Detailed Summary on Greek Mythology by Edith Hamilton
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ENTRY I
Part I Ð- Section I
I-THE GODS
The Greeks believed that the Earth was here before the gods; the gods did not create the universe, instead the universe made the gods. So the heaven and earth were the first parents, after them came the titans, and following them came the gods and goddesses. The titans were known to be big and of great strength. The one titan who over-ruled the rest was Cornus, also known as Saturn. He reigned until Zeus- his son dethroned him. Zeus was amongst the twelve Olympians, the other eleven included his two brothers: Poseidon, and Hades, their sister: Hestia, Hera, Ares, Athena, Apollo, Aphrodite, Hermes, Artemis, And Hephaestus. Much of the myths that include these characters have been set up in the “Iliad” and the “odyssey”. These gods had animals and cities that they identified themselves with, for example, the goddess Aphrodites tree happened to be the myrtle, and her bird the dove, occasionally the sparrow and the swan. Apart from the Olympians, there were the Ðlesser gods of Olympus these included the god of love-Eros (cupid), iris, Hebe, and the two bands of lovely sisters: the Muses and the Graces. In addition to the gods that reigned in the high place of Olympus, there were “the gods of the waters” and “the gods of the underworld”. Others included “the lesser gods of the earth” and “the roman gods”. In these five categories, there are approximately fifty-five gods and goddesses that would fall under one of these categories.
ENTRY II
Part I- Sections II, III, & IV
THE TWO GREAT GODS OF THE EARTH,HOW THE WORLD AND MANKIND WERE CREATED, & THE EARLIEST HEROES
These two great gods of the earth were Demeter- the goddess of the corn, and Dionysus- the god of the wine. These two gods represented fertility, fruitfulness, and, productivity. Demeters festival took place on September, every five years for nine days. Demeter had an only daughter, Persephone, who was taken into the underworld by Zeuss brother, Hades. Her mother was greatly saddened, and because of that, she gave no fruit to Earth, in effect to that, Zeus commanded his brother to return her daughter to Demeter, but later both agreed on letting her go into the underworld four months ever year, and that is when Demeter holds back the fruits of the earth. In the other hand, there is Dionysus the god of the wine, who was the only god whose parents werent both divine beings. Dionysus had two aspects he was a joy-god but also a heartless god; because wine is both the joy of men, but it also gets them drunk. Dionysus was honored with a theatre festival every year and those whom he was worshipped by, wrote poems and plays in honor of him. He was celebrated for dying and rising again; for he is the vine that is broken in winter and seems as unable to bear fruits, but soon after, brings forth fruits.The Greeks personified everything, including the heaven and earth. Mother Earth and Father Heaven produced the first creatures with 100 hands each and 50 heads; others were called Cyclops because they only had one eye in the middle of their foreheads, and then came the titans, and the Erinyes who punished evildoers. One account of the creation, is that the titan, Epimetheus gave the animals all the best gifts and features, leaving the humans with nothing, after doing so, he was disappointed, and its when his brother, Prometheus who was very wise, created humans in an upright position just like the gods. Although, another story tells us that the gods themselves created men. This is the myth of the “five ages” where it says that the gods created the golden race; soon after they made the silver race that was inferior to the gold race; they had little intelligence. Following them came the race of brass, these were violent men, who loved war, and with their own hands, they were destroyed. The fourth race was made up of godlike heroes; they fought great wars, and went on adventures. The race that prevails today is the iron race; they live in an evil world, and their nature has much evil in it as well. In all of this, only males were around, Pandora was the first feminine figure in the world; she was full of curiosity. And it was curiosity that led her to open a boxful of plagues and dangerous substances that each god had placed in it, but had told her not to open. Moreover, one last account, tells us that Zeus sent a great deluge over the Earth because the men grew wicked
ENTRY III
Part II, Sections I & II
CUPID AND PSYCHE,8 BREIF TALES OF LOVERS
Psyche was the youngest of three daughters born to a king. Between the three of them, she surpassed both her sisters in beauty. Psyche was even compared to Venus. Many things that once belonged to the goddess were given to her – a simple mortal. Venus was mad, and sent her son, cupid to make her fall for the ugliest, most despicable creature on earth; but before he could do that, he fell in love with her. Cupid had told Apollo the situation, and when Psyches father went to go seek the oracle because no husband was found for his beautiful daughter, Apollo told him that she had to wait on a hilltop and, there a winged serpent would make her his. So she wept and with sorrow she waited at the top of the hill, while doing so, she felt like she was suspended from the land and taken to a beautiful garden. When she woke up the next day, she heard voiced that spoke to her, yet she saw no one, the voices led her to a beautiful palace, and told her it was all hers. There her unseen husband dwelt. One day he warned her about her sisters and how she should be kept unseen by them, she did not listen and their sisters full of jealousy, they plotted her destruction. They made her frightened of her unseen husband, and one day as he slept, she went to go look at him, and to her surprise she finds this handsome, most beautiful creature, but her hands started trembling and hot oil poured on his shoulder, immediately he ran out with out a word. She wept and searched for him, at one point she found her self with his mother, Venus, whom she put through many trials and tasks, she completed them all, and at the end she found her lover and they knew that union could not be broken. A pair of forbidden lovers once agreed on meeting in a known place, where a white berry, mulberry tree stood in front of the tomb of Ninus at midnight. Thisbe was there before Pyramus, and as she saw a lioness approach, she tried to escape, but leaving behind her cloak; the lioness tore it and as bloodshed, it stood.