Download Greek Gods and Goddesses

Greek Gods and Goddesses
Joseph Red
Mrs. Spriggs’ English II Class
Polytheism
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Can you define this word?
Polytheism literally means a belief in
many gods.
The Greeks practiced polytheism as
they believed in a family of deitiesgods and goddesses in human form
who behaved like people with
superhuman powers (Chin 205).
Thesis
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By studying Greek gods and
goddesses one can better understand
Greek culture.
A Place of Worship
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The Greeks built temples to honor the
gods and goddesses. They also
sacrificed animals to them (Chin 205).
Mount Olympus-The Meeting
Place
The twelve major gods and goddesses
were believed to often meet on Mount
Olympus (Chin 205).
Meet the royal family
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Zeus, the chief god, ruler of the sky
and weather.
Pluto, the brother of Zeus and the god
of the underworld.
Athena, Zeus’s favorite daughter,
goddess of wisdom.
Apollo, the sun of Zeus and the god of
light, health, and poetry (Chin 205)
Gods and Goddesses in
everyday life
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Sometimes gods and goddesses were
believed to be involved in everyday events.
Demeter was the goddess of the corn and
harvest. Her daughter was abducted, but
later returned causing Demeter to create
spring because of her joy. Her daughter had
to return, however, to her abductor each fall.
Therefore, Demeter’s caused winter to
occur each year in her daughter’s absence
(Ancient Greece)
Gods of Emotion
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Gods and goddesses not only were
responsible for the seasons, but they
also were in charge of emotions.
Eros was the god of love and his
mother Aphrodite was the goddess of
love (Ancient Greece).
Gods of knowledge
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Gods guarded the emotions, but they
also provided wisdom to the Greeks.
Athena was the goddess of wisdom
(Carr).
A source of explanation
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The Greeks also used gods and
goddesses to explain great mysteries
such as the creation of the earth and
the after life.
One myth explains that in the
beginning there was only the god
chaos, then came the gods of night,
death, and love (James).
Bad Role Models
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Sometimes the gods and goddesses
were bad role models. Chronos was
the god of time, but he ate his children
because he feared they would
overthrow him (Carr).
God is everywhere
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Besides having countless god and
goddess throughout all of Greece,
each individual village had their own
gods assigned to various rocks and
streams (Carr).
Gods and goddesses in
incognito
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Sometimes gods and goddesses
would disguise themselves as
humans. Zeus disguised himself as
Alcemen’s husband and slept with her.
She then gave birth to Hercules
(Rymer).
In the “drama” of it all
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Gods and goddesses would also
become involved in the “drama” of
Greek life. For instance, Athena
helped Odysseus return home despite
Poseidon's wrath (Rymer).
To Sum it all up…
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In conclusion, by examining Greek
gods and goddesses one can
understand the important elements of
Greek life such as the importance of
seasons, the need for knowledge, and
the desire to reach for a higher power
during times of need.
Work Cited
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Ancient Greece. Universal Artists, 2006. 26 April
2006. <http://www.ancientgreece.com/.>
Carr, Karen. History for Kids: Ancient Greece.
Portland State University 2006. 22 April 2006.
<http://www.historyforkids.org/learn/greeks/.>
Chin, Beverly A., et al. World Literature: the
Reader’s Choice. New York: Glencoe, 2000.
James, Tonya. Characters of Greek
Mythology.1998. 24 April 2006.
<http://mythology.tonyarn.com/creation.html>
Rymer, Eric. History Link: Ancient Greece. 2006.
23 April 2006.