classical mythology lecture week 3

lecture 3.1 (mon)

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS

  • poison arrows in herakles story???


Herakles/Hercules

  • most famous for strength

  • his divide wife is Hebe

  • joins the gods

  • has 2 sides

    • hero, popular among Greeks, shares attributes w Zeuss (able to defeat many), accomplished

    • uncontrollable anger, reckless, violent (NEVER overcomes this)

  • structuralism (binary opposites) of Herakles story:

    • culture/nature

    • he’s a mediating figure (has all the best and worst)

    • liminality - state of transition (he cannot settle/is undefined)

      • ex. like Hulk, Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde

Life of Herakles

  • mythography - writing or recording of myth with specific narrative

  • Herakles story cannot be told in one book because its told in bits and pieces (however there is a book that tried to piece everything together)

  • his birth → his labors → his death


Birth

  • Birth from Zeus and Alkmene

    • Herakles, as a baby, strangles serpents that were placed in his bed

      • Variation 1 - serpents placed by Hera since she hates offspring of Zeus

      • Variation 2 - serpents placed by Zeus to tell if the child was his based on whether he killed them

  • Educated by a musician named Linus - didn’t work out, Herakles too violent


In Thebes…

  • Herakles serves King Thespus using Lion and Skin as his wardrobe

    • symbol his “beastly” or “animal-like” character (cannot be tamed, though trying)

  • King Thesbius often gets Herakles drunk and sends his 50 daughters to sleep with him

    • Herakles has many kids known as “Heraclids”

  • Meets and marries Megara (first wife)

  • Hera drives Herakles mad → he kills his children

    • Atones by slaving to Eurystheus (cousin)

    • Hera dictates Herakles’ punishments trying to kill him

    • Herakles too invincible to die


Labors

  • Labors done as a slave for Eurystheus

  • peep map for blue names

    • locations in blue names mark his local labors where he clears of monsters and pests

  • local pests

    • 1. nemean lion - monstrous, has sharp talons, killed via strangle and bashing w club

    • 2. learnaean hydra - water snake with 9 heads (chop off 1, 2 more grow); Iolaus helps kill snake

      • Hera sends crab to make challenge harder yet Herakles kills that too

      • Crab in this story is the crab of Cancer (astrology)

    • 3. cerynaean hind - a female deer he kills with a poison arrow

    • 4. erymanthian boar


side note - artemis and apollo are twins


lecture 3.2 (wed)

  • The Nemean lion

    • 1st of Herakles labors, tames a natural threat

    • Ideas

      • Strength plus cunning

      • Herakles himself is wild/savage + civilizing

      • Takes on role of great hunter

      • U could interpret his labors as him trying to take hold of his savage ways (though he never does)

  • At Pholus’ house

    • labor 5, duality in Herakles character

    • specific ideas

      • theme of hospitality, civilized behavior, herakles proximity to centaurs - emblem of his own nature

      • desire for wine, gluttony, greed → natural, animal impulses

  • composite of several ancient story patterns

    • the great hunter

    • the great domesticator

    • shamans


later life and death of herakles

  • meets Iole, daughter of Iphitus

  • he wants to be with her but her brothers don’t want him for their sister knowing his playboy and violent background → he kills his hosts

    • punishment: serves Omphale (queen of Lydia)

  • death on Mt. Oeta

  • Apotheosis - transformation into a god?

  • Philoctetes

    • Herakles’ bow


sophocles’ women of trachis

  • examples of greek tragedy

    • 1. wife awaiting hero

      • Cf. Penelope, Clytemnestra

    • 2. levels of action/causation in tragedy

      • character, human motives

        • e.g. eros, vengeance

      • fate, cahin of events

        • oracle (prophecy) comes true

    • 3. ambiguity/uncertainty