Heroes

Lesson 3.

Identity in Greek Mythology

In addition to using mythology to explain natural phenomena of the world, the Ancient Greeks used mythology as a way to learn morality lessons vicariously from other people.  The ancient Greeks loved tragic heroes.  Tragedy was a fate that befell many of their most beloved heroes not because they wanted to see them suffer, but because life was so hard they found inspiration in their heroes; knowing that if their heroes could overcome such impossible odds, then the common man could  overcome his own.  Many of ancient mythological tales we know today are about God and Demi-gods; some are even about regular people.  Over the next few days, I will list a few of the most popular stories below:

Hero One: Hercules

     Today we will start with the story of Hercules.  Hercules was the son of Zeus and a human woman.  This enraged Hera who tried repeatedly to kill Hercules.  In fact, the first time Hera  attempted to kill Hercules he was just a baby!  Hera sent two serpents into his crib, when they found them Hercules had used his god-like strength to crush them.  Hera then realized that getting rid of this mortal would be not simple task, so she decided to wait . . .
Once Hercules was old enough to get married and have children of his own, Hera sent a madness to him.  Confused by Hera's spell Hercules killed his wife and children.  When he recovered he realized what he had done and ran into the wilderness in anguish.  Hercules then sought council from the Oracle at Delphi.  The Oracle informed him that if he was to ever become redeemed, Hercules would have to go to King Eurystheus and serve him as penance.  What happened later is one of the most famous stories in Greek Mythology.

Hercules 12 Labors Click Here

On a separate piece of paper list the twelve labours of Hercules.  What where the labours, how did he overcome them, and what lesson or benefit did he gain from these foes?

 

 

For Fun:

Here are a few projects that students have made of Hercules and his labors.  The facts aren't all accurate and the names are often said wrong see if you can spot the mistakes they made.  What would you do differently?  If this were your project, how would you do it?

 

 

 

 

 

For a top ten of Greek heroes look at this site:

http://ancienthistory.about.com/od/heroes/tp/TopHeroes.htm

Hero 2: Achilles

When Achilles was born he was given a rather strange prophecy, he would either die old unknown and unsung, or die young at battle and forever be remembered as one of the best warriors of all time.

Homer wrote of the Greek Hero Achilles in his epic poem, " The Iliad."  The Iliad takes place during the last year of the Trojan War.  In this war, Greek forces fought against the vast army of Troy.  Due to Troy's impenetrable walls said to be built by the Gods themselves Troy's defenses were thought to be unstoppable; but the Greeks had one edge, the warrior Achilles.  It had been prophesied that the young man Achilles would be the key to Troys falling, but the prophesy was also warned that Troy could not be taken without him.

The Trojan War (how it all began).
We know that Cronus overthrew his Father Uranus to become King of the Old-Gods (Titans), Zeus overthrew his father, Cronus,  to become King of the New Gods (Olypians).  Well, Zeus hears a prophecy that states that one of his children (a demi-god) will overthrow him.   This is a big problem for Zeus, because of his indescretions Zeus has many children throughout the Greek world.  His is told that he must now become a good and faithful husband and stop having human kids.  This is unacceptable to Zeus so he devises a plan to decrease the population by allowing a war, that will kill any offspring he may have left leaving him with a clean slate so he can start being a bad husband again.

Because there is another prophecy stating that the nymph Thetis would bear a son that would over take his father.  Zeus who had been wooing this nymph quickly changes his mind and decideds to have her married off to an older king names Peleus.  This starts the wheels of Fate turning.  At the wedding Zeus invites all the gods except one Eris, the goddess of strife.  She is so embarrassed and offended that she decideds to leave a gift for the wedding that will teach those who have slighted her a lesson.  She leaves a golden apple engraved with the message that it belonged, "to the fairest" of the Gods.  Well naturally three Goddesses  claimed it as their own, Hera, Athena, and Aphrodite.  The women fight over the apple and fnally itis decided that someone should choose which of the three is fairest of them all.  Zeus is the judge of the gods so they run to him and ask him to choose which of the three is the fairest.

Well, no God in his right mind would dare choose to judge between these three strong and powerful women, risking incurring their wrath in the process so Zeus quickly looked about for some poor human sap to give the job to.  In comes Paris.  Paris is the son of the King of Troy who has been sent out to live with Shepards because there is a prophecy that states he will be the downfall of Troy.   Because of his nobility the Goddesses decide to let him be the judge.  Because of his age,Paris is also boy too dumb to realize what a dilemma he is in. After a series of tests and bribes Paris decides that Aphrodite is the fairest of all the gods.

  She rewards him with by granting him the love of the fairest mortal woman in all of Greece,  Helen of Sparta.   There is only one problem, Helen is promised to be married to King Menelaus and he doesn't like to share. As Paris grows older he is once agian accepted into the royal Trojan family.  In the way that fate works, Paris and Helen cross paths, they fall madly in love, and run away together to Troy.  As this has happened before in ancient times Paris, foolishly believes that nothing bad will come of stealing the betrothed of a Greek King. 

 

 

 

Back to Achilles



While all of this is was going on Thetus gives birth to a son named Achilles.  Being a nymph (which is Immortal) Thetus fears that since Achilles is mortal he will be hurt so she decideds that she is going to take matters into her own hands and she figures out a way to protect her son.  Depending on the myth, Thetus either annoints special oils and burns the weakness out of Achilles or she dips him into the river Styx which has powerful magic that hardens him to ordinary weapons.  Either way one thing is clear, the heel where Thetus holds Achilles by never gets cleansed so it remains human and vulnerable.  This is today still known as the Achilles tendon.  The term commonly refered to as the Achilles Heel, has come to signify fatal flaw or weakness.

 

Thetus's plans to make her son unkillable are thwarted when Achilles' father interuppts and sees what appears to be Thetus either trying to burn or drown their kid.  He quickly intervenes and decideds that she is not to be trusted around their son Achilles is sent away to the Centaur Chiron for further instruction and training.  It is here that Achilles learns the skills to become a fine warrior and great strategist.  As rumors of war start to travel the land Thetus takes her son and hides him as a palace girl in the remote kingdom of Ithaca.  There the ruler Odysseus notices the ruse when Achilles shows more interest in battle armour than silk finery.  Discovered, achilles is pressed into service for Odysseus.


 Meanwhile...
Paris and Helen are together and King Menelaus is upset, but oddly not as upset as his brother Agamemnon.  He raises an army of Greek warriors.  The king of Ithaca, Odysseus, and his ward Achilles join. 

It has now been 9 years and the war between Greece and Troy rages on with a few heroes names quickly cited for their battle expertise.  Agamemnon is respected as a great field general, but he is vain and believes that all the battle glory should be his.  Odysseus is known for his wit and strategy.  Achilles is hailed as the single reason the Greeks are winning.  The men hold Achilles responsible for every major battle  the greeks have won, this infuriates Agamemnon.  Agamemnon decides to teach Achilles a lesson by taking away his war-time girlfriend for himself.  Achilles quits the war.  Instantly things start to change for the Greeks.  Lead by the great Trojan leader Hector, the Trojan armies begin to really sweep the Greeks back into the sea.

Things would have ended poorly for the Greeks had not Achilles younger cousin Patrocles stole his big cousins armour and went into battle.  He looked so much like Achilles that the men's spirits were lifted and they fought harder.  It looked like the Greeks were on the verge of victory when Hector seeing who he thought was Achilles out on the field rode down and slew him.  The greek men were astounded, their spirit broke and they fled.  The Greeks lost again.  When news reached Achilles that he had died, he realized that Hector had killed his cousin and vowed revenge.  Here is a great reimagination of what the fight may have looked like: 

The great Trojan prince,Hector, is now dead.  For some time after things look great for the Greeks.  They win battle after battle and now they are ready to sack the famous city of Troy itself until, as the legend goes, one of three things happens.  Either as Achilles is scaling the wall an errant arrow hits his foot, or Paris shoots the arrow which is guided by Apollo and strikes the only weakness Achilles has, or Achilles instead of sacking troy calls for truce and asks to wed one of the Trojan kings daughters when Paris who is hidding in the bushes lets fly a poisoned arrow which strikes Achilles on the only vulnerable spot on his body, his heel.  Either way Achilles dies having never been bested in battle and as such takes his rank in Ancient Greece as the Greatest Human warrior ever to battle.


Here is some more information on Achilles:

http://wserver.scc.losrios.edu/~waxmanr/87online/student_sites/morco_luisa/myths/tale_of_achillies.html

Here is a great student project on Achilles:

The Prophecy stated that without Achilles battling for the Greeks the Walls of Troy would never again fall.  The Greeks and Trojans have been warring for ten years, the cities of the Trojan armies have all been sacked, but Achilles is now dead, and the walls of Troy are weakend, yet they still stand.  These walls will continue to stand until we meet hero Number 4, Odyssseus.  How do you think Odysseus will conquer the Trojans when Achilles and his might could not do it?

     

 

Assignment 3.

Mythology biographical poem

A biographical poem, or biopoem, uses a simple but specific structure to describe the

most important facts about someone. Your assignment is to write a biopoem about one

of the gods or goddesses you have studied. You may choose any god or goddess

(except Aphrodite, because she’s the example below). The blanks on this page are for

your rough draft. When you’re done, copy your final version onto a separate sheet of

paper and decorate it, if you would like. Please attach this sheet to your final draft.

Follow this format exactly, please:

Greek Name__________________,

I am

(list four traits) ___________, ____________, __________, ___________.

I am [a relative] of

(1-3 people) ________________________________________.

Lover of

(1-3 things or people) ________________________________________.

Who feels/protects

(1-3 things) ________________________________________.

Who needs

(1-3 things) __________________________________________.

Who fears

(1-3 things) __________________________________________.

Who gives

(1-3 things) ___________________________________________.

Resident of

_____________________,

Roman Name__________________.

Example

(you may not use this goddess):

Aphrodite,

Goddess of Love, Desire, Beauty and Fertility.

A daughter of Zeus and Dione; wife of Hephaestus.

Lover of sons Aeneas and Cupid and brother Ares.

Who protects sailors.

Who needs a chariot.

Who fears War, Athena and Hera.

Who gives Helen to Paris, a magic belt to Hera, and Medea to Jason.

Resident of Mt. Olympus.

Venus.

The Olympian Gods

Lesson 2. The Olympian Gods

Use the information you find in this lesson to begin to fill in the gods and goddesses chart

at the end of this lesson; you will also need to do your own research to complete it.

Now that you understand the way that the Greeks viewed

the beginning of the world, you are ready to learn about the

Olympian gods.

 

 

First, we have to explore exactly what we mean by “Olympian gods.” Mount Olympus is a

 

real mountain in the north of Greece. Gradually, it became associated less and less with an

 

actual mountain and more with an imaginary place high above the earth. According to the

 

ancient Greeks, the gate to Olympus was made of clouds and it was guarded by four

 

goddesses, the Seasons. Each god had his or her own dwelling place, but Olympus was

 

home base.There were up to 14 gods considered Olympian gods.Seven of them were

 

Zeus and his siblings, and seven others were children of Zeus. Sometimes only 12 will be

 

listed. The Greeks and Romans shared mythology, so you will find two names for most

 

gods.

Zeus

Zeus was the king of the hill. He was dominating, powerful and had

a soft spot for pretty women. He could be terrifying when angry. His

symbols were the thunderbolts, or lightening bolts made for him by

the Cyclopes (his uncles); the eagle; and the scepter, or rod.

Please copy this information onto your chart.

 

 

 

Hades

Hades, or Pluto, was the god of the underworld and of the dead. He

was called the same names by the Romans, but they also sometimes

called him Dis or Dis Pater. He was Zeus’s brother and married

Persephone after kidnapping her against her will. He was gloomy and

frightening.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Poseidon

Next, we have Poseidon, or Neptune, as the Romans

called him. He was Zeus’s brother, and he was the god of

the sea and also earthquakes. He often is shown with a

three-pronged spear called a trident that was made for him

by his nephew, Hephaestus, and/or a fish.

 

 

 

Hera

Our first goddess is Hera. She sits on the right side of Zeus and

is his wife. Of course, she’s his sister, too, but that’s the way it

was on Olympus. Hera’s Roman name is Juno, and she is the

queen of the gods. She is the guardian of marriage and was

well-loved by the Greeks; it’s kind of sad that she’s the goddess

of marriage but her own marriage was so bad. She was often

jealous of her husband’s girlfriends and did mean things to

them, even the ones who didn’t want anything to do with him,

but she could be tender and loving as well. The peacock was

her symbol. In fact, the circles in a peacock’s tail are said to be

the eyes of her 100-eyed servant, Argus.

Athena

Next is Athena, or Minerva, the daughter who sprang fully

formed from the head of Zeus after a major headache. She is

the goddess of wisdom and war and also the protector and

namesake of the city of Athens. She preferred reason to

violence unless she was pushed. She turned Arachne into a

spider for bragging that she could spin better than Athena.

She was very competitive and is often pictured with her

helmet and a spear. She carried Zeus’s shield, called the

aegis. The owl was her bird. Can you see it in her hand?

Apollo

Apollo was a twin. His Roman name was the same as his Greek

name. He was the god of the sun or light, poetry, music and

medicine and was famous for his oracles (wise women to whom he

gave his power to predict and interpret the future). He was very

proud and also protective of his mother and sister. His symbols

were the gold bow and arrows, and he often appears golden and

shining. He wears a laurel wreath in memory of Daphne, who didn’t

want to be his lover and prayed to Mother Earth for help escaping

him; she was turned into a laurel tree.

Artemis

Artemis was Apollo’s twin. Her Roman name was Diana, and she was

the goddess of hunting, chastity and the moon. She protects women

and small children, is fiercely independent and particularly dislikes

men. In pictures, she is seen accompanied by three hunting hounds,

a bow and a fawn.

 

 

 

 

Ares

Ares or, as he is known by his Roman name, Mars, was the god of

war. He would fight on both sides, if possible. He was young, strong

and handsome, and liked to dress in battle clothes even when he

wasn’t fighting.

 

 

 

 

 

Hephaestus

Hephaestus, or Vulcan, was born lame and was further crippled

when he was thrown from Olympus by his mother, Hera, in a rage.

He was the only Olympian with a disability. He was unhappily

married to Aphrodite and worked as a blacksmith in the gods’ forge.

Aphrodite

Hephaestus’s wife, Aphrodite, whose Roman name was Venus, was the goddess of love

and beauty. She was born out of sea foam when the blood of Uranus dropped into the

ocean. She was the mother of Eros and was irresistibly charming, fickle, vain and

competitive. Her symbol was a cestus, or magic belt, that made everyone fall in love with

the wearer; sometimes she would lend it to humans. This is a famous painting of the birth

of Venus, or Aphrodite, by Botticelli.

Hermes

Hermes, or Mercury, was the god of science and invention, but he is

best known as the messenger of the gods. He is often pictured with a

winged helmet and sandals. He is said to have invented the alphabet,

boxing and gymnastics!  You can see his

helmet with wings; he’s not wearing his famous sandals, though.

Hestia

Hestia was Zeus’s sister and the goddess and protectress of hearth

and home. She is also known by her Roman name, Vesta. She was

gentle and kind and was very popular with the Greeks. She didn’t

have a lot of adventures, so she’s rarely pictured in art.

 

 

Demeter

Demeter was the goddess of the crops and the harvest. She is also

known as Ceres (Roman) and sometimes Deo. Her symbols include

a torch, a crown, a scepter and stalks of grain. She is often portrayed

with her daughter, Persephone, who was kidnapped by Hades and

taken to the underworld. By the time she was rescued, she’d eaten

six pomegranate seeds, so she couldn’t escape the underworld

entirely. Her mother was so frantic that winter draped the land and no

crops would grow. A deal was struck, and Persephone was allowed

to return to her mother for half of the year. So each year, when she

returns to the underworld, fall comes, then winter – but when she

returns to her mother, spring and summer come again.

Dionysus

Dionysus was the partier of the mountain retreat. He was Zeus’s

son by another woman, who was driven crazy by Hera and her

jealousy. Dionysus went all around teaching people how to make

wine and having a good time. Eventually, Hestia gave up her

throne for him, and he lived on Olympus. He was the god of wine,

of course, and also vegetation.

 

 

Now, use at least two sources in addition to what you read here to fill in your chart

completely. Write down the sources you used on the back of the chart.

Greek Mythology-2.5

© 2010: This lesson plan is the property of the Mensa Education & Research Foundation,

www.mensafoundation.org. It is provided as a complimentary service to the public. Reproduction and

distribution without modification are allowed. Images, links and linked content referenced herein are the

property of the originating entities.

Videos:

Male Gods

Female Gods

Book suggestions

•

D’Aulaires’ Book of Greek Myths by Ingri and Edgar Parin D’Aulaire

•

The Mighty 12: Superheroes of Greek Myths by Charles Smith

•

Greek Myths and Legends by Cheryl Evans

If your library doesn’t have these, check around Dewey Decimal Number 398.2. That’s

where Greek mythology is.

Web references

•

http://greece.mrdonn.org/myths.html

•

http://www.mythweb.com/

•

http://mythman.com/

•

http://www.loggia.com/myth/content.html

• http://www.pantheon.org/areas/mythology/europe/greek/articles.html

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

              

 

 

The Greeks: An Overview

The Ancient Greeks gave us many of building blocks of our culture, language,  philosophy, and politics but don't take my word for it watch this video.

 http://video.answers.com/the-history-of-ancient-greece-171010899

Lesson 1. Greek Creation Mythology

  Although when we think of mythology we think of a collection of stories, there is a

beginning to them. Understanding the beginning of the story, the creation of the world,

gives us a framework to build upon as we learn about the different myths.

The short answer to how the Greeks viewed the creation of the world is this:

Scary old gods came first; they got stomped down by their kids, who were better looking,

younger gods. These gods created humans. Humans and gods fought for supremacy, and

the humans won a few rounds but eventually got trounced and became more and more

miserable.

Now, the longer answer:  In the beginning, the universe was without form. It was not

 

nothing; there was matter, but it was unorganized, shapeless, mixed up and dark. This was

 

called Chaos.

After Chaos, more divinities, or gods, came into being.

Gaia, the Earth, held up Uranus, the sky.

Gaia and Uranus had a bunch of kids.

First they had a bunch of monsters including the Cyclops, and then they created the Titans as the second generation.

Uranus hated all the Titans and was actually quite ugly about it – but there are only a couple of Titans that you need to remember: first, Oceanus, the god of the sea, and then Cronus, the strongest and best one of all.

Gaia was pretty ticked at Uranus for being a jerk, so she helped Cronus overthrow him. So, let’s keep this straight. Cronus is Uranus’s son. Cronus became the king (bye-bye Uranus), and married his sister, Rhea – another Titan. It’s like a soap opera. This was called the Golden Age because men, who had been made by a Titan named Prometheus, were living in harmony. Everything was hunky dory.

It didn’t last, though, because Cronus heard a prophecy that one of his sons would

dethrone him, so every time his wife, Rhea, had a baby, he swallowed it. Rhea got a little

sick of seeing all of her children swallowed alive, so she tricked Cronus when her sixth

child, Zeus, was born; she wrapped up a rock to look like a baby and had Cronus swallow

that instead. Zeus rescued his previously swallowed siblings, and all was right with the

world.

World View

 

 

The Greek view of the world was a little different than ours. The Greeks believed that the

world was flat, but circular, like a paper plate.  At the center of the Universe was Greece.

Their world was divided by the Mediterranean, which means "Middle of the Lands” in Latin.

The river Ocean flowed around the world in a clockwise motion.  In the north lived the

 

Hyperboreans – an extremely happy people for whom life was sweet. When the old people

 

became tired of living, they threw themselves into the sea. This was a land of constant

 

vacation where people were said to live for 1,000 years.

In the south lived the Ethiopians. In Greek drama, mention is often made of various gods

being in Ethiopia, meaning really far away. So, if I say I parked in Ethiopia this morning,

would that mean I’m close to my office or far away? The Ethiopians were said to be on

good terms with the gods and liked to entertain them.

To the west were the Elysian Fields. This was the closest the Greeks got to the idea of

heaven; only the best and brightest of the dead people got to go there.

Greek Mythology-1.3

© 2010: This lesson plan is the property of the Mensa Education & Research Foundation,

www.mensafoundation.org. It is provided as a complimentary service to the public. Reproduction and

distribution without modification are allowed. Images, links and linked content referenced herein are the

property of the originating entities.

To Do

1. Read either

The Gods and Goddesses of Olympus by Aliki.

Mythology by  Lady Hestia Evans. pg1 and 2.

D'Aulaires' Book of Greek Myths pg 9-15.

2. Draw your own representation of the Greek view of the world on the paper plate using

colored pencils and the map on the previous page as a guideline. Be sure to include

the Ethiopians, the Hyperboreans, and the Elysian Fields on your map.

3. Write a one-paragraph essay comparing the Greek view of the world to the

contemporary view of it, including at least two points of comparison and two of contrast.

You can follow the guideline below.

Directions for Paragraph

Begin with a topic sentence. Here is an example:

The Greek view of the world both resembles and differs from the contemporary view.

Next, list two ways the views are similar. Here are examples:

•

The Greek view resembles the contemporary view in that _________________.

•

Additionally, the views are similar because____________________________.

Next, list two ways the views are different. Here are examples:

•

However, the Greek view is not the same as the contemporary view because the

Greeks believed _______________________________________________.

•

The Greeks also thought _________________________________________.

Last, you will state a conclusion. Here’s an example:

Therefore, even though the views have similarities, they differ in important ways.


Here is a cheat sheet reference guide.