Greek MythologyMrs. McFarlandHonors Reading

What is Greek Mythology?The people of ancient Greeceshared stories called mythsabout the gods, goddesses,and heroes in which theybelieved. Each god or goddess wasworshipped as a deity andruled over certain areas ofthe Greeks’ lives. These exciting storiesexplained natural phenomenathat could not be explainedby science in the ancientworld.

Why Should We StudyGreek Mythology?

The Ancient Greek culturehas been kept alive by theoral and later writtenstories handed downthrough thousands ofyears. Modern plays, novels,television programs,movies and evenadvertisements refer toGreek gods, goddesses,heroes and their stories. Adventurous and excitingstories delight andentertain us.

Who Were the Gods andGoddesses of the Pantheon onMount Olympus?

Zeus – Leader of the Olympian Gods He ruled the Olympians. He was the god of the sky, lightning and thunder carrying a thunderbolt as his symbol.He married Hera, his

sister, which was a family habit.

He fathered many children with various goddesses and mortals.

Hera – Wife of Zeus• She was the protector ofmarriage and the home.

• She was associated withthe peacock, because ofher great beauty.

• She and Zeus werealways quarreling.

• She was called the queenof intriguers, a vindictiveand jealous wife, whofrequently outwitted herhusband, Zeus.

Poseidon – God of the Sea• He built an underwaterpalace with a great pearland coral throne.

• Although he chose Thetis,a beautiful water nymph,as his queen, he, like hisbrother Zeus, was a greatwanderer fatheringhundreds of children.

• He was a difficult god,changeful andquarrelsome, but createdmany curious forms forhis sea creatures.

• He invented the horse forhis sister Demeter, whomhe loved.

Hades – God of the Underworld

• He was the jealousbrother to Zeus andPoseidon.• He made Persephone hiswife after stealing herfrom her mother,Demeter, who was hissister.• Because he was a violentgod, who was also verypossessive of every newsoul, he rarely left hisunderworld domain.

Demeter-Goddess of Cornand the Harvest

• She was the goddess ofgrowing things.• She was the mother ofPersephone, whose fatherwas Zeus.• Her daughter waskidnapped by Hades andtaken to the Underworldfor six months of the yearcausing the change ofseasons.

Hestia-Goddess of the Hearth

She was the sister ofZeus and the daughter ofCronos and Rhea. She represented personaland communal securityand happiness.She was thought of asthe kindest and mildest ofthe goddesses.She was of littlemythological importance,appearing in only a fewstories

Athena-Goddess of Wisdom,Justice, War, Civilization and

Peace

She was born full grownout of the head of Zeus. She taught man to usetools and taught his wifeto spin and weave.She was the best-lovedgoddess on Olympus. She hated Ares, god ofwar, often besting him inbattle. The Greek city of Athensis named after her. She was said to havecreated the spider.

Apollo-The Sun God; God of Music,Poetry, Wisdom, Light and Truth He was the twin brotherof Artemis and the mosthandsome of the gods. He was also the god ofthe healing arts and ofmedicine. He drove his chariotacross the sky to pull thesun each day. His son, Phaethon, drivesApollo’s sun chariot withdisastrous results.

Artemis- Goddess of the Woods,Moon and the Hunt

She was the twinsister of Apollo,whose mother wasLeto and father wasZeus. She was a chastehuntress, who alwayscarried a silver bowand arrows. She ruled over theuntamed places of theearth.

Dionysus-God of Revelryand the Vine

He is said to be theonly god onOlympus with amortal parent. His creation of winebrings ecstasy anddrunkenness to hisrevelers. Much of the ancientworld’s greatestpoetry was createdin his honor.

Ares-Cruel God of War

He was a ruthless andmurderous god, whodisplayed the worst ofhumanity’s traits. He, along with grief,strife, panic, andterror, roams theearth. Ironically, he was acoward, who fled thefield of battle

Hephaestus-God of Fire,Volcanoes and the Forge

He was the ugliest of thegods, who was rejectedby his mother, Hera,when she hurled him offof Mount Olympuscrippling him. He fashioned the armorand tools of the gods ona broken mountain nearMount Olympus. He made beautifuljewelry for thegoddesses.

Aphrodite-Goddess of Loveand Beauty

She is the goddess of desireborn from sea foam. Anothermyth credits her mother asDione and her father as Zeus. After all the gods on MountOlympus courted her, shemarried Hephaestus, the ugliestof the gods. Because she was judged themost beautiful of all thegoddesses on Mount Olympusby Paris, the other goddessesenvied her.

Hermes- God of Mischief andMessenger of the Gods

He was the precociousson of Zeus and Maia, aTitaness. As a baby, he made alyre and pipe for his halfbrother,Apollo. He carried Apollo’s goldenstaff and flew around theheavens and earth onwinged sandals.