A Quick Crash Course
Ancient Greeks’ Beliefs
Believed their gods directly impacted daily life
Worshipped gods in temples
Made them offerings to seek good fortune
Always wanted to be in the gods’ good graces
If good things happened, plentiful crops, they had
pleased the gods
If bad things happened, flood wipes away crops, they
had upset the gods
Greek Myths
Origin of the universe
Most fascinating
Some myths based on real events
Iliad and Odyssey based on Trojan War
Homer wrote that the Greek gods fought alongside
people who were known to be alive in that period
Were told verbally
When myths began there was a lot of violence
Later people would look back through those dark
times and remember the heroes
Greek Myths
These heroes fought monsters, acted in a superhuman
manner, and talked to the gods
The Greeks were polytheistic
Belief in many gods
Olympian gods communicated with the Greek people
through omens and oracles
Oracles answered questions in riddles
Greek Heroes
May be part immortal
Some heroes were abandoned when they were babies
Their education is often different
Some are tutored by Chiron, a centaur
Some may be based on real people
Heroes
Hercules
Odysseus
Perseus
Theseus
Jason
Bellerophon
Prominent Greek Gods
Zeus- god of thunder and lightning
Father of lesser gods
Rules from Mt. Olympus
Has last say on punishment of gods and humans
Lighting bolt (important symbol)
Hera- goddess of marriage and childbirth
Wife of Zeus
Queen of the gods
Created Medusa
Prominent Greek Gods
Hercules- a demigod (half mortal, half god)
Hero
Son of Zeus
12 labors to redeem self
Athena- goddess of wisdom and weaving
Daughter of Zeus
Eros- god of love
Cupid
Wings and arrows to pierce the hearts of others
Prominent Greek Gods
Hades- god of the underworld
Brother of Zeus
His wife is Persephone
Rumor has it he stole her from her family and took her to the
underworld where he forced her to marry him
Spends half her time in the underworld and the other half on
Olympus
Poseidon- god of the sea
Brother of Zeus
Prominent Greek Gods
Hermes- messenger god
Can travel from Olympus to the Underworld and back
Normally hard to do
Only god able to do this
Creatures and Monsters
Centaur- half man, half horse
Satyr- half man, half goat
Minotaur
Medusa-woman with a head of snake…turns people to
stone
Cyclops- one-eyed monster
Hydra- 9 heads…one breathes fire…if you cut a head
off, 2 more grow back
Cerberus- 3 headed dog…guards gate to Hades
Today
Herculean - huge or heroic task
Referring to his labors
Tantalize- hold something just out of reach
Referring to Tantalus
Midas touch- things “turn to gold”
Referring to the story of King Midas
Atlas- a book of maps
Atlas held the world on his shoulders
Achilles Heel- weakness
Refers to Achilles
Fun Facts
The Olympics was started to honor the gods in early
700 BC
Held in Olympia
Took place every four years
Began mainly to honor Zeus
Only Greek Nationals could participate
Gods lived on Mt. Olympus
There are 12 major gods
Gods on Olympus
Resources
www.mythweb.com
www.greekmythology.com