Greek & Roman Myth MIDTERM 2

Critical Thinking

Not having the answer before asking the question

Observation

A statement about more than one fact that every reasonable person will agree with

Thesis

A statement based upon facts that a reasonable person could disagree with

Historicism

The idea that human beings have fundamentally different ideas of how the world worked in the past and their motives cannot always be understood.

(myths and ideas must be understood within their historical and cultural context — not as timeless truths.)

Humanism

The assumption that human beings were essentially the same in the ancient world as in the present

Idealism

The belief that there are perfect, unchanging ideas or 'forms' (like the ideal hero) that myths imitate imperfectly.

Textualism

Understanding categories and mythic figures as subject to limited change over time rather than imperfect copies of an ideal hero or category.

(The interpretation of myths or texts in the context of their time and culture—understanding meaning through history.)

Ritual

A repeated ceremonial act (like sacrifice, prayer, or procession) tied to religion or mythic storytelling.

Allegory

A narrative hat conveys hidden meanings through symbols, figures, actions, imagery, and/or events, which together create the moral, spiritual, or political meaning the author wishes to convey.

Rationalizing

Explaining mythic events or supernatural stories in realistic or logical terms (e.g., saying Zeus was really just a king).

Urban Myth

A modern myth or story that spreads widely and seems believable but is fictional (modern equivalent of ancient myths). (Plato's Atlantis story)

Zeus

third ruler of the universe

Areas of concern: the sky, kingship

Attributes: beard, eagle, thunderbolt

Hera

sister and wife of Zeus

Attributes: crown, peacock

Areas of concern: marriage, family

Hermes

(Mercury) God of transitions and boundaries

Patron of thieves and travelors and other things

Messenger of the gods and guide of the dead into the underworld, luck

Attributes: Winged sandals, caduceus (staff), hat

Apollo

Son of Zeus and Leto

Areas of Concern: Music, Healing, Prophecy

Attributes: Kithara, Bow, Laurel

Ares

God of war (Roman mars also god of farming)

Attributes: sword and shield

Areas of concern: war

Athena

virgin goddess born from the head of Zeus, patron goddess of Athens

Attributes: helmet, owl

Areas of Concern: wisdom and war (strategic unlike Ares)

Prometheus

brother of Epimetheus

Areas of concern: technology and man

Attributes: fire, eagle, caring for man

Demeter

mother of Persephone

Areas of concern: Agriculture, fertility, harvest

Attributes: Sheaf of wheat, torch, cornucopia

Heracles

associated with Phoenician Melwart and borrowed by Romans as Heracles

Attributes: Lion, skin club

Areas of concern: strength, spreading culture

Atlantis

Legendary lost island described by Plato; symbol of hubris and downfall of ideal societies.

Cupid

(Eros) Son of Venus (Aphrodite), god of love and desire.

Falls in love with the mortal Psyche, even though Venus told him to punish her.

Cupid & Psyche are a double allegory for the union of love and soul as the way to achieve pleasure (Daughter names Hedone- pleasure)

Psyche

Mortal woman so beautiful that people start worshiping her instead of Venus.

Venus, jealous, sends her on impossible tasks (sorting seeds, fetching golden wool, going to the Underworld). Receives help from Jupiter

Psyche sees cupid by means of a lamp. Driven by curiosity to know secret things.

In the end, Jupiter (Zeus) grants Psyche immortality, uniting her with Cupid.

Jupiter

King of the gods, protector of laws

In Apuleius's story, he forgives Psyche and grants her immortality — symbolizing divine mercy and redemption.

He who steals it will be called the son of Jupiter

Venus (Aphrodite)

(Aphrodite) Goddess of love and beauty.

Represents desire, jealousy, and divine testing.

Her persecution of Psyche reflects the soul's struggle under divine judgment.

Perseus

Son of Zeus and Danaë, born when Zeus came to her as golden rain.

Sent to kill Medusa by King Polydectes. With divine help from Athena and Hermes, he slays Medusa using her reflection in a bronze shield.

Later saves Andromeda from a sea monster and marries her.

His story emphasizes heroism, divine aid, and fate.

Andromeda

daughter of Cepheus and Cassiopeia, king and queen of Ethiopia

Sacrificed to a sea monster because her mother boasted she was more beautiful than the water nymphs

Rescued by Perseus, who marries her

Bellerophon

son of Eurynome (maybe Eurymede) and Glaucus or Poseidon

Tamed pegasus and killed the chimaera; later fell due to hubris

Chimera

Monster with parts of a lion, goat, and serpent; symbolizes hybrid danger or chaos.

The Metamorphosis by Apuleius

Collection of greek myths and stories about transformation

Stories: echo and narcissus, apollo and daphne, hermaphrodus, iphis, caenus, Cupid & Psyche

Odyssey by Homer

Story of Odysseus's 10-year journey home after the Trojan War; explores cleverness (metis), fate, hospitality (xenia), and human suffering.

Theogony by Hesiod

"Birth of the Gods." Describes how the cosmos and Olympian gods emerged from Chaos. Includes Zeus defeating Typhoeus and establishing cosmic order.

Library of Greek Mythology by Apollodorus

Compilation of Greek myths and genealogies; a major reference for classical mythology. *Perseus & Andromeda , Cretan Myths (Theseus)

Homeric Hymn to Demeter

Explains the seasons through Persephone's abduction and return. Demeter's grief causes famine; Persephone's return restores growth. Also founds the Eleusinian Mysteries (rituals of rebirth).

The Eleusis Amphora

(Ca 680 BCE) from Elefsina, Greece

Tells us how the story was so popular it was carved on a vase, and so many years later, someone still knew the story to write it (Homer)

Nag Hammadi

a village in modern Egypt, once near a monastery dedicated to St Pachomus

Location of a group of non-canonical texts buried likely after the use of such texts was condemned in 367 CE

Argos

City in Greece tied to Perseus's family (King Acrisius, Danaë).

Perseus accidentally kills Acrisius, fulfilling a prophecy.

Represents fate and the inevitability of divine prophecy.

Crete

mythical home of Minos, Pasiphae, Ariadne, Phaedra, and the Minotaur

Historical home to the Minoan Civilization

An Island in contact with Egypt, Phoenicia, and mainland Greece for many centuries

Zeus takes Europa from Cadmus to Crete

Heinrich Schliemann

19th-century archaeologist/German businessman.

excavated Hissarlik (maintained he found Troy), and excavated Mycenae (made spectacular discoveries in tombs)

Controversial: discovered major sites but also destroyed layers by digging too aggressively.

Ovid (poem of metamorphoses)

Roman Poet, author of Metamorphoses, the Heorides, and other poems

Exiled for a “poem and a mistake” at the end of his life

Cretan myths (theseus) and Europa/Cadmus

Plato

born Athens 420s BCE, died 340s

Follower of Socrates

Founder of the Academy where Aristotle was educated

James George Frazer

author of the golden bough

Argued that myth is designed to explain ritual