Greek Mythology

•Greek Mythology is a group of traditional tales told by the ancient Greeks about the deeds of gods and heroes and their relations with ordinary human beings.

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the Titans

the Gods

other Deities

the Titans （十二泰坦）Cronus( 克罗诺斯 ) : 天空之神。Rhea( 瑞亚 ) : 时光女神。Oceanus( 俄刻阿诺斯 ) : 水之神。Tethys( 泰西斯 ) : 沧海女神。俄刻阿诺斯之妻。 Crius( 克瑞斯 ) : 生长之神。Lapetus ( 伊阿佩托斯 ) : 灵魂之神 。阿忒拉斯、普罗米修斯、厄庇米 修斯和墨诺提俄斯之父。Phoebe( 福柏 ) : 月之女神。月之女神勒托与阿斯特瑞亚之母。Coeus ( 科俄斯 ) : 智力之神。Themis ( 忒弥斯 ) : 秩序和正义女神。宙斯第二位妻子 , 时序三女神母 。Mnemosyne( 谟涅摩叙涅 ) : 记忆之神。宙斯第五位妻子 , 九缪斯之母 。Hyperion( 许配利翁 ) : 光之神Thea( 忒亚 ) : 许配利翁之妻。

the Gods （十二主神）Zeus( 宙斯 ): the god of the sky. Hera( 赫拉 ): the goddess of marriage and childbirth.Poseidon( 波塞冬 ): the god of the sea,protector. Hades( 哈迪斯 ): the god the dead andwealth.Hestia( 赫斯提亚 ): the goddess of the Hearth( 灶台 ).Ares( 阿瑞斯 ): the god of war.Hermes( 赫尔墨斯 ): the god of thieves and commerce. Hephaestus( 赫斯菲托斯 ): the god of fire and the forge( 熔炉 ). Apollo( 阿波罗 ): the god of light.Artemis( 阿尔忒弥斯 ): the goddess of chastity,virginity,the hunt, the moon,and the natural environment.

Athena( 雅典娜 ): the Greek virgin goddess of reason, intelligent activity,arts and literature.Aphrodite( 阿弗洛狄德 ): the goddess of love,desire and beauty.

GodsThe ancient Greeks worshiped many gods. Greek gods can be divided into several groups.The earliest group was Titans,led by Cronus. The most powerful group was the Olympians.

The Olympians

The Olympians are a group of 12 gods who ruled after the overthrow( 颠覆） of the Titans. All the Olympians are related in some way. They are named after their dwelling place Mount Olympus.

ZeusZeus was the god of the sky and ruler of the Olympian gods. He was the rain god, and the cloud gatherer, who holds the terrible thunderbolt. his bird the eagle, his tree the oak He is married to Hera but, is famous for his many affairsHe is also known to punish those that lie or break oaths

PoseidonGod of the sea, protector of all waters. Poseidon is the brother of ZeusHe was widely worshiped by seamen. His weapon is a trident （三叉戟） , which can shake the earth, and shatter any object. He is second only to Zeus in power amongst the gods.

HadesHades is also the brother of Zeus, ruling over the dead. He is also the god of wealth, due to the precious metals mined from the earth. He has a helmet that makes him invisable. He rarely leaves the underworld.

HestiaHestia is Zeus’ sister. She is the Goddess of the Hearth （灶台） , the symbol of the house around which a new born child is carried before it is received into the family. Of all the Olympians, she is the mildest, most upright and most charitable （仁慈的） .

HeraHera is Zeus’ wife and sister. She is the supreme goddess, goddess of marriage and childbirth and takes special care of married women. Most stories concerning Hera have to do with her jealous revenge for Zeus‘s infidelities （不信神，不忠） .

Ares• Ares is the son of Zeus and Hera• He is the god of war. He is considered

murderous （行凶的） and bloodstained （血污的） but, also a coward.

• He was disliked by both parents.

Athena

• Athena is the Greek virgin goddess of reason, intelligent activity, arts and literature.

• Athena is the daughter of Zeus. She sprang full grown in armour （盔甲） from his forehead, thus has no mother.

• She is fierce and brave in battle but, only wars to defined the state and home from outside enemies.

• She is the goddess of the city, handicrafts, and agriculture. She invented the bridle （缰绳） , the trumpet, the flute, the pot, the plow, the yoke, the ship, and the chariot. She is the embodiment （化身） of wisdom, reason, and purity.

• She was Zeus's favorite child and was allowed to use his weapons including his thunderbolt. Her favorite city is Athens. Her tree is the olive. The owl is her bird.

Apollo • Apollo is the son of Zeus• He is the god of music, playing a golden lyre.• The Archer, far shooting with a silver bow. • The god of healing who taught man medicine.• The god of light. One of Apollo's more importaint

daily tasks is to harness his chariot with four horses and drive the Sun across the sky.

• The god of truth, who can not speak a lie.

Aphrodite• Aphrodite is the goddess of love, desire and

beauty. • In addition to her natural gifts she has a

magical girdle that compels （迫使） anyone she wishes to desire her.

• She represented sex, affection, and the attraction that binds people together.

Hermes• Hermes is the son of Zeus• He was the cleverest of the Olympian gods, and

messenger to all the other gods. • He is the fastest of the gods. He wears winged

sandals, a winged hat, and carries a magic wand （棒）

• He is the god of thieves and god of commerce. He is the guide for the dead to go to the underworld.

Artemis• Artemis is the daughter of Zeus and her twin

brother is Apollo• She was goddess of chastity, virginity, the

hunt, the moon, and the natural environment

• She is the protector of the young.

Hephaestus• Hephaestus is the son of Zeus and Hera• He is the god of fire and the forge （熔炉） . He

is the smith and armorer( 兵器制造者） of the gods

• He is kind and peace loving • He is the only god to be physically ugly. He is also

lame.

Other gods• Prometheus • Atlas A Titan condemned by Zeus

to support the heavens upon his shoulders • Dionysos

The god of wine and of an orgiastic （狂欢的） religion celebrating the power and fertility（肥沃，丰产） of nature

Heros• Greek heroes were almost as important as

the gods in Greek mythology.Heroes were bigger,braver,and more beautiful than ordinary men and women.In most cases their fathers or grandfathers were gods,but their mothers were mortals,so they were often called demigods(half-gods).

• Heracles The son of Zeus

and Alcmene, a hero of extraordinary strength who won immortality by performing 12 labors demanded by Hera

• Achilles The hero of Homer’s Iliad （伊利亚特） , the son of Peleus and Thetis and slayer of Hector

• Perseus The son of Dana and Zeus, and husband of Andromeda who killed the Gorgon （蛇发女妖） Medusa

• Theseus Theseus was Athens's great hero. While having all the qualities of a traditional hero, such as strength and courage, he was also intelligent and wise. His early adventures benefited the city and region. He was a successful king.

• The Greek gods and goddesses resembled human

beings in their form,but this form was stongly idealized.They also resembled human beings in their emotions and experienced jealousy,love and grief.They shared with humans a desire to assert （主张） their own authority and to punish anyone who defied it.

Greek Mythology Is Unique

• There were several groups of minor （未成年的） gods in Greek mythology.Nymphs （小仙女） were minor goddesses or spirits of nature,living in oceans,lakes,rivers,mountains and trees.

• Three goddesses called Fates controlled the destiny of every man.

• The Muses ,nine daughters of Zeus,were goddesses of literature,music and dance.The Horae were goddesses who controlled the seasons.

• The Furies were terrible goddesses who pursued those who had murdered their friends or relatives.

• The Greek mythology is an important part of

the ancient culture which has vast and deep influence on the whole western culture. Its great influence upon the English language and literature is beyond description. A great number of words and idioms in the English language come from the Greek mythology.

Great Influence

• Named after the Greek hero Achilles. When he was a

small child, his mother dipped him into the river Styx, which made him invulnerable (= he could not be injured). She held him by his heel, which therefore was not touched by the water. Achilles died after being wounded by an arrow in the heel.

• An Achilles’ heel is a fatal weakness in spite of overall strength, actually or potentially leading to downfall.

1.Achilles’ heel

• something unpleasant,dreadful, etc that seems to

be about to happen to sb, and causes a feeling of apprehension and imminent danger

• Greek courtier to Dionysius the Elder, tyrant of Syracuse, who according to legend was forced to sit at a banquet table under a sword suspended by a single hair to demonstrate the precariousness of a king's fortunes

2. A sword of Damocles

• From the Greek story of Oedipus, whose father Laius had

been told by the oracle that his son would kill him. Laius left Oedipus on a mountain to die, but a shepherd rescued him. Oedipus returned home many years later but did not recognize his parents. He killed his father and married his mother Jocasta.

• feelings of sexual desire that a boy has for his mother and the jealous feelings towards his father that this causes

3. Oedipus complex