Classics Quiz 3

Theseus

Hero of Athens who was noted for his many great deeds

Amazon

Race of warrior women

Antiope

Amazon woman taken by Theseus, mother of Hippolytus

Hippolytus

Son of Theseus and Antiope

Phaedra

Daughter of Minos and wife of Theseus

Peirithous

King of Lapith in Thessaly, best friend of Theseus

Hero's Second Self

A heroes dearest friend/companion who is often doomed in hero stories

Lapiths

a Thessalian tribe

Centaurs

Half man half horse, often uncivilized and drunken

Hippodamia

Wife of Peirithous (aka Laodameia)

Helen

Most beautiful woman in Greece

Persephone

Queen of the underworld, wife of Hades

Perserpina

Roman name for Persephone

Hades (Pluto)

God of the underworld, and also the underworld itself

Jason

Famous as the leader of the Argonauts and their quest for the Golden Fleece

Aison

Father of Jason

Iolcus

Home of Jason

Pelias

Jason's uncle who stole the throne, sent Jason on quest for Golden Fleece

Golden Fleece

The fleece of the gold-haired winged ram

Phrixos

Uncle of Pelias, original owner of the golden ram

Aietes

King of Colchis, owner of Golden Fleece, son of Helios

Colchis

Kingdom at the end of the known world (modern day Georgia), home of the Golden Fleece

Argos (\#1)

Builder of the Argo

Argo

The ship manned by Jason and his band of heroes

Argonauts

Sailors of the Argo

Apollonius

Writer of the Argonautica and head librarian at the library of Alexandria

Argonautica

Things about the Argonauts, Greek epic poem written about Jason and the Argonauts

Amechanos

Greek word for helpless or incapable

Catalogue poem

A list of thoughts or people in poetry format

ATU Folktale Type 513: The Extraordinary Companions

Assembling a team of people with special abilities

Lemnian Women

Island of women who killed all the men of Lemnos

Heracles

Greek hero of Thebes, known for his super strength

Hylas

Heracles' boyfriend/companion

Idas

An argonaut who did not want to ask Medea for help

Argos (\#2)

Grandson of Aietes, son of Phrixus

Theseus and the Amazons

Theseus joins Heracles in fighting the Amazons

What does Theseus do with Antiope?

Takes her back to Athens and has a son with her

When the Amazons attack Athens, who wins?

Athens

Who does Theseus end up marrying?

Phaedra

Who gives Phaedra away in marriage?

Her brother Deucalion

What happens at the wedding of Theseus and Phaedra?

The Amazons attack and Antiope is killed

Who kills Antiope?

It is not known for sure, but ti was possibly Theseus

Hippolytus and Phaedra

Phaedra falls in love with her step son Hippolytus, but he is a sacred virgin and follower of Artemis so he rejects her advances. Phaedra tells Theseus Hippolytus raped her and then kills herself. Believing Phaedra, Theseus prays to Poseidon to kill Hippolytus

Death of Hippolytus

As Hippolytus drives his chariot by the sea, a bull emerges from the sea (sent by Poseidon) and scares the horses. Hippolytus gets tangled in the reigns and dies

Lyssa

Goddess of madness and frenzy

Wedding ceremony of Peirithous and Hippodeimia

Invited centaurs get drunk and try to carry the Lapith women away. It turns into a battle between the centaurs and Lapith which resulted in a victory for Lapith, possibly from the help of Theseus

Hippodeimia's death

She bears a son but dies soon after

Peirithous and Theseus' vow

They vow to both marry daughters of Zeus

Which daughters of Zeus do Theseus and Peirithous choose?

Theseus chooses Helen, Peirithous chooses Persephone

How does Theseus get Helen?

He abducts her as a young girl

Abduction of Persephone according to Hyginus

Zeus tricks Peirithous into dreaming of abducting Persephone

Theseus and Peirithous' time in the underworld

They go to the underworld to abduct Persephone, but Hades is not okay with this and imprisons them both

Heracles freeing Theseus from the underworld

When Heracles comes down to the underworld to capture Cerberus, he sees Theseus and frees him, but when he tries to free Peirithous, the earth shakes, so Heracles takes it as a sign he is not supposed to free Peirithous, so he is left in the underworld.

What happens in Athens while Theseus is in the underworld?

Castor and Polydeuktes rescue Helen and take Aithra (Theseus' mom) captive

Mention of Theseus in the Odyssey

After seeing Heracles spirit, he asks to see Theseus and Peirithous, meaning they are dead by the time the Odyssey takes place

Ovid Heroides 4

Phaedra to Hippolytus

Phaedra in Heroides 4

Writes a love letter to Hippolytus and tries to seduce him by showing how similar they are and why they both should hate Theseus

What is Pelias warned of by the Delphic oracle?

To beware of the one sandaled man

Jason as the one sandaled man

Jason was farming in the countryside but goes to the city to attend the sacrifice. He crosses a river to reach the city and loses a sandal in the process. When he reaches the city, Pelias realized he is the one sandaled man the oracle had prophesied

Who suggested Jason should get the Golden Fleece?

Possibly Jason. Some versions have Pelias ask Jason what he would do to get rid of someone and he answered with the Golden Fleece

Magical properties of the ram

Could talk, fly and had Golden Fleece

Who steals the golden ram from Phrixos?

His father

Where does Aietes bring the golden ram to?

Colchis

Who is Aietes' sister?

Circe

Where is the Golden Fleece put and what is it guarded by?

The sacred grove of Ares, guard by a dragon

According to Hyginus, what is the story of Phrixos and Chalciope

Aietes marries his daughter Chalciope to Phrixos but then kills Phrixos in fear of him taking his throne

What is built for Jason's voyage to retrieve the Golden Fleece?

The Argo (a ship)

What does the oracle tell Jason to do for his journey?

Gather up a tema of heroes

What does Athena add to the Argo?

A talking beam made form Zeus' oak at Dodona

Why was the Argonautica relevant to the life of Apollonius?

It is an epic about colonization and Apollonius was living in the colonized city of Alexandria

Does the Argonautica mention Jason gathering the heroes?

No

Jason as a new hero

Classic heroes, like Heracles and Idas, were strong and brave and used their strength to solve their problems. Jason was not necessarily the strongest but instead used his charm and his words to his advantage.

Jason Characteristics

- Attractive
- Good at speeches
- Favored by the gods

Why was Jason the best leader for the Argonauts?

He is the best to get the favor of the gods

Orpheus

Argonaut with the ability of music. Could move rocks and trees with his music

Mopsus and Idmon

Argonauts with the ability of seers

Tiphys

Argonauts who was the ship navigator

Polydeuktes and Castor

Argonauts (twin brothers of Helen) who were skilled horse riders

Lynceus

Argonaut who has good vision, so good he can see through the earth

Periclymenus

Argonaut who can shape shift

Euphemus

Argonaut who was so fast he could walk on water

Palaimonius

Argonaut, son of Hephaestus who is disabled but super strong

Zetes and Calais

Argonauts, winged sons of the Boreas (North Wind)

Peleus

Argonaut, father of Achilles

What Argonauts were absent and why?

Theseus and Peirithous who were stuck in the underworld, and Atalanta who was denied by Jason as he believed the men would fall in love with her and fight over her

Argonauts elect a leader

Jason says chose the bravest leader, and they unanimously chose Heracles. Heracles refuses and says Jason should be leader. Jason makes a speech and preforms the rites for Apollo

Why did Aphrodite curse the Lemnian Women?

They did not worship her enough

What was Aphrodites plan for Lemnos?

Have the Argonauts go to Lemnos and have sex with the Lemnian women to give them a new generation of sons

Who is the only Argonaut not to leave the ship in Lemnos?

Heracles

Death of Hylas

At Cios, a nymph falls in love with Hylas and pulls him into her spring

Heracles leaving the Argonauts

Heracles grieves and leaves the voyage to search for Hylas. The Argonauts fight over whether they should go back for Heracles bu the sea god Glaucus says to leave him to complete his labors

Glaucus

Minor sea god, name meaning blue green like the sea

Island of Ares

Argonauts find four survivors of a shipwreck that happen to be the grandsons of Aietes (the oldest being Argos)

Meeting Aietes

The Argonauts arrive in Colchis at the magical Palace of Aietes. The argonauts are welcomed for rescuing his four grandsons. Argos tells Aietes quest for the Golden Fleece. Aietes gets angry and sends Jason on a labor (a labor he claims to do all the time as the son of Helios)

Children of Aietes

Chalciope, Medea and Apaytrus

Who sends Eros to Medea and what does Eros make her do?

Hera and Aphrodite send Eros to make Medea fall in love with Jason

Jason's Labor by Aietes

Take the yoke of booze footed, fire breathing bulls to a plough, plough the field of Ares and sow the field with dragons teeth. The teeth will then grow into armed men that Jason must cut down.

Who suggests that Jason should ask Medea for help?

Argos

Medea

Sorceress or enchantress, priestess of Hecate

Jason asking Medea for help

Argos asks Chalciope to ask Medea to help Jason. Medea stays up all night making a magical charm for Jason and tells Jason to meet her at the temple of Hecate. Medea then gives the magic charm to Jason