CLA204 Exam

Aetiology

Origin story/explanation for a natural phenomenon or tradition (Milky Way)

Anagnorisis

Recognition of hamartia (Oedipus)

Andra

Man, hero, husband (Odysseus)

Apotheosis

The elevation of someone to divine status (Hercules, Aeneas & Caesar)

Apple of discord

A golden apple with the message “for the fairest” carved into it (gift from Eris)

Areté

Valour & brave deeds (Ajax)

Aristeia

The model moments of the epic hero (i.e., the scene in which they demonstrate their peak skill) (Diomedes & Patroclus)

Arms and a man

First words of the Aeneid (half Iliad, half Odyssey)

Autochthony

Birth from the earth (e.g., founding families of Thebes)

Bacchic cult

Dionysus’ followers

Catasterize

Being turned into a constellation (e.g., Orpheus’ lyre)

Clementia

Mercy (Augustus & Julius Caesar)

Commensality

Coming together and sharing a meal (usually gods & mortals) (Tantalus, Ixion, Thetis & Peleus, Achilles & Priam)

Dramatic irony

When the audience has information that the characters do not have (Oresteia & Theban Saga)

Eleusinian mysteries

Demeter’s followers

Enthusiasmos

Possession by a god and experience of supernatural energy and strength (Dionysus)

Epiphany

A divinity revealing their true form (Dionysus’ mom Semele & Dionysus)

Eschatology

Account of life after death

Exposure

To leave someone (usually a child or someone helpless) in the open to die from the elements or animals to murder someone but avoid miasma (ritual pollution/retribution) (e.g., Heracles, Paris, Oedipus, Romulus & Remus)

Fratricide

Killing your brother (Cadmus, Agamemnon & Aegisthus, Eteocles & Polynices, Romulus & Remus, Aeneas)

Furor

Rage (extreme emotion that causes you to let go of your virtues) (Juno/Hera & Aeneas)

Harmatia

Fatal flaw/mistake (leading to downfall) (Oedipus)

Hubris

Excessive pride that oversteps mortal limits and thus transgresses upon the gods (Pentheus, Paris, Agamemnon, Romans)

Katabasis

Descent into the underworld and return, a double crossing of liminal boundaries; the most heroic act (Heracles, Odysseus, Aeneas)

Kleos

Glory/reputation outlives heroes in the form of songs (epic) and monuments (life is extended by kleos)

Menin

Wrath (Achilles)

Metis

Cunning (Odysseus, Penelope, Clytemnestra, Oedipus)

Miasma

Ritual pollution/retribution

Nostos

A hero’s homecoming

Numen

Divinities occupying objects (Native Italian religion)

Oikos

Household

Omophagia

Eating raw flesh (Bacchic cult practice)

Orphism/Orphic cult

Poet Orpheus’ followers

Panhellenic

Belonging to all the Greek states (e.g., Hercules is a panhellenic hero)

Peripeteia

Reversal of fortunes (Oedipus)

Pietas

Piety (a sense of duty to family, nation & gods) (Aeneas)

Polis

City

Psyche

Breath of life

Reciprocity

Exchange of things; balancing the scales (positive or negative; violent or peaceful)

Sparagmos

Ripping things apart while they are alive (Bacchic cult practice)

Supplication

Ritualized request where a person places one hand on the chin and one on the knee of the person they are making the request to (protected by Zeus cannot be easily refused) 

Timé

Honour/rewards given to the hero while he lives (precious objects and the respect of his peers)

Univera

One man woman (Dido)

Xenia

Ritual hospitality, one of the most important virtues in the ancient Greek world (governed by Zeus)