Dionysus
Dionysus was the most widely worshipped and popular god in ancient
Greece. It's not difficult to see why; he was their god of wine, merriment, ritual dance, warm moisture, and later, civilization. He was often depicted as a handsome young man, dressed in fawnskin, and carrying a goblet and an ivy- covered staff.
Some myths hold that Dionysus was the son of Zeus--the king of the god-- and Persephone--queen of the underworld--but most myths state that he is the son of Zeus and a mortal woman named Semel. This woman Semele was not any mortal, though. She was a princess, and a beautiful one at that. Zeus was notorious for being rather prolific, and when his wife, the goddess Hera heard that he had gone off and mated with a mortal, she became quite upset. Hera, in an attempt to exact her revenge, appeared to Semele and told her to ask Zeus to appear to her in his divine form. When Zeus obliged, Semele was immediately consumed in flames, for no mortal can look upon a god in his natural state. However, Zeus saved the unborn Dionysus by sewing him up in his thigh, thus incubating him.
What happened next is different in every story. Some myths say he lived with a king and queen loyal to Zeus until Hera discovered him, and, in a jealous rage, warped their brains. In this version of the story, Dionysus was turned into a goat by his father in an attempt to hide him from Hera; from then on he had small horns on his head.
After he was safe, he went to live with the nymphs, who taught him to make wine. Hera eventually found him again, and this time she also warped his brain. The nymphs rejected him, and he went to live with the satyrs, who were men with goat legs and horns, and their leader Silenus. Dionysus traveled with the satyrs, who disgusted everyone they encountered with their rude, drunken behavior. Silenus is usually portrayed as a fat drunken man who rides on an ass.
He was once captured by King Midas. When Dionysus intervened, Midas freed
Silenus in exchange for the power to turn all he touched into gold. Dionysus and his band eventually encountered the maenads. The maenads were a group of wild, warlike creatures. They were horribly vicious, and unfortunately, they were also incredibly stupid. They started quite a few unsuccessful wars against kingdoms in Africa.
When Zeus finally found Dionysus again, he returned his mind to normal.
However, Dionysus refused to give up his unruly traveling companions.
The story of Heracles that comes to people’s mind is not what Heracles had to do during his life. Throughout the life of Heracles, he has shown that he deserved to be remembered as a great hero, through the opposition that he faced from the husband of Zeus, the king of the gods, wife, Hera, because he was the son of Zeus and a mortal woman. Hera is the main reason that Heracles had to complete the 12 labors.
It must be noted that there does seem to be a discrepancy. Some texts imply that Zeus tossed him to earth instead of Hera. He landed on the island of Lemnos (Seltman 99). That is why the people of Lemnos were his favorites and that was why he always headed there to relax and recuperate.
In the short story “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?”, a Greek meaning of the character Connie has been presented in two ways, by her being a nymph and her breathing. Some researchers believe Connie to be a nymph from Greek mythology because the definition of a nymph follows suit with the character Connie. “In Greek mythology, nymphs were inferior divinities frequently
After killing his younger brother, Elizabeth , and his best friend, Victor after having no family left wanted to put an end to it all so he ended up chasing his creation and dying before catching it. After bringing the creature into this world and leaving it behind to fend for itself the creature endured lots of agony and pain from society which drove its rage to Victor and his family and he ended up kill this younger brother and soon to be wife. Both were isolated from society, Victor brought isolation upon himself through locking himself up to create the creature and ignoring everything around him as stated in the article, “The summer months passed while I was thus engaged, heart and soul, in one pursuit. It was a most beautiful season; never did the fields bestow a more plentiful harvest, or the vines yield a more luxuriant vintage: but my eyes were insensible to the charms of nature. And the same feelings which made me neglect the scenes around me caused me also to forget those friends who were so many miles absent, and whom I had not seen for so long a time. I knew my silence disquieted them; and I well-remembered the words of my father: "I know that while you are pleased with yourself, you will think of us with affection, and we shall hear regularly from you. You must pardon me if I regard any interruption in your correspondence as a proof that your other duties are equally neglected.” As
...gedy happened to Medea she cries out to Zeus, “O Zeus and justice Zeus and light of the Sun”, this line is a prayer to Zeus calling out for help(Medea 764). This is showing that the gods are superior from everybody else, and they are called upon when times go wrong.
Aphrodite, goddess of love and beauty, later rose from the sea where Uranus's body had been thrown. Now Cronus became king of the universe. Cronos married his sister, Rhea, and they had six children. At the time of Cronos's marriage to Rhea, Gaea prophesied that one of his children would overthrow Cronos, as he had overthrown Uranus. To protect himself, Cronos swallowed each of his first five children -- Hestia, Demeter, Hera, Hades, and Poseidon -- immediatly after birth.
In Prometheus Bound, all the characters are keenly aware of the power of Zeus: his name is invoked as the one who decided on the punishment for Prometheus and his wrath is sensed by the others. For example, Prometheus describes Zeus as “hard-hearted” and “in constant anger with an unbending mind”. Under Zeus’s rule, Prometheus stole fire and then gave this element to humans, thereby upsetting the existing paradigm Zeus ruled. Zeus is a “tyrant” who trusts not his “family or friends”. Prometheus insightfully recognizes that Zeus’s leadership is tyrannical. While Ocean agrees with Prometheus’s assessment of Zeus as he says “our king’s a harsh one, and his rule unchecked” but at the same time there are other characters who do not hold this same opinion. Hephaestus for one, is unable to support Prometheus’s lamentation about Zeus’s excessive power and so does Hermes, son of Zeus, owing to his family loyalty. Hermes supports Zeus’s actions and affirms the Prometheus “wronged the gods in furnishing honors to mortals” which implies that to hold the element of fire is a right born solely by Zeus, Hephaestus and other worthy gods.
According to Ovid, Zeus "acted, however, with very little wisdom for the Father of Gods and Men..." (80) when he wraps the earth in darkness. Though Ovid implies that Zeus makes an illogical decision, Ovid's statement is subjective. Sure, because of the strange occurrence, Hera takes notice; but Zeus also buys time. Time is essential to think properly, and Zeus uses his time to conjure the brilliant idea of transforming Io into a heifer. Hera should have been fixated, almost mesmerized when she saw Io, as the cow is sacred to her. Zeus’ thought process is legitimate and cohesive, after all, Hera’s doubt should have been assuaged. Nonetheless, Hera still suspects infidelity. Even so, Zeus does not lose his cool and kept calm. He let Hera have her way and gave the heifer willingly. Later he craftily has Hermes free Io. Zeus is known for his rashness, but betrays that stereotype again by waiting patiently and using a vessel so that he would not be found guilty. Zeus really thinks his plan through, for he accounts for the consequences of being caught and or
And thus wash them for him. She also had a city that she was the patron goddess of.
The goddesses such as Hera, Thetis and Athene are strong, powerful, and elegant. Aside from powerful, in Iliad the goddess Hera represents a nurturing and motherly side, and Homer writes, “I have come down to stay your anger but will you obey me? from the sky; and the goddess of the white arms Hera sent me, who loves both of you equally in her heart and cares for you” (7). In the Odyssey we have the two goddesses, Calypso and Circe whom Odysseus has extended affairs with and they are beautiful and embraced sexuality. Calypso had an egocentric and dominative character because she wanted Odysseus as her immortal husband (Bauschatz, 22). Women gods in the Odyssey and Iliad are elegant, strong, and wise while mortal women are property and subordinate as written in Hesiod’s Works and
Hera was not a principal deity; her job was a subservient one – she was Zeus'
The story of Heracles that comes to people’s mind is not what Heracles had to do during his life. Throughout the life of Heracles, he has shown that he deserved to be remembered as a great hero, through the opposition that he faced from the husband of Zeus, the king of the gods, wife, Hera, because he was the son of Zeus and a mortal woman. Hera is the main reason that Heracles had to complete the 12 labors.
He then came out destitute to vision meaning he cannot see the abyss he has created. The person who can see this is the Prophet, Teiresias, who happens to be blind, which makes this ironic.
allowed her to have Ares. Zeus really didn't care for Ares, once during infancy Ares had been
http://www.pentheon.com/articles/z/zeus.html 2 page, accessed April 7, 2004. Created on March 3 1997, Modified March 19. 12, 2004. Encyclopedia Mythica 1995-2004