Essay On Roman And Greek Mythology

Roman and Greek Mythology A myth is defined as a traditional story, one specifically about the early history of people or explaining a natural or social phenomenon. Myths have been recorded and passed down since the beginning of human existence, and some are still here today. These are normally associated with a religion. Examples include the Sumerian epic “Gilgamesh and the Netherworld” and the Babylonian myth “Enuma Elish”. Roman and Greek Mythology seem to be the prime information hub for all myth study ("Epic of Creation (Mesopotamia)”).

Roman and Greek mythology demonstrate both similarities and differences. Because the roots of Roman myth derive directly from the Greeks, the names of Roman gods are based on their Greek counterparts. For example, Zeus, the king of gods in Greek Mythology, is named Jupiter in Roman Mythology, but they rule over the same domain. While they are all considered similar to their counterparts, the gods have differences in the transition from Greek to Roman, almost like split personalities. In Greek, the god of war, Ares, was known to be blood-thirsty and demanding of his followers while Roman god of war, Mars, tended to act more leniently towards mortals ("Greek Gods vs Roman Gods.").

Greek gods

Roman Mythology’s main myth concerning the creation of Rome is that of two babies from Greece known as Romulus and Remus, twin sons of Mars. The infant twins were abandoned by a King, placed in a basket, and left to drown in the Tiber River. A she-wolf rescued them from their deaths and raised the two twins to be great men. In 753 B.C., the now adult twins hunted down the King that had sent them to their deaths, killed him, and took control of the city he ruled on the shores of the Tiber. In a struggle for power, the brothers fought to the death. Romulus prevailed, killing Remus and crowning himself the first king of his newly founded city, Rome ("Roman and Greek