Argumentative Essay: Ancient Greek Thethology And The Religious Mythuals

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My topic for this historical argumentative essay is Ancient Greek mythology and the religious rituals the Ancient Greek’s participated in and why. During their 2000-year survival in history, many religious rituals were performed, and many deities worshiped. Ancient Greek’s believed that by conducting these rituals, they would improve their relationships with the gods (Schultz 1), making their lives better; when they didn’t praise them as they should, the punishment was severe. I personally do not believe in Greek gods or the theory that they existed. The main reason for my belief is in the title itself, mythology. The definition of mythology is the study of myths, myths meaning traditional or legendary stories, usually having to do with a …show more content…

Looking at non-poetic sources throughout history, the Greeks really foresaw no meaningful existence after death. (Mikalson 178) The Greek gods and heroes in Ancient Greece only showed their favor to humans who were living, or to their families after their deaths. (Mikalson 178) They decided that if the punishment was not delivered during their lifetime, it would fall to their family and their descendants, but not their dead being. (Mikalson 178) A bit of confusion around their afterlife beliefs is the offerings made annually at the tombs of the dead. Food and drink offerings would be left, which would presume that their dead family members have consciousness and appetite. (Mikalson …show more content…

After something they prayed for happened, they would go the extra mile to prove their loyalty to their gods, by continuing sacrifices. Even when something didn’t work out the way they planned, they still continued to pray for what they needed. The detail given during sacrifices is a perfect example of how much they truly believed in their gods works for them. The gods and what they stood for, as well as what the Ancient Greek’s did for them, is documented in poems, tragedies, and more with most of the information we know about the gods of Ancient Greek Mythology coming specifically from Homer and other poets. Researching this topic has opened up my eyes to what people will do for something they truly believe in. Much of the Ancient Greek’s entire existence revolved around their gods and what they could do for them, to give themselves a better life. For people to go this extent on something, proves in itself that they truly believed the gods were providing for them in ways they couldn’t on their

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