Myth - Chpt. 14 - Heracles

Who are Heracles' biological parents?

Zeus and Alcmene.

Who is Heracles' mortal twin brother and who is his father?

Iphicles, fathered by Amphitryon.

How does Hera trick Zeus out of making Heracles a ruler?

She gets Zeus to swear an oath that a child born that day would rule, then delays Alcmene's labor and hastens the birth of Eurystheus.

How does Heracles defeat the two snakes sent by Hera to his crib?

He grabs and crushes them using his innate strength.

What is the etiological myth behind the creation of the Milky Way?

Zeus tries to nurse baby Heracles on a napping Hera; when she wakes and pushes him away, her milk sprays into the sky.

Why does Heracles kill his music teacher?

He gets frustrated during lyre lessons because his hands are too big and bashes the teacher's head in with the lyre.

How does Heracles father his first 50 sons (the Heraclidae)?

He sleeps with the 50 daughters of King Thespius while hunting a troublesome lion.

Who is Heracles' first wife and what happens to her?

Megara; Heracles kills her and their children after Hera drives him into a fit of madness.

Why does Heracles perform the 12 Labors for King Eurystheus?

To atone for the heinous murder of his wife Megara and their children.

1st Labor: Slay the Nemean Lion

Heracles wrestles and breaks the neck of the invulnerable lion, then uses one of its own sharp claws to skin it.

How does Eurystheus react when Heracles brings back the Nemean Lion pelt?

He gets terrified, demands Heracles communicate only through his herald Copreus, and hides in a bronze jar.

What are the primary symbols and weapons associated with Heracles?

A lion-skin coat, a club, and a bow and arrows.

2nd Labor: Slay the Lernaean Hydra

Heracles chops off the heads while his nephew Iolas cauterizes the neck stumps to prevent them from growing back.

How does Hera try to interfere during the battle with the Hydra?

She sends a giant crab to pinch Heracles' feet, which is crushed and turned into the constellation Cancer.

What does Heracles do with the Hydra's poisonous bile?

He dips his arrows in it to make them fatally venomous.

3rd Labor: Capture the Ceryneian Deer

Heracles tracks the fast, golden-antlered deer sacred to Artemis for a year before wounding it with an arrow and capturing it.

What causes the fight between Heracles and the centaurs during the 4th Labor?

Heracles opens a cask of communal wine belonging to all centaurs while visiting Pholus.

How does the immortal centaur Chiron die during Heracles' centaur battle?

He is nicked by Heracles' hydra-poisoned arrow and eventually surrenders his immortality due to unbearable pain.

5th Labor: Clean the Augean Stables

Heracles cleans years of accumulated cattle manure in one day by diverting a river through the stables.

Why does Eurystheus refuse to count the 5th Labor (Augean Stables)?

Because Heracles had asked King Augeas for payment (1/10th of his herd) to do it.

6th Labor: Slay the Stymphalian Birds

Heracles uses bronze castanets given by Athena to scare the metallic-feathered birds into the air, then shoots them down.

7th Labor: Capture the Cretan Bull

Heracles subdues King Minos' destructive bull using brute strength, rides it across the sea to Greece, and later releases it.

8th Labor: Steal the Horses of Diomedes

Heracles steals King Diomedes' man-eating horses and feeds Diomedes to his own mares after they kill his friend Abderos.

How does Heracles rescue Queen Alcestis from death?

He wrestles Thanatos (the god of death) to bring her back to life as an apology for getting drunk during her household's mourning.

9th Labor: Retrieve the Girdle of Hippolyta

Hera spreads a rumor that Heracles is kidnapping the Amazon queen Hippolyta, leading to a battle where Heracles kills Hippolyta and takes the girdle.

10th Labor: Capture the Cattle of Geryon

Heracles travels to Erytheia, defeats the 3-bodied monster Geryon, his cowherd Eurytion, and 2-headed dog Orthos to take the cattle.

Why does Eurystheus refuse to count the 2nd Labor (Lernaean Hydra)?

Because Heracles had help from his nephew Iolas in cauterizing the heads.

How does Heracles get the Golden Apples of the Hesperides from Atlas?

He offers to hold up the sky while Atlas gets the apples, then tricks Atlas into taking the sky back by asking to put on a shoulder pad.

12th Labor: Fetch Cerberus from the Underworld

Heracles undergoes katabasis and wrestles Hades' 3-headed guard dog Cerberus into submission using no weapons as per Hades’ request

Why does Heracles murder Eurytus' son Iphitus?

In a fit of anger after Eurytus refuses to give him his daughter Iole following an archery contest.

What punishment does Heracles receive for killing Iphitus and fighting Apollo?

He is sold into 3 years of slavery to Queen Omphale of Lydia, where he is forced to cross-dress and weave.

Why does Heracles attack Troy in his own Trojan War?

King Laomedon cheated him out of Zeus' 4 immortal horses after Heracles saved his daughter Hesione from a sea monster.

What happens to Heracles' companion Hylas during the Argonaut expedition?

He is kidnapped by water nymphs while getting water in Mysia and is never seen by Heracles again.

How is Heracles mortally poisoned by his second wife, Deianira?

She coats a cloak in the centaur Nessus' poisonous blood, believing it to be a love potion to regain his affections.

Who lights Heracles' funeral pyre and what is their reward?

The shepherd Philoctetes lights the pyre and receives Heracles' mighty bow as a reward.

What happens to Heracles upon his death (Apotheosis)?

His immortal half becomes a god on Olympus and marries Hebe, while his mortal shade goes to the Underworld.