Greek and Roman Mythology Review

Practice flashcards covering key concepts from Greek and Roman mythology, including significant figures, events, and literary works.

What does the term 'pythein' mean?

To rot

Why did Gaia punish Uranus?

He refused to allow their children to leave the womb of earth.

Who came up with the idea of the 'Oedipus Complex'?

Sigmund Freud

Which statement best represents the position of women in Classical Athens?

Recognized as citizens but not allowed to vote.

Which two works did Hesiod write?

Works and Days & The Theogony.

What does the name Hecatonchires mean?

The hundred-handed.

Around when did the Classical Period of Greek history begin?

500 BC.

Which of the following is NOT a child of Cronus and Rhea?

Apollo.

Which figure was carried off by Zeus in the form of a bull?

Europa.

What lesson does Herodotus' story of Solon and Croesus illustrate?

Life is changeable; no one is happy until they are dead.

What is the ultimate fate of Niobe, Queen of Thebes?

Changed into a weeping stone.

Who is known as the artisan or craftsman god?

Hephaestus.

What type of power did Knossos exercise in the Minoan period?

Thalassocracy.

What is the fundamental premise of J.G. Frazer's approach to myth?

Myth is ritual put in story form.

What does euhemerism say about the origins of myths?

Gods were human kings exaggerated over time.

When did Rome transition from a Republic to an Empire?

27 BC.

Which Greek god represents the most brutal aspects of war?

Ares.

Myth can best be described as:

Fluid and dynamic.

When was the Golden Age of Roman literature?

1st century BC.

What is the significance of the Luwian Seal?

Luwian was spoken in some capacity at Troy.

Who is the Roman equivalent of Cronus?

Saturn.

Which goddess does Hippolytus despise?

Aphrodite.

What animal is connected to the festival of Artemis at Brauron?

Bear.

Which historian preserved many traditional myths?

Herodotus.

Which god descended upon Danae as a shower of gold?

Zeus.

Which is NOT an 'age of humankind' in Hesiod's Works and Days?

The Stone Age.

In what land does the pregnant Io end her wandering?

Egypt.

Who is the Roman equivalent of Poseidon?

Neptune.

What remained in Pandora's jar after the evils were released?

Hope.

What part of the universe is Zeus' realm?

The sky.

Around what time did the Mycenaean civilization collapse?

1200 BC.

Who could participate in the Eleusinian Mysteries?

Greek-speaking men, women, and slaves.

What does the word parthenos mean?

Virgin.

What is the Roman equivalent of Athena?

Minerva.

What was the first name of Dionysus in the Dionysian mysteries?

Zagreus.

What did Persephone do to guarantee her return to Hades?

Ate with Hades.

Who survived the encounter with Dionysus at sea in the Homeric Hymn?

The helmsman.

What happens to Psyche in the end?

Made a goddess and marries Cupid.

Who are the three virgin goddesses?

Hestia, Artemis, Athena.

For whom did Aphrodite change an ivory statue into a woman?

Pygmalion.

Why was Venus first angry at Psyche?

Psyche's beauty equated her with Venus.

What does the shaft of light in the Myth of Er connect to?

The spindle of Necessity.

How does Tantalus offend the gods?

Feeds them human flesh.

Whom does Aeneas descend into the underworld to see?

His father.

Where is Orestes absolved of his sin?

Athens.

Who serves as 'psychopompos'?

Hermes.

Hero in eternal punishment in the Aeneid?

Theseus.

'I am the mother of all things in nature… sum of divine powers' refers to?

Isis.

Who helps Clytemnestra murder Agamemnon?

Agamemnon's cousin.

What is the first primeval element in Orphic Theogony?

Chaos.

Inscription on Eris's apple?

For the most beautiful.

How many sons did Oedipus have?

Four.

Who are the Epigoni?

Sons of the Seven against Thebes.

Why was Paris exposed as a baby?

Dream/Prophecy of destruction of Troy.

Author of the Oresteia trilogy?

Aeschylus.