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KEY
What Exactly is Mythology??
I.
What is Mythology?
a.
Stories created to ___explain__________ behavior and __nature_________
i. __Science______________ had not been developed as an explanation for these occurrences
ii. Man had not received __spiritual______________ enlightenment through _religion________________
b.
Told by word of ____mouth________ and handed down from generation to generation; not __written___________
down until the advent of the following:
i. _Hesoid___________ - 8th century BC – Greek poet who collected myths
ii. _Ovid___________ - 1st century BC – Roman poet who collected myths
iii. Resulted in Greek and Roman _names_______ for the same gods; __Greek__________ gods were usually
more animated and full of character than _Roman___________ gods
c.
Thought of as a _Greek____________ creation, but every major _culture________ has their own myths (Norse,
Medieval, etc.) Norse: Thor (Adventures in Babysitting); Anglo-Saxon:Beowulf
II.
Why do we study Mythology?
a.
References to mythology in _literature_________________ and _media_____
i. _Shakespeare_________, Milton, Keats, etc. (Romeo & Juliet:”She hath Diana’s wit.”)
ii. _Allusions_________ used throughout Western culture (What does “allude to” mean?)
b.
Mythology and _music_____________
i. The term “music” comes from the _Muses_________, which were the gods of the _arts__(Gods were the
earliest musicians: Athena-flute(never played); Hermes-lyre (gave to Apollo) and shepherd pipe; Pan-pipe of reeds)
ii. Myths tell the creation of musical __instruments_________________
c.
Mythological references in __art______________
i. _Paintings___________: Ex. Boticelli’s _Venus_____________
ii. _Sculptures_________________: Ex. Venus de Milo (“apple” in Greek; depicts Aphrodite; thought to be
representation of Venuse holding golden apple presented to her by Paris of Troy; fragmento of apple and arm found
near it).
d.
Beautiful and entertaining stories
KEY
The Olympic Council
Zeus
Greek Name
Latin Name
Jupiter (Jove)
Realm
King of the gods; ruler of
mankind
sea, horses, earthquakes
Symbols
eagle, oak, thunderbolt
Poseidon
Neptune
Phoebus Apollo
Hermes
Phoebus Apollo – note same
name
Mercury
sun, music, poetry, medicine
lyre, arrows, sun, chariot
winged cap and sandals
Mars
messenger of the gods;
commerce, theft
war
Ares
Hephaestus
Vulcan
fire and workers in metal
Anvil, forge
Hera
Juno
pomegranate, peacock, cuckoo
Demeter
Ceres
Queen of the gods; wife of
Zeus; patroness of married
women
agriculture
Artemis
Diana
Pallas Athena
Minerva
moon, hunting, patroness of
maidens (unmarried young
women)
wisdom, war, weaving
Aphrodite
Venus
love and beauty
Ageis (the shield), owl, shield,
olive tree
doves, sparrows
Hestia
Vestia
hearth and home
hearth fire
trident, dolphins, horses
sword, shield, dogs, vultures
sheaf of wheat, poppies,
cornucopia
crescent, stag, arrows
The Epic and Archetypes
The Epic
1.
A long _narrative_______________ poem that tells the _adventures_____________ of larger-than-life
_heroes_____________, who, in some way, embody the _values__ of their civilization.
2.
Sometimes called “_heroic__________ _poems___________”; later epics sometimes called “_literary_______
_epics__________” because they were created to be like earlier heroic poems.
3.
Characteristics of an epic:
a.
A physically _impressive______________ hero of national or historical _importance___________________
b.
A vast _setting____________ involving much of the known world and sometimes the land of the
_dead_______________ as well
c.
Action such as a _quest____________ or _journey_______________ taken in search of something of
_value_______________
d.
Evidence of __supernatural_____________ forces at work
e.
Glorification of the _hero___________ at the end
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f.
Rooted in a specific _culture____________ and _society_________________
4.
Probably told to an audience who could not _read________ or _write___________(told aloud)
5.
Stories had a basic _plot_____________, but there was much _improvisation_________
6.
A _formula____________ story: Ex: the _hero_____, beautiful “_damsel in distress_______________,” much
_repetition____________ to help the audience remember and give the minstrel time to ___think__________ ahead
Archetypes
In modern times, researchers have been able to collect and compare the myths, legends, and religions of cultures from around the world.
They have been fascinated to discover that for centuries, people who had no contact with each other at all had passed down stories
whose characters and events were strikingly similar. Many great thinkers have tried to explain this phenomenon. Noted psychoanalyst
Carl Jung introduced a theory that humans have a collective unconscious, which means that there is a store of information that we, as
humans, somehow hold. This collection of information includes archetypes, or symbolic figures. Archetypes influence the way we think
and behave, as people follow the same patterns throughout time and around the world.
Archetypal Character
The Hero
Description
A larger-than-life character that often
Examples
King Arthur, Odysseus, Luke Skywalker,
goes on some kind of journey or quest. In Frodo
the course of his journey, the hero
demonstrates the qualities and abilities
valued by his culture.
The Father Figure
The protector and leader
Mufasa from The Lion King
The Mother Figure
The protective nurturer and gentle
Mother Goose, the Fairy Godmother in
provider
Cinderella
The Fatal Woman or Temptress
A woman who uses her power (intellect, Circe and the Sirens in The Odyssey
magic, or most of all, beauty) to make
men, especially the Hero, weak
The Witch
A woman, often a hag (though she may
The Wicked Stepmother in fairy tales
be disguised as a beautiful young
woman), who attempts to trap and
destroy the protagonist
Monster/Villain
The Innocent
The antagonist, especially in opposition
The Big Bad Wolf from Little Red Riding
to the hero.
Hood, The Giant in Jack and the Beanstalk
An inexperienced male or female
Dorothy in The Wizard of Oz, Little Red
character that is exposed to the evils in
Riding Hood
the world
The Alter Ego or Double
Reveals the dual nature of man
Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde
Helpers
Characters that assist or guide the
Merlin, Yoda and Obi Wan Kenobi in Star
KEY
Wise Old Woman or Man, Wise Animal
protagonist
The Trickster/The Fool
Characters who trick others to get them Puss-in-Boots, Road Runner, Fred & George
to do what s/he wants – they can be
Wars, Grandmother Willow in Pocahontas
Weasley
both virtuous and nefarious.
The Underdog
Characters who are always in the wrong
The Ugly Duckling, The Frog Prince
place at the wrong time, but who usually
win something of value in the end.
Homer
1.
No one knows who he was for _sure__________; may have been a _blind_________ minstrel or
_rhapsodes____________, which were “singers of _tales_________,” historians, entertainers, myth makers, etc.
2.
Some believe that there may have been __two________ Homers
3.
_Oral______ __tradition_____________ - minstrels traveled from town to town telling _stories_________ and bringing
_news__________________
4.
Homer gathered the _Trojan________ __War__________ tales into two epics:
a.
The Illiad: story of the ten year Trojan War, _war________ epic
b.
The Odyssey: story of a Greek _soldier______, Odysseus, attempting to return _home_________ from the Trojan
War, the _journey_________ epic (other journey epics: The Wizard of Oz, Star Wars)
c.
Both stories set in _1200 B.C.__________; gathered into story form about _750 B.C. __________; some
disagreement over the _style_______, about whether _Homer__________ wrote both (the ancient Greeks believed
he did)
The Trojan War
1.
What caused the Trojan War?
a.
_Thetis_________ (a sea nymph, immortal) and _Peleus__________ (mortal) getting _married______________
b.
All gods and goddesses were invited except one: _Eris__________ (the goddess of _discord__________)
i. She’s upset and wants _revenge________________
ii. She throws a Golden _Apple__________ into the celebration that reads: “_To the
Fairest____________________” – this causes a big _fight______________
1.
_Hera_________ - Queen of the Gods, says she is
2.
_Athena______ - Goddess of Wisdom (who prefers _reason______________), says she is
KEY
3.
_Aphrodite________ - Goddess of Love, says she is
iii. _Zeus___________ is asked to judge who is the fairest (one is his _daughter___________, one is his
_sister_________, and the other is his _lover_________); he asks a _impartial____________________
person to judge
iv. _Paris______________ is chosen to judge
1.
A young _sheepherder_________________
2.
Son of King _Priam___________ and Queen _Hecuba_______
3.
He doesn’t know that the oracle predicted that he would _destroy____________
_Troy____________
2.
The Judgment of Paris
a.
_Hera___________ offers him to be King of the _world_________ - he will get _power_______ and
__wealth___________ if he chooses her
b.
_Athena_________ offers him great _victories_________ and _wisdom__________ if he chooses her
c.
_Aphrodite__________ offers him the most beautiful _woman_______ in the world if he chooses her
d.
_Paris_________ gives the Golden _Apple___________ to _Aphrodite__________________
i. He said she _deserved______________ it
ii. The other two want __revenge________________
3.
The most beautiful _mortal_____________ woman in Greece is _Helen of Troy___________
a.
She has hundreds of _boyfriends/suitors______________ who have asked for her hand in
_marriage_________________; she can’t _decide_________________
b.
Solemn Oath of Suitors – all _boyfriends________________ pledge to _defend_____________ whomever she
chooses
c.
Her father chooses _Menelaus___________________, King of Sparta, over everyone else
i. _Helen__________ never _loved__________ him
ii. She fell in _love________ with _Paris___________ when he came to _Sparta_____________________
iii. She left with him _willingly________________ to return to _Troy___
iv. Remember the _Solemn Oath of Suitors____________________ - they pledge to get her back for
_Menelaus________________
v. So, Helen is said to be “The _face__________ that __launched_______ a thousand __ships____________”
4.
Important things to know
KEY
a.
_Odysseus_______________ - pretended to be _mad________ so he didn’t have to go to _war____________; he
plows the _beach_________, so others put his baby _son____ in his path as a test; Odysseus _swerved_____, proving
that he was _sane__________
b.
_Agamemnon______________ - Greek _Commander-in-Chief___________________, brother of
_Menelaus___________, vows to fight for _Helen____________
c.
_Achilles___________ - greatest _warrior______________; when he was born the _Oracle______________ said
he would _die_____ in a war, so his mother made him “__immortal___________” by dunking him in the _River
Styx_______________, but she missed part of his __heel_______
i. Another oracle said the _war_______ would not be won without _Achilles_________, so his mom makes
him wear _girl’s_______ clothes and hide among _maidens______________
ii. _Odysseus__________ was sent to find him and trick him with _jewels______________
d.
_Aulis__________ - meeting place where everyone meets with their _ships__________; _impossible___________
to sail from this port with strong north _winds______________
e.
_Sacrifice of Iphigenia___________________________ - she is the daughter of __Agamemnon______________;
she must be ___sacrificed_ in order to be able to set _sail_______ and appease _Artemis___________; Agamemnon
lies to his _wife______ and says that he has arranged for her to be _married____________ to Achilles, when she
arrives she is _sacrificed____________________
f.
Greek landing at _Troy________ - oracle said the first _man_______ to set _foot_________ on shore would
_die__________; finally, _Protesilaus___________________ takes the plunge, he is _killed_________ but manages
to _kill______ four Trojans before his __death___________
g.
_Trojan War_________________ - _nine____ year struggle; _stalemate___________; Achilles has a fight with
_Agamemnon__________ and quits _fighting_______________; they realize they can’t _win_____ the war without
_Achilles_______________________
h.
_Patroclus__________________ - Achilles’ best _friend__________, begs Achilles to come back to the
_war_________, Achilles says _no____ so Patroclus asks to _wear_________ Achilles’ _armor__________
i. Patroclus is _killed__________ by _Hector_____________ who thinks he has killed _Achilles___________
ii. Achilles is so _upset__________ that he returns to the _war_______ and kills _Hector___________, who
was the most famous _Trojan_____________ warrior
i.
_Hector_____________ - Paris’ oldest _brother______________, is dragged behind a _chariot___________ (driven
by __Achilles____________) for 3 days; King Priam____ begs for the return of _Hector’s____________ body and
Achilles gives in
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j.
_Paris____________ is now ready to _avenge_____________ the death of his brother; he shoots an
_arrow___________ guided by _Apollo____________ and hits the one spot on his _heel________ - Achilles
_dies____________
k.
_Trojan Horse________________________ - this is a plan by __Odysseus___; Greeks say they
__surrender______________ and offer the horse as a _peace_____________ offering to the _Trojans_______
l.
_Trojans_____________________ rejoice, party, and pass out; in the early _morning_________ hours, the
_Greeks_____________ descend from the _belly__________ of the wooden horse and open the _gates____ to
_Troy____________ to allow the rest of the Greek _soldiers_________ in to _destroy_______________ Troy
m. _Aenaeas___________________ was the only __Trojan______________ man left to _________get
away__________; he will later be the _founder____________ of _Rome______________
5.
So, after __ten__________ years of __fighting_______________, the _Greeks____________ set sail for
__home___________ (the name of the epic poem that tells the story of the Trojan War is ___the
Iliad______________________)- this is where The Odyssey begins – with _Odysseus’________________ journey home!