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Greek Myths Final
Greek Mythology
| Question | Answer |
|---|---|
| Dionysus | God of wine, symbol of intoxication. Symbol is ivy--it dies in the winter and Dionysus is the only God who dies and comes back to life. God of hallucination--very self-controlled |
| Semele | Dionysus' mother, mortal throm Thebes.Daughter of Cadmis and Caminea. Tricked by her sisters to convince Zeus to let her see him in his full glory. Zeus takes her fetus & stitches it in his thigh |
| Thyrsus | a fennel stalk (like bamboo) that is tipped with ivy, carried by women and when used (by the followers of dionysus) they are more powerful than the spears. |
| Cithaeron (in the Bacchae) | a mountain where Dionysus sends the maenads and the women of athens. Here, Agave rips apart her own son. The men think the women there are indulging in sexual pleasure, but they do not. Mountain represents a "oneness" with nature |
| Maenads (Bacchantes) | Asian women followers of Dionysus, often enthused by gods. Unified their minds with the gods, plants, mountain and other women wherever they went. They have incredible strength, powerful enough to tear a creature apart with bare hands |
| Satyrs | Half man half goat, dedicated followers of Dionysus. They are nothing but drunken and sexual beings. Often seen playing a pan flute |
| Cadmus | Hasband of Harmonia-founded delphi-rejects Dionysus when he first comes to Thebes, but at the end he and Teiresias claim to embrace the god. Changed into a serpant and a city destroyer due to his disrespect and hollow worship |
| Europa | Mortal woman Zeus takes a fancy to. Zeus disguises himself as a bull, kidnaps her by taking her through the sea and sleeps with her on the island of Crete. Zeus and Europa have 3 sons, one is Minos, who's wife lusts after a bull (creates Minotaur) |
| Agave | Penthus' mother who rips him apart on Mt. Cithaeron and carries his body parts back to Athens as a hunting trophy |
| Pentheus | has two fathers-Echion (monster) and Cadmus (civilizer of the world). Becomes king of Thebes. Denies respect to Dionysus-mother rips him apart |
| Echion | a spartoi, born from the spawn of the dragon, father of Pentheus, who gives him his wild, violent and brutal qualities |
| Spartoi | "sown men" earth born and monsters, who as soon as they pop up they start fighting and only a few survive |
| Sumbakkheuin | literaly meaning "to be with bacchus" it is a rare word in greek that implies complete unity: all things together in a single trance. He forges the bond between women and the beast, but also with the inanimate mountain, and the trees, and the rock. |
| Sparagmos | ripping apart a living creature, for example Penteus, by his mother and aunt, and Actaeon by his own dogs, and Dionysus on a regular basis for sacrificial honor |
| Omophagos | eating raw flesh, practiced by some followers of Dionysus, overcome by his influence to abandon apollonian restrictions. Often used as form of sacrifice, coupled with sparagmos |
| Hermes | one of the few gods who has a childhood-mischievous, yet inventive God. Son of Maya and Zeus, he causes lots of problems with Apollo and social order he stands for by being obnoxious, crafty brother. Invents the lyre, the pan flute, sandals, and fire. |
| Maia | daughter of atlas and granddaughter of Iapitus, Maia is the mother of Hermes |
| Hermaphrodite | son of Hermes and Aphrodite-chased by a nymph name Salmac who cannot help but give in to his lustful powers. As she attacks him by a pool, he asks his parents to remove virility from him-grants that gift to whatever man enters that pool of water |
| Agamemnon | son of Atreus-3 children with Cly and is on a quest to retrieve Helen. |
| Clytaemnestra | star of Oresteia-mother of Electra, Orestes and Iphigeneia-maneuvers like a man-character is given more importance by Aeschelus than in tradition, making her kill her hubby than her lover-makes it a family story, not of succession |
| Iphigeneia | sacrificed to Artemis in order to give Agamemnon a safe return home-her death prompts Clytemnestra's blood lust |
| Eagle | strange imagery is made by the first chorus at the beginning of Oresteia-2 eagles kill pregnant hare-Ag and Menelaus are the leaders of the expedition and Zeus inspires violent action by turning the characters into predatory animals |
| Hare | representing Iphigeneia, sacrificed by Agamemnon, sealing their fate as violent predators |
| Thyestes | seduces Atreus' wife to become kind-Atresus finds out and banishes him. Atreus pretends to feel bad and invites Thyestes to dinner, but feeds him his children. One daughter was not eaten-he rapes her and they have Agiesthus |
| Aegisthus | traditionally the one who kills Agamemnon, making it a play of dynastic succession, Aegisthus in the Oresteia, however, is only Clytaemnestra's lover, who accompanies her for the murders |
| Cassandra | concubine brought back by Agamemnon, she was given the gift of divination by Apollo, but because she went back on her word to then let him sleep with her, he made it so no one could understand her prophecy-forsees she and Ag's death |
| Orestes | son of Clytaemnestra and Agamemnn-he is the one to break the cycle by seeking vengeance for his father. It is then ruled by Athena that because there is no genetic relation betwee a mother and her son, no punishment shall be given to him for slaying Cly |
| Electra | daughterof Clytaemesta and Agamemnon-she feels a bond towards her father and wants to kill her moher. She is conflicted by this emotional divide |
| Furies | born from the blood of Kronos' severed penis-they follow those who do wrong by their own family. belong to the old form of justice-blood law and blood persuasion and are in the play overturned by that of civic law and civic justice |
| Dike (in the Oresteia) | referring to the end of the cycle and judgment, this shows the new form of judgment that cones in the third act of the Oresteia. Instead of family and the judgment of the Eumenides, it is the judgment of the court that decides Orestes' fate |
| Fire in the darkness | an intense imagery used in the Oresteia to symbolize the end of the blood war within Ag's family. Originally it is literally a fire in the darkness, the torch passes from Ag to Cly and finally to Orestes, who ends the cycle |
| Panathenaic Procession | how the Oresteia ends, a torch-lit procession, the actual fire in darkness, women who are foreigh weave a robe for Athena: welcome the furies, change their robes from black to crimson signifying fertility now instead of blood. |
| Heracles | ironically meaning the Glory Hera, Heracles is the result of one of Zeus' countless affairs with mortal women that shames Hera. His mother is Alcmene-spends entire life in the service of Hera-has him slaughter his whole family-completes 12 labors |
| Amphitryon | Heracles' step-father asked by Alcmene to do some vengeance, while he's gone Zeus disguises himself as amphitryon an sleeps with her. In some versions he then gets angry and tries to burn her, and in others he sleeps with her the same night as Zeus |
| Alcmene | Heracles' mother, raped by Zeus under the guize of her husband. She gives birth the Heracles and Iphicles |
| Eurystheus | the kind of Argos who sent Heracles on his 12 labors. Most of his labors were designed to be impossible, which would therefore kill Heracles, but he prevailed at every one |
| Nemean Lion | Heracles' first of 12 labors-most of his labors were designed to be impossible, which would therefore kill Heracles, but he prevailed at every one |
| Hydra of Lerna | in Argos, a monstrous serpent with nine heads, the hydra attacked with poisonous venom. He defeats it by cutting off a head and cauterizing it immediately-he then collects the poison and dips his arrows in it |
| Cerberus | the 3 headed dog that guards the underworld. the only one who tames him is Heracles and later Orpheus, who tames him with song. Heracles leads him back to earth, tamed and then upon request, lead him back down |
| River Achelous | the largest river in Greece, he is Deianira's first suitor, that Heracles defeats in sregth rather than wit for her hand in marriage |
| Nessus | a centaur who tries to rape Deianira mid-stream and heracles slays-he manipulates Deianira, even from the grave, into killing Heracles, by giving her the instruction for a "love potion" that actually burns whoever it is spread on |
| Megara | the daughter of Creon-her father gives Megara to Heracles (then Alceus) to thank him for something. Heracles goes mad and kills all his children. Herc does the 12 labors to expiate himself |
| Deianira | Heracles' second wife-herc saves her from the river Achelous-first suitor. On their honeymoon a centaur tries to rape her-gives her love potion. |
| Iole | beautiful girl that Herc desroys an entire city obtain, he sends her back to his home (to Deianira)-says nothing the entire play-unresponsive to his lust-she is the cause of Deianira's jealousy |
| Hyllus | Herc's son by Deianira-he attempts to avenge his death by shunning his mother-she just commits suicide out of grief and he feels that he has killed her |
| Mt. Oeta | where Heracles goes to die on his funeral pyre and is given his immortality by the gods, especially alowed by hera who had the final say |
| Oedipus | means "swollen footed" because of his ankle piercings-fated to marry his mother and kill his father |
| Laius | son of Labdacus, raised by Lycus after his father's death-returned to Thebes he was made king-son oedipus, killed him |
| Jocasta | wife of Laius, mother/wife of Oedipus |
| Polybus | King of Corinth, raised Oedipus as his own son-news of Polybus'' death alerted Oedipus that he had not killed his father (P. died of natural causes), but lter Oedipus finds out Polybus was not his biological father |
| Merope | wife of Polybus, adopted mother of Oedipus |
| Sphinx | while on his journey to Thebes, Oedipus runs into the Sphinx-asks him the riddle, Oedipus is the first to answer correctly-Sphinx kills itself |
| Teiresias | prophet who warned Oedipus about his fate. Told Oedipus what happened when he was beckoned. Oedipus did not respond kindly and called Teiresias a liar-wanted to have him killed |
| Cithaeron (In Oedipus) | mountain where Oedipus was left to die by his parents. |
| Polyneices | One son of Oedipu and Jocasta-Once Oedipus left Thebes, he and his brother (Etocles) killed eachother fighting for the throne. Creon made a rule that no one was to mourn Polyneices' death, but Antigone disobeyed and was sent to die in a sepulchre |
| Eteocles | Another son of Oedipus |
| Ismene | Daughter of Oedipus. After Antigone was caught morning her brohter's death, Ismene told Creon she had been mourning as well as demanded the same fate as her sister |
| Antigone | Daughter of Oedipus.Creon declares there will be no mourning-she is caught doing so. Leaves her for dead, later he is warned it is a bad idea. she kills herself before he can save her, causing his son (her betrothed) to kill himself as well. |
| Creon | Antigone story |
| Haemon | son of Creon, kills himself after learning of Antigone's death-betrothed to Antigone |
| Megareus | Other son of Eurdice-dies in battle, after being warned to stay away. When Eurydice kills herself, she curses Creon for taking both her sons from her |
| Hippolytus | son of Theseus and HIppolyta-he rejects Aphrodite-sworn to chastity and honors Artemis. Phaedra falls in love with him, when the secret comes out, she hangs herself. Theseus finds out, curses Hippo and kicks him out. Later, dies |
| Theseus | father of Hippolytus-orders him out when he hears about Phaedra's death. Later finds out Phaedra lied about her suicide |
| Hippolyta | mother of Hippolytus-amazon woman |
| Pasiphae | cursed by Poseidon to become overwhelmed with lust for a bull, she asks Datylus to make a statue of a cow she can put her body in. The bull does have sex with the statue, and she becomes pregnant. gives birth to Minotaur, who Minos is ashamed of. |
| Ariadne | daughter of King Minos, aided Theseus in overcoming the Minotaur, her half-brother |
| Phaedra | wife of Theseus, falls in love with Hippolytus by a curse, tries to get with him, when he rejects her she is so overcome with shame, she kills herself but says hippolytus raped her |
| Nurse | Phaedra's nurse--convinces Phaedra to announce why she is so ill |
| Meadow/Ocean | place where the bull jumps out |
| Bull | scares Hippolytus' horses into crashing the car. Has sex with Pasiphae, thinking it is a cow |
| Narcissus | man who spurned all suitors and desires of Aphrodite until he saw his own reflection-fell so in love with himself that he could not leave the side of the reflecting pool-tormented he could not touch his reflection, he wasted away in his passion and died |
| Echo | distracted hera by talking to her whenever she was about to encounter Zeus having an affair, Hera cursed her so she could only repeat what people said-falls in love with Narcissus-wastes away to only a voice in shame |
| Daedalus | an Athenian-cunning wonder/worker/artist--creates cow statue for Pasiphae to die in and creates the labyrinth for the product of that love interest, the minotaur, t be hidden in. Eventually must escape from town |
| Icarus | Daedalus' son-flies too close to the sun, loses the wax on his wings his father made him and goes crashing to the earth-work, power, and assertion of identity is his demise as an adolescent-cannot fill the shoes of his father |
| Helios | the sun god-rides the chariot of the sun around the earth each day. He is begged by his son for the opportunity to try his father's task as proof of his heritage, and he relents. Phaeton fails miserable, crashing the chariot to the earth |
| Phaeton | son of Helios, blinded by adolescent passion and immaturity, in order to prove Helios is his father, he asks to try driving the chariot around the earth. Unable to handle the responsibility, he crashes the chariot and dies, crumpled and burning |
| Orpheus | an artist, he is able to tame everything with his song, even momentarily stops those in the underworld being punished from repeating their mundane tasks. Bride his killed on his wedding day, but he goes to underworld to save her. Goes crazy |
| Eurydice (in Vergil) | Bride of Orpheus, she is killed on her wedding day from fleeing a man attempting to rape her. Dies twice, once by the bite of a snake, and a 2nd time from Orpheus' passion that makes him look at her. |
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