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Introduction to
Greek Mythology
Freshmen English
What
do we know about
Greek Mythology?
Origins of Greek Mythology

Greek Myths are all that’s left of the
ancient Greek religion. About 1200
B.C., the residents of Greece and Asia
Minor, shared a common belief in a
group of deities (gods) that came to be
known as The Olympians.
Origins of Greek Mythology

The Olympians were descendents from
the primal, self-created gods, beginning
with Kaos. The Olympians were ruled
by Zeus. He is the strongest god and
without him, the other Olympians would
still be held captive by their devious
father.
Origins of Greek Mythology

The oldest myths can be traced to three
main sources: Homer, Hesiod, and the
Homeric Hymns (circa 800 B.C.). That
means that by the time these works had
been written down, they had survived
400 years of additions, subtractions,
and mutations to finally becoming the
versions we now call “authentic.”
Origins of Greek Mythology

Kaos and Gaea
Father of universe & Mother Earth
 The Titans
Hyperion, Atlas, Oceanus, Prometheus, Kronos

Kronos ruled the universe
Origins of Greek Mythology
Kronos & Rhea
Kronos was afraid he would be
overpowered, so he swallowed 5 of his
children.


Poseidon, Hades, Demeter, Hestia, & Hera
(what about #6?)
Origins of Greek Mythology

Rhea tricked Kronos into swallowing a stone
wrapped in a blanket, thinking it was her 6th
child.
 Zeus was born and grew up secretly on the
island of Crete.
 Zeus overthrew his father, Kronos, and made
him disgorge all his brothers and sisters.
(Remember, gods are immortal!)
Origins of Greek Mythology

Zeus took over control and divided the
universe into 3 kingdoms:

Heavens, Sea, and Underworld
Origins of Greek Mythology
 Zeus took control of the heavens. He
controlled the rain and clouds. Thunder
and lightning bolts were his weapons.
The eagle and oak tree were sacred to
him.
Origins of Greek Mythology

All the Titans were imprisoned except
Prometheus (because he fought on
Zeus’ side). Atlas was sentenced to
“hold up the world.”
Origins of Greek Mythology

Poseidon ruled the sea. His weapon
was the three-pronged trident. His gift
to mankind was the horse.
Origins of Greek Mythology

Hades ruled the underworld. He also
controlled gold, silver, and gems that
came from the soil in earth. Hermes
would escort mortals down to the
underworld when their time was up.
Hades was a gloomy god, but shouldn’t
be confused with being evil. He just
had a bad job.
Origins of Greek Mythology:
Hades and Persephone

Hades fell in love with Demeter’s daughter,
Persephone. He stole her away from her mother (the
goddess of crops) and made her very sad. Because
of this, all of the crops died. Hades was forced to
make a deal to save farmers and their crops. The
deal was Hades would be allowed have Persephone
for six months out of the year, September to March,
and the other six months she would live with her
mother. That is where our seasons come from:
When Persephone is with her mother, it is spring and
summer. When she is with Hades, it is fall and
winter.
Origins of Greek Mythology

Tartarus
(evil)
The Underworld
Elysian Fields
(good)
Earth was considered middle ground, with
no gods ruling over it. The gods could visit,
interacting with humans and animals, but did
not control what happened there.
Vocabulary to Know
odyssey – any long and difficult journey
 wrath – anger, especially the anger of the gods, which
carried dreadful consequences.
 ambrosia – food of the gods; any especially delectable food
 arrogance – pride in imagining oneself equal or superior to
the gods
 epic – a long, narrative poem that follows the journey of a
hero
 Ithaca – island home of Odysseus
 Cyclops – one-eyed monster, the most famous of which was
Polyphemus (from the Odyssey); Cyclops is a combination of
two Greek words meaning “wheel-eyed.”

Vocabulary to Know
Sirens – sea nymphs whose beautiful song
lured ships to destruction on the nearby
rocks; sailors who heard their song leaped
out of their ships and into the sea, where they
drowned or were eaten (from the Odyssey)
 Crete – island home of King Minos and the
Minotaur; Zeus grew up here away from his
father, Kronos
 lyre – a small, harp-like musical instrument
invented by Hermes and presented to Apollo
as a gift

Intro to The Odyssey

Odysseus was best known for his long suffering as
a traveler in “The Odyssey” by Homer. He was the
grandson of Hermes, yet still a mortal, Odysseus
was extremely brave in battle. He was one of the
soldiers hidden in the famous Trojan Horse (being
mainly his idea).
 Odysseus was married to his wife Penelope and
had one son Telemachus. Odysseus left for the
war when his son was just a baby (against his will).
The war lasted ten long years and another ten
passed before Odysseus returned.
Who’s who of Greek Gods &
Goddesses
 The
following slides will give
you an idea of who the main
Greek gods and goddesses
were. Are you taking notes?
There will be a quiz!
Ares – God of War


ARES (AIR-eez; Roman name
Mars) was the god of war, or
more precisely of warlike frenzy.
Though an immortal deity, he was
bested by Hercules in battle and
was almost killed when stuffed
into a jar by two giants. When
another hero wounded him during
the Trojan War, he received scant
sympathy from his father Zeus. In
appearance, Ares was
handsome and cruel. He is often
depicted carrying a bloodstained
spear. His throne on Mount
Olympus was said to be covered
in human skin.
Aphrodite – Goddess of Love &
Beauty

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
APHRODITE (a-fro-DYE-tee;
Roman name Venus) was the
goddess of love, beauty and
fertility. She was also a
protectress of sailors. The poet
Hesiod said that Aphrodite was
born from sea-foam. Homer, on
the other hand, said that she was
the daughter of Zeus and Dione.
When the Trojan prince Paris was
asked to judge which of three
Olympian goddesses was the
most beautiful, he chose
Aphrodite over Hera and Athena.
The latter two had hoped to bribe
him with power and victory in
battle, but Aphrodite offered the
love of the most beautiful woman
in the world. She was married to
Hephaestus.
Apollo – God of Music


APOLLO (uh-POL-oh; Roman name
Apollo) was the god of prophesy,
music and healing. Like most of his
fellow Olympians, Apollo did not
hesitate to intervene in human
affairs. It was he who brought about
the demise of the mighty Achilles.
Of all the heroes besieging the city
of Troy in the Trojan War, Achilles
was the best fighter by far. He had
easily defeated the Trojan captain
Hector in single combat. But Apollo
helped Hector's brother Paris slay
Achilles with an arrow. As god of
music, Apollo is often depicted
playing the lyre. He did not invent
this instrument, however, but was
given it by Hermes in
compensation for cattle theft.
Some say that Apollo did invent the
lute, although he was best known
for his skill on the lyre.
Artemis – Goddess of the Hunt


ARTEMIS (AR-ti-mis; Roman name
Diana) was the virgin goddess of
the hunt. She helped women in
childbirth, but also brought
sudden death with her arrows.
Artemis and her brother Apollo were
the children of Zeus and Leto. In
some versions of their myth, Artemis
was born first and helped her
mother to deliver Apollo. When
Apollo noticed that Artemis was
spending a great deal of time
hunting with the giant Orion, he
decided to put an end to the
relationship. He challenged Artemis
to prove her skill at archery by
shooting at an object floating far out
at sea. Her shot was perfect. The
target turned out to be the head of
Orion.
Athena – Goddess of Wisdom &
War


ATHENA (a-THEE-nuh; Roman name
Minerva) was the goddess of crafts
and the domestic arts and also
those of war. She was the patron
goddess of Athens. Her symbol was
the owl. By the late Classic, she had
come to be regarded as a goddess of
wisdom. Zeus was once married to
Metis, a daughter of Ocean who was
renowned for her wisdom. When Metis
became pregnant, Zeus was warned
by Earth that a son born to Metis
would overthrow him, just as he had
usurped his own father's throne. So
Zeus swallowed Metis. In time he was
overcome with a splitting headache
and summoned help from the
craftsman god Hephaestus (or, some
say, the Titan Prometheus).
Hephaestus cleaved Zeus's
forehead with an ax, and Athena
sprang forth fully armed.
Dionysus – God of Wine


DIONYSUS (dye-oh-NYE-sus;
Roman name Bacchus) was
the god of wine. Dionysus
was the son of Zeus and the
mortal heroine Semele.
Dionysus is considered the
god of merrymaking and
good times.
 It was Dionysus who granted
Midas the power to turn
whatever he touched into
gold, then was kind enough to
take the power back when it
proved inconvenient.
Hephaestus – God of Metal
Working and Blacksmith to the
Gods


HEPHAESTUS (he-FEE-stus or heFESS-tus; Roman name Vulcan)
was the lame god of metal
working & a blacksmith.
Hephaestus was the son of Zeus
and Hera or, in some accounts, of
Hera alone. He limped because he
was born lame, which caused his
mother to throw him off Mount
Olympus. He was the only ugly
god. Hephaestus accomplished
numerous prodigies of
craftsmanship, such as the
marvelous palaces that he built for
the gods atop Mount Olympus, or
the armor that he made for Achilles
during the siege of Troy (the
description of which occupies a
great many lines of Homer's epic of
the Trojan War). He was also
married to Aphrodite.
Hera – Goddess of Marriage



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HERA (HEE-ruh; Roman name
Juno) was the goddess of
marriage. Hera was the wife of
Zeus and Queen of the
Olympians. Hera hated the great
hero Hercules since he was the son
of her husband Zeus and a mortal
woman. When he was still an infant,
she sent snakes to attack him in his
crib. Later she stirred up the
Amazons against him when he was
on one of his quests.
On the other hand, Hera aided the
hero Jason, who would never have
retrieved the Golden Fleece without
her sponsorship.
In Greek mythology, Hera was the
reigning female goddess of
Olympus because she was Zeus's
wife. The Goddess took many
forms, among them that of a bird.
Hermes – Messenger God and
Guide of Dead to Underworld


HERMES (HUR-meez; Roman
name Mercury) was the
messenger of the gods and
guide of dead souls to the
Underworld. A prankster and
inventive genius from birth,
Hermes aided the heroes
Odysseus and Perseus in their
quests. Hermes was the son Zeus
and a mountain nymph. On his
very first day of life, he found the
empty shell of a tortoise and
perceived its utility as a sounding
chamber. Stringing sinews across
it, he created the first lyre.
Hermes was known for his
helpfulness to mankind, both in
his capacity as immortal herald
and on his own initiative. It was
Hermes' job to convey dead souls
Prometheus – God of Fire



Prometheus was the wisest Titan.
In all accounts, Prometheus is
known as the protector and
benefactor of man. He gave
mankind a number of gifts
including fire.
For this Zeus punished
Prometheus by having him
chained to a rock with an eagle
tearing at his liver. He was to be
left there for all eternity or until he
agreed to disclose to Zeus which
of Zeus children would try to
replace him. He was eventually
rescued by Hercules without
giving in to Zeus.

Heroes

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What type of a person is a
hero?
What qualities do they
possess?
Does a hero have to
perform “Superman-like”
feats?
Can heroes make
mistakes?
Who are some heroes
from history?
Do you know any
everyday heroes?

Odysseus was
considered a hero
for his heroic
actions, bravery,
strength,
persistence, and
wisdom. Although
he was not perfect,
he had many
admirable qualities.