Mizzou Classical Mythology (EXAM 3)

"Hero"

• Class of powerful humans

• Most associated with particular cities/regions

Demi-gods

Descended from a God and a mortal

Hercules(Latin)/Heracles(Greek)

Most popular of all Greek heroes

• man/God

• powerful/servant

• civilizer/brute

How was Heracles a contradictory figure?

• violence

• sex

• wine

In what ways did Heracles have a huge appetite?

Heracles

These weapons are associated with what hero ?

• club

• bow

• lionskin

Heracles

Offspring of Alcmene and Zeus

Iphicles

Offspring of Alcmene and Amphitryon

While Amphitryon is away at war, Zeus disguises himself as Amphitryon and pretends he is back from war and victorious and him and Alcmene make love (she thinking it's her fiancé)

How was Alcmene tricked by Zeus?

"The man descended from me who is born today will rule all those around him"

What was Zeus' prophecy about Heracles?

She send Eileithyia to delay the birth of Heracles and speed up the birth of Eurystheus (Zeus' great grandson)

• Also sends snakes to Heracles cradle when he is a baby

How does Hera interfere with Zeus' prophecy?

Eurystheus

Zeus' great grandson

She drives Heracles temporarily insane and in that insanity he kills his 3 children and wife.

Hera interferes with Heracles life when he is older and married, how does she do this?

Megara

Wife of Heracles

He works as a servant to Eurystheus

How does Heracles attempt to make up for killing his family?

Heracles' Twelve Labors

Tasks assigned by Eurystheus, Heracles' master and if completed in time, Heracles will become mortal

Labor 1: The Newman Lion

Name that task:

• Offspring of Typhoios

• Skin invulnerable

• Heracles tracks animal to its cave in Nemea

• Wrestles and strangle this animal

• Wears the skin of this animal from then on

Labor 2: The Lernian Hydra

Name that task:

• Lives in swamp

• 9 headed water serpent

• It's blood is poisonous

• One head dies, two more grow

• Helped by nephew who brings torches

• Heracles Dips arrows in blood after killing this

Labor 3: The Cerynitian Deer

Name that task:

• Must be brought back alive

• Sacred to Artemis;

• Heracles tracks it for a year, catches it and carries it back to Eurystheus

Labor 4: The Eranthian Boar

Name that task:

• Heracles is sheltered by Pholos the Centaur during this

• Attempts to drink the centaurs wine, attracting them all

• Kills all the centaurs including the well known/respected Cheiron

Labor 5: The Cattle of Augeias

Name that task:

• Heracles is sent to Clean the stable

• He offers to clean the stable in one day for 1/10 of his herd

• Heracles diverts two rivers into the stables to wash them out

• this guy goes back on his word not giving him the cattle

• Heracles Returns after task to kill dude

Labor 6: The Stymphalian Birds

Name that task:

• Flock in forest

• Flushes them out with bronze rattles

• Shoots them down with his bow

Augeis

Son of sun god , Helios

Labor 7: The Cretan Bull

Name that task:

Sacred to Poseidon

Had to bring it back alive to Eurytheus

Then let it go free in Marathon

Labor 8: The Mares of Diomedes

Name that task:

King Diomedes: a son of Ares owns carnivorous horses feeds guests to them

Heracles wounds Diomedes, feeds him to the horses

Heracles tames the horses and takes them back to Eurystheus

Labor 9: The War - Belt of Hippolyte

Name that task:

Hippolyte: Queen of the Amazons

Mythical tribe of Warrior women(descendants of Ares)

Maimed and enslaved their male captives & children

Heracles goes to Themiscyra w/ a small army

Hippolyte freely offers what he needed

BUT Hera disguised riles up the Amazons who attack

Heracles kills Hippolyte in battle and takes the belt

Labor 10: The Cattle of Geryones

Name that task:

Bring back this belonging to Geryones from distant western island of Erytheia

Geryones: 3 bodied man w/ a herd of red cattle

Geryones' ally: Orthos(2-headed dog)

Helios gives Heracles a ship

Defcats Geryones returns this

Labor 11: The Apples of the Hesperides

Name that task:

Hesperides: daughters of 'Night'

Guard this near Atlas

This item: Gaia's wedding gift to Zeus and Hera

**Parergon: Heracles frees Prometheus on the way there

Prometheus gives Heracles some advise:

"Make use of Atlas"

Heracles holds up the sky while Atlas fetches the item

Heracles returns this

Labor 12: Cerberos

Name that task:

• The Hardest Task

• Go to Underworld and capture him alive

• 3 headed guard dog

• No weapons allowed

Deianeira

Meleagros' sister

Heracles second wife

Nessus (the centaur)(remember, Heracles killed most of them in one of his task) offers to carry Deianeira across.

(convinces Heracles he not like the others).

When Nessus carries her across he tries to rape her

Heracles shoots him with Hydra poisoned arrow

The dying Nessus tells Deiannera to forgive her and take this "love" potion if Heracles ever strays (really poisonous)

What happens when Heracles and Deianeira head to Trachis and they reach a river

Hyllos

offspring of Heracles and Deianeira

Heracles wins but King Eurytus refuses to let him marry Iole

Angry Heracles kills Iole's innocent brother Iphitus

What happens in archery contest for Iole?

to seek purification for Iphitus' murder

Pythia won't answer

An angry Heracles threatens to steal Pythia's sacred tripod (her seat)

Sacred to Apollo so ends up wrestling Apollo

Zeus breaks it up

Pythia finally says that he must be a slave for 3 years

Why does Heracles visit Delphi a second time?

What happens?

Omphale, queen of the Lydians

Who does Heracles become a slave to the second time around?

He returns to Oechalia, kills Eurytus, marries Iole

What happens after Heracles second term as a slave?

Lichas, a herald tells her. She anoints a robe with the blood of Nessus and sends it to Heracles as a gift. (thinking its a love potion)

How does Deianera find out about Heracles and Iole? And what is the response?

He puts on the poisoned robe and it clings to Heracles' flesh

Hyllos brings dying Heracles back to Trachis

Heracles begs someone while in pain to light the pyre

Poias steps up and Heracles gives him his bow in return

The mortal part of Heracles burns away

Achieves immortality

Explain the death/apotheosis of Heracles

The highest point in the development of something

What is an apotheosis?

She kills herself because of guilt

What happens to Deianera?

Hebe, goddess of youth

Lives on Mt. Olympus

Who does Heracles marry after becoming a god? Where does he live?

Minos

When the old king of Crete dies, who claims right to rule?

Claims the gods favor him and proves it by praying to Poseidon and promising to sacrifice anything he brings from sea. Poseidon sends bull.

How does Minos convince the people he is fit to take over the throne?

By not keeping his promise to sacrifice the bull

How does Minos anger Poseidon?

Daedalus

Renowned Atheniam architect (taught by Athena)

Perdix

Invents the saw

Because he threw his nephew off a tower

Why does Daedalus flee to Crete?

Pasiphae

wife of King Minos

Causes Pasiphae to lust after the bull

What does Poseidon do to get revenge on Minos?

Builds bull for her..

How does Daedalus help Pasiphae

Minotaur

Offspring of Pasiphae and a bull

Daedalus builds a place/maze for the Minotaur to reside because too wild. (Can't get out)

How does the Labyrinth come to be(originate)?

Aegeus

King of Athen

Theseus

Offspring of Aegeus and Aithra

Places sword into rock and whoever can retrieve sword is his.

What test does Aegeus place to determine if someone is his son?

Corynetes("clubber")

Attacks travelers with his iron club

Takes his club and beats him with it.

How does Theseus handle Coynetes?

Sceiron

Lived by the clifftop

Would make travelers wash his feet

Then kicked them into the sea as food for his giant turtle

Kicks him into sea and turtle eats him

How does Theseus handle Sceiron?

Procrustes

House by roadside with two beds (one short, one small)

Tall travelers sawed off to fit short bed

Short travelers stretched to fit long bed.

- They want to take Persephone

- Hades invites them to dinner and their flesh binds them to chair. They are tortured for several years in the Underworld.

Why does Theseus and Pirithous travel to the Underworld and what happens?

- Theseus

- Heracles

- When Heracles tries to save Pirithous, the earth shakes

Who rescues gets rescued from the Underworld between Pirithous and Theseus? From whom? What happened to the other?

King of Scyros believes he is trying to take over Scyros and pushes him off a cliff

How does Theseus die?

- Daughter of King Agendor

- Zeus, disguised as a bull, carries her across sea to Crete, and seduces her.

Who is Europa and what happens in her encounter with Zeus?

Minos

Offspring of Zeus and Europa

Cadmus

Brother of Europa

- King Agendor orders him to find Europa. And him and his men wandered all over

- Pythia tells him to forget Europa and buy and follow a certain cow until it lies down. Start a new city where is lies

Why does Cadmus visit Delphi and what does Pythia tell him?

Cadmeia

What is the name of the city Cadmus finds?

Spatoi

"Sown Men"

Not Spartoi

Athena tells Cadmus to sow the serpent's (he slayed) teeth to make them

How do Spartoi come about?

He must serve Ares for 8 years

What is the consequence for killing the Are's serpent?

Harmonia

Offspring of Ares and Aphrodite

Cadmus

Who marries Harmonia?

- Ino

- Autonoe

- Semele

- Agave

Offspring of Harmonia and Cadmus?

Pentheus. He is destroyed by Dionysos.

Who rules Cadmeia after Cadmus? What happens to him?

Labdacus (bastard grandson of Cadmus)

Who rules Cadmeia after Pentheus?

Lycus

Son of one of Spartoi. King of Cadmeia after Labdacus

Nycteus

Brother of Lycus

Antiope

Daughter of Nycteus

She gets pregnant by Zeus. She flees Nycteus. An enraged Nycteus kills himself. Before killing himself, he tells Lycus and his wife Dirce to find and punish Antiope.

What happens to Antiope?

What is her reaction?

What is her fathers reaction?

They take her prisoner

How do Lycus and Darce punish Antiope?

They are born on the way from dragging her back to Cadmeia and left abandoned. Rescued by a shephard, who names them Amphion and Zethus.

Where are Antiope's sons while she is a prisoner?

Amphion and Zethus

Offspring of Zeus and Antiope

They boys decide they want to get revenge for cruel treatment of their mother. They kill Lycus and Darce.

What happens once Antiope is reunited with her sons?

- Zethus marries a woman named Thebe

- Amphion marries Niobe

Who do Zethus and Amphion marry?

- Thebes

- They rule as co-kings

What do Zethus and Amphion rename Cadmeia? Who rules?

- Laius

- Jocasta

Who rules Thebes after Zethus and Amphion die? Who is he married to?

- They are childless for many years and he is concerned

- That he must not have a son with Jocasta, because that son will grow up and kill him

Why does Lauis go to the oracle at Delphi? What does Pythia tell him?

Laius nails his son's ankles together and orders he be left in the wild. The baby is found by some Shepherds and secretly adopted by Polybos and Periboia , king and queen of Corinth

What happens to Laius' son?

Oedipus

offspring of Lauis and Jocasta "swollen feet"

- He visits find out if he is adopted or not

- Pythia tells him to avoid home or he will kill his father and have sex with his mother

Why does Oedipus visit the oracle at Delphi and what does Pythia tell him?

He is killed by Oedipus (his son) (they didn't know each other but Pythia still correct)

How does Laius die?

- Creon

- A Sphinx is terrorizing the city

- He issues a decree: who ever saves the city will become king and have Jocasta as his queen

Who rules Thebes after Laius? What is going on in Thebes during his rule? How does he try to fix it?

Sphinx

Part lion, part bird and woman

- She is camped outside the city and killing those who cannot answer her riddle

- Oedipus

- He answers the riddle correctly and the Sphinx throws herself off of a cliff

What is the Sphinx doing to terrorize Thebes and who saves the city? How?

Polyneices

Eteocles

Ismene

Antigone

Offspring of Oedipus and Jocasta?

- Jocasta commits suicide

- Oedipus blinds himself

What happens when Oedipus finds out the truth about his identity? (that he is adopted and his mother is his wife)

Athens

Where does Oedipus die?

- Eteocles

- Him and his brother, Polynecies are supposed to alternate every year but when Eteocles' year is up, he refuses to give up the thrown

Who rules Thebes after Oedipus?

What is the issue with the order of rule?

- king of Argos

- marries his daughter

Who does Polyneices make alliances with to take over Thebes?

How does he secure this alliance?