The gods often
descended to earth,
sometimes in their
own shapes,
sometimes disguised
as humans or animals.
This is Zeus disguised as a bull,
wooing Europa.
Immortality
The gods could not
die. They were
immortal, for divine
ichor flowed in their
veins instead of blood.
In the beginning…
• There was Chaos
(empty darkness).
• Gaia (the earth) and
Uranus (the heavens)
sprang from the Chaos.
• Gaia and Uranus
married and gave birth
to the Titans, who were
the first gods.
• The Titans were giants.
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• Gaia and Uranus
warned their son
Cronus that one day
he would have a son
who would overpower
him.
• So Cronus swallowed
his children to prevent
this prediction from
coming true.
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• Cronus’s youngest
son, Zeus, was
spared from being
swallowed by his
father.
• As a baby, Cronus
had been tricked
into swallowing a
stone instead of
Zeus.
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• Zeus grew up and
together with his
brothers and sisters,
fought the Titans for
control over the
universe.
• This battle between
the “old gods” and
the “new gods”
raged for years.
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• The Titans were
overthrown, and Zeus
and his siblings became
the new supreme gods.
• Zeus appointed himself
supreme god over all,
and gave his siblings
each their own domains
to rule.
Zeus (Jupiter)
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• God of the heavens and
earth, ruler of weather, giver
of justice.
• Son of Cronus & Rhea.
• Symbols: thunderbolt, eagle,
and oak tree.
• He sat on the highest throne,
with a bucketful of
thunderbolts beside him. He
was the most powerful of the
gods.
• Had many wives, lovers, and
children.
Hera (Juno)
• Goddess of marriage and
married women.
• She was Zeus’ youngest
sister who sat on Zeus’ right
side. Was also his wife and
queen.
• Daughter of Cronus & Rhea.
• Symbols: cow, peacock.
• She was very jealous of her
husband’s other lovers.
• Often disguised herself to
catch Zeus in his affairs.
Ares (Mars)
• God of war, bloodshed, and
violence.
• Son of Zeus & Hera.
• Symbols: dogs, vultures, or a
spear and shield.
• Tall and handsome but vain
and cruel.
• None of the gods were fond of
him.
• Wore a golden helmet with a
large plume on the top.
• Had a romance with the
goddess Aphrodite. They had
a son, Eros (Cupid).
Hephaestus (Vulcan)
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• God of blacksmiths,
metalworkers, and craftsmen.
• Son of Zeus and Hera.
• Symbols: the forge and anvil
(metalworking tools).
• He was a hard-working, peaceloving god and was very fond
of his mother.
• His wife was Aphrodite.
• He was lame.
• When he was born, Hera threw
him from Mount Olympus
because she thought he looked
ugly.
Aphrodite
(Venus)
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• Goddess of love and beauty.
• Had no mother or father. She
rose out of the sea on a cushion
of foam.
• She was taken to Olympus,
where all the gods rejoiced in
her beauty, and she became one
of them.
• Symbols: dove, sparrow, rose,
myrtle, and evergreen.
• She was not pleased being the
wife of Hephaestus; she would
rather have had his brother Ares
for a husband.
• Had an affair with Ares; they
had a son (Cupid).
Hermes (Mercury)
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God of trade, travel, and theft.
Son of Zeus & Maia.
Symbols: herald’s staff, winged
sandals, winged cap.
He was “herald of the gods,”
(herald = messenger)
He wore a golden hat with wings
and a pair of winged sandals.
He was as popular among mortals
as he was among gods.
According to the myths, Hermes
could walk as soon as he was
born and he invented the lyre
when he was just a day old.
Demeter (Ceres)
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Goddess of the harvest.
Zeus’ sister.
Daughter of Cronus & Rhea.
Symbols: sheaf of wheat and
the cornucopia.
A kind goddess.
Had a daughter named
Persephone, who was Hades’
queen in the underworld.
She created winter.
Had the power to destroy all
life on earth.
Poseidon (Neptune)
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• God of the sea.
• Zeus’ brother who sat on the left of
Zeus.
• Son of Cronus & Rhea.
• Symbols: trident, dolphins, and
horses.
• A moody and violent god with
fierce blue eyes and sea-blue hair.
• He was called the “Earthshaker.”
• Had the power to create
earthquakes and tsunamis.
• Rarely at home; a restless god who
loved to race the waves.
Athena (Minerva)
• Goddess of wisdom and war.
• Daughter of Zeus and Metis (first
wife of Zeus).
• Symbols: owl, olive tree.
• Favorite child of Zeus.
• She sprang fully grown out of her
father’s head.
• Her constant companion was
Nike, the spirit of victory.
• She was skilled at the loom and
potter’s wheel.
Apollo (Apollo)
• God of the sun, light, and
music.
• Artemis’s twin brother.
• Son of Zeus & Leto.
• Symbols: lyre, laurel wreath.
• As the protector of single men,
Apollo never married.
• Zeus sent him off in a chariot
drawn by white swans to win
for himself the oracle of
Delphi.
• Had the power to heal using
the heat of the sun.
Artemis (Diana)
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Goddess of the hunt and moon.
Apollo’s twin sister.
Daughter of Zeus & Leto.
Symbols: crescent moon
crown, a stag, or a bow and
arrows.
• When she was a newborn, she
asked her father to promise
never to make her marry; she
wanted to remain forever a
wild young maiden hunting
through the woods.
Dionysus (Bacchus)
• God of wine.
• Son of Zeus and Semele, a
mortal woman.
• Symbols: ivy, bunches of
grapes, a wine cup, or a
leopard.
• Youngest of the Olympians.
• He was the only one of the 12
great gods whose mother was
a mortal.
• Hestia gave up her throne for
him.
• He was born from Zeus’ thigh.
Hestia (Vesta)
• Goddess of the hearth and
throne.
• Eldest sister of Zeus.
• Daughter of Cronus & Rhea.
• Symbol: hearth fire.
• She was the gentlest of all
the Olympians.
• She had no throne, but
tended the sacred fire in the
hall, and every hearth on
earth was her alter.
• She received the first
offering at every sacrifice in
ancient Greek households.
Hades (Pluto)
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God of the underworld.
Eldest brother of Zeus.
Son of Cronus & Rhea.
Symbols: bident, Cerberus (his
three-headed guard dog), or the
cypress tree.
He preferred to stay in the
underworld and never went to
Olympus.
A gloomy god of few words,
mortals feared him so much they
dared not speak his name.
He ruled the underworld with his
queen, Persephone.
Had a helmet of invisibility.