Ares: The Ancient Greek God Of War

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Greek mythology has been studied and celebrated for thousands of years. Stories of mythology often teach bravery or triumph, and have forever entertained many. One major character in Greek mythology who is still researched and honored today is Ares, the Ancient Greek god of war. Thousands of years ago the Ancient Greeks worshiped and praised Ares through stories, as well as traditional rituals. Ares was one of the major gods in Ancient Greece because he was believed to possess important powers, was often symbolized in common objects everywhere, and because he played a crucial role in their religion. Ares was is an Ancient Greek god who was common throughout Greek mythology because of his important powers and symbols. Often, Ares is still written …show more content…

Ares possessed crucial powers that influenced Greek mythology, and was often symbolized in everyday Ancient Greek life. Ares was the god of war, violence, destruction, rage and manliness. His powers made him one of the most powerful Greek gods in mythology. He was believed to be in charge of when are where wars would happen. He was thought to watch over the battlefield during combat and direct the troops strategy. This differs from Athena, the goddess of war strategy, who controlled how the troops actually fought (“Theoi Project”). This means that Ares was assumed to be in control of the outcomes during major wars. With the ability to control lives and wars, Ares was worshipped as the god of war by the Ancient Greeks. Additionally, Ares had a few objects that represented him and his personality. Ares was symbolized in Ancient Greeks by a spear, battle armor and the scrappy, bloodthirsty vulture. Many Ancient Greeks felt that a spear symbolized him because of its relation to battle and death. Both things that Ares was known for (“Theoi Project”). They believed that the battle armor did not only represent his thirst for conflict, but also his cowardliness. Although Ares was the god of war and manliness and was immortal, he …show more content…

He was also portrayed in many feuds and rivalries. Having a deep background and family history meant that Ares was associated with many other Gods. Ares had an extensive family tree that led him to be connected with other Gods and goddesses. The Ancient Greeks believed that Ares had around 40 sons, daughters and monsters for offspring. Britannica’s Ancient Encyclopedia mentioned that, “Like most of the gods, the majority of Ares' children were only linked to him with the briefest of genealogical references.” This shows that Ares developed many offspring in Greek mythology and, that he was connected to so many other mythology characters just because of his family descendancy. This allowed him to be a common character in Greece. Ares was also in the middle of various feuds because of his involvement with many mythological characters. Ares was hated by many other gods because of all the rivalries he was involved in. “Ares was perhaps the most unpopular of all the Olympian gods because of unquenchable thirst for conflict.” (“Ancient Encyclopedia”). Ares was always getting into disagreements with other Gods, causing much conflict. Due to Ares constantly looking for trouble, and always being in the middle of arguments, he was viewed as an unpopular figure by the rest of the Gods. Although there are many different instances where Ares would have trouble with others, there is one

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