greek myth essay

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• The Homeric poems: the Iliad and the Odyssey
• The works of Hesiod: Theogony and Works and Days

Other literary works

Archaeological discoveries.

• Religious myths
• Myths of origin
• Myths of the ages of the world
• Myths of the gods
• Myths of heroes
• Myths of seasonal renewal
• Myths involving animal transformations
• Other types
• Greek mythological characters and motifs in art and literature

Who are some of the major figures of Greek mythology?

What are some major works in greek mythology, when did greek mythology start.

Greek mythology

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• Mt. Hood Community College Library Press - The Origins of Greek Myth
• Academia - A Brief History of the Study of Greek Mythology
• World History Encyclopedia - Greek Mythology
• Humanities LibreTexts - Greek Mythology
• PBS LearningMedia - Homer and the Gods - The Greeks
• Ancient Origins - Human Origins According to Ancient Greek Mythology
• Greek mythology - Children's Encyclopedia (Ages 8-11)
• Greek mythology - Student Encyclopedia (Ages 11 and up)
• Table Of Contents

Greek myth takes many forms, from religious myths of origin to folktales and legends of heroes. In terms of gods, the Greek pantheon consists of 12 deities who were said to reside at Mount Olympus : Zeus , Hera , Aphrodite , Apollo , Ares , Artemis , Athena , Demeter , Dionysus , Hephaestus , Hermes , and Poseidon . (This list sometimes also includes Hades or Hestia ). Other major figures of Greek myth include the heroes Odysseus , Orpheus , and Heracles ; the Titans ; and the nine Muses .

Some of the most important and well-known works of Greek mythology are the epic poems of Homer : the Iliad and the Odyssey . In these, many of the characteristics of the Olympian gods and notable heroes are outlined. The fullest and most important source of myths about the origin of the gods is the Theogony of Hesiod , which also includes folktales and etiological myths. Hesiod also contributed Works and Days , an epic poem about the agricultural arts which includes elements of myth.

It is difficult to know when Greek mythology started, as it is believed to have stemmed from centuries of oral tradition. It is likely that Greek myths evolved from stories told in the Minoan civilization of Crete, which flourished from about 3000 to 1100 BCE.

Greek mythology , body of stories concerning the gods, heroes, and rituals of the ancient Greeks and Classical antiquity . That the myths contained a considerable element of fiction was recognized by the more critical Greeks , such as the philosopher Plato in the 5th–4th century bce . In general, however, in the popular piety of the Greeks, the myths were viewed as true accounts. Greek mythology has subsequently had extensive influence on the arts and literature of Western civilization, which fell heir to much of Greek culture .

Although people of all countries, eras, and stages of civilization have developed myths that explain the existence and workings of natural phenomena, recount the deeds of gods or heroes, or seek to justify social or political institutions, the myths of the Greeks have remained unrivaled in the Western world as sources of imaginative and appealing ideas. Poets and artists from ancient times to the present have derived inspiration from Greek mythology and have discovered contemporary significance and relevance in Classical mythological themes.

Sources of myths: literary and archaeological

The homeric poems : the iliad and the odyssey.

The 5th-century- bce Greek historian Herodotus remarked that Homer and Hesiod gave to the Olympian gods their familiar characteristics . Few today would accept this literally. In the first book of the Iliad , the son of Zeus and Leto ( Apollo , line 9) is as instantly identifiable to the Greek reader by his patronymic as are the sons of Atreus ( Agamemnon and Menelaus , line 16). In both cases, the audience is expected to have knowledge of the myths that preceded their literary rendering. Little is known to suggest that the Greeks treated Homer, or any other source of Greek myths, as mere entertainment, whereas there are prominent Greeks from Pindar to the later Stoa for whom myths, and those from Homer in particular, are so serious as to warrant bowdlerization or allegorization .

The works of Hesiod : Theogony and Works and Days

The fullest and most important source of myths about the origin of the gods is the Theogony of Hesiod (c. 700 bce ). The elaborate genealogies mentioned above are accompanied by folktales and etiological myths. The Works and Days shares some of these in the context of a farmer’s calendar and an extensive harangue on the subject of justice addressed to Hesiod’s possibly fictitious brother Perses. The orthodox view treats the two poems as quite different in theme and treats the Works and Days as a theodicy (a natural theology). It is possible, however, to treat the two poems as a diptych, each part dependent on the other. The Theogony declares the identities and alliances of the gods, while the Works and Days gives advice on the best way to succeed in a dangerous world, and Hesiod urges that the most reliable—though by no means certain—way is to be just.

Fragmentary post-Homeric epics of varying date and authorship filled the gaps in the accounts of the Trojan War recorded in the Iliad and Odyssey ; the so-called Homeric Hymns (shorter surviving poems) are the source of several important religious myths. Many of the lyric poets preserved various myths, but the odes of Pindar of Thebes (flourished 6th–5th century bce ) are particularly rich in myth and legend . The works of the three tragedians— Aeschylus , Sophocles , and Euripides , all of the 5th century bce —are remarkable for the variety of the traditions they preserve.

In Hellenistic times (323–30 bce ) Callimachus , a 3rd-century- bce poet and scholar in Alexandria , recorded many obscure myths; his contemporary , the mythographer Euhemerus , suggested that the gods were originally human, a view known as Euhemerism . Apollonius of Rhodes , another scholar of the 3rd century bce , preserved the fullest account of the Argonauts in search of the Golden Fleece.

In the period of the Roman Empire , the Geography of Strabo (1st century bce ), the Library of the pseudo- Apollodorus (attributed to a 2nd-century- ce scholar), the antiquarian writings of the Greek biographer Plutarch , and the works of Pausanias , a 2nd-century- ce historian, as well as the Latin Genealogies of Hyginus, a 2nd-century- ce mythographer, have provided valuable sources in Latin of later Greek mythology.

The discovery of the Mycenaean civilization by Heinrich Schliemann , a 19th-century German amateur archaeologist, and the discovery of the Minoan civilization in Crete (from which the Mycenaean ultimately derived) by Sir Arthur Evans , a 20th-century English archaeologist, are essential to the 21st-century understanding of the development of myth and ritual in the Greek world. Such discoveries illuminated aspects of Minoan culture from about 2200 to 1450 bce and Mycenaean culture from about 1600 to 1200 bce ; those eras were followed by a Dark Age that lasted until about 800 bce . Unfortunately, the evidence about myth and ritual at Mycenaean and Minoan sites is entirely monumental, because the Linear B script (an ancient form of Greek found in both Crete and Greece) was mainly used to record inventories.

Geometric designs on pottery of the 8th century bce depict scenes from the Trojan cycle, as well as the adventures of Heracles . The extreme formality of the style, however, renders much of the identification difficult, and there is no inscriptional evidence accompanying the designs to assist scholars in identification and interpretation. In the succeeding Archaic (c. 750–c. 500 bce ), Classical (c. 480–323 bce ), and Hellenistic periods, Homeric and various other mythological scenes appear to supplement the existing literary evidence.

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Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History Essays

Greek gods and religious practices.

Terracotta aryballos (oil flask)

Signed by Nearchos as potter

Bronze Herakles

Bronze mirror with a support in the form of a nude girl

Terracotta column-krater (bowl for mixing wine and water)

Attributed to Lydos

Terracotta kylix (drinking cup)

Attributed to the Amasis Painter

Terracotta Panathenaic prize amphora

Attributed to the Euphiletos Painter

Terracotta amphora (jar)

Signed by Andokides as potter

Attributed to the Kleophrades Painter

Terracotta statuette of Nike, the personification of victory

Terracotta lekythos (oil flask)

Attributed to the Tithonos Painter

Attributed to the Villa Giulia Painter

Attributed to the Nikon Painter

Terracotta stamnos (jar)

Attributed to the Menelaos Painter

Attributed to the Sabouroff Painter

Attributed to the Phiale Painter

Marble head of a woman wearing diadem and veil

Terracotta oinochoe: chous (jug)

Attributed to the Meidias Painter

Ganymede jewelry

Set of jewelry

Gold stater

Marble head of Athena

Bronze statue of Eros sleeping

Ten marble fragments of the Great Eleusinian Relief

Limestone statue of a veiled female votary

Marble head of a deity wearing a Dionysiac fillet

Marble statue of an old woman

Marble statuette of young Dionysos

Colette Hemingway Independent Scholar

Seán Hemingway Department of Greek and Roman Art, The Metropolitan Museum of Art

October 2003

The ancient Greeks worshipped many gods, each with a distinct personality and domain. Greek myths explained the origins of the gods and their individual relations with mankind. The art of Archaic and Classical Greece illustrates many mythological episodes, including an established iconography of attributes that identify each god. There were twelve principal deities in the Greek pantheon. Foremost was Zeus, the sky god and father of the gods, to whom the ox and the oak tree were sacred; his two brothers, Hades and Poseidon, reigned over the Underworld and the sea, respectively. Hera, Zeus’s sister and wife, was queen of the gods; she is frequently depicted wearing a tall crown, or polos. Wise Athena, the patron goddess of Athens ( 1996.178 ), who typically appears in full armor with her aegis (a goatskin with a snaky fringe), helmet, and spear ( 07.286.79 ), was also the patroness of weaving and carpentry. The owl and the olive tree were sacred to her. Youthful Apollo ( 53.224 ), who is often represented with the kithara , was the god of music and prophecy. Judging from his many cult sites, he was one of the most important gods in Greek religion. His main sanctuary at Delphi, where Greeks came to ask questions of the oracle, was considered to be the center of the universe ( 63.11.6 ). Apollo’s twin sister Artemis, patroness of hunting, often carried a bow and quiver. Hermes ( 25.78.2 ), with his winged sandals and elaborate herald’s staff, the kerykeion, was the messenger god. Other important deities were Aphrodite, the goddess of love; Dionysos, the god of wine and theater ; Ares, the god of war ; and the lame Hephaistos, the god of metalworking. The ancient Greeks believed that Mount Olympus, the highest mountain in mainland Greece, was the home of the gods.

Ancient Greek religious practice, essentially conservative in nature, was based on time-honored observances, many rooted in the Bronze Age (3000–1050 B.C.), or even earlier. Although the Iliad and the Odyssey of Homer, believed to have been composed around the eighth century B.C., were powerful influences on Greek thought, the ancient Greeks had no single guiding work of scripture like the Jewish Torah, the Christian Bible, or the Muslim Qu’ran. Nor did they have a strict priestly caste. The relationship between human beings and deities was based on the concept of exchange: gods and goddesses were expected to give gifts. Votive offerings, which have been excavated from sanctuaries by the thousands, were a physical expression of thanks on the part of individual worshippers.

The Greeks worshipped in sanctuaries located, according to the nature of the particular deity, either within the city or in the countryside. A sanctuary was a well-defined sacred space set apart usually by an enclosure wall. This sacred precinct, also known as a temenos, contained the temple with a monumental cult image of the deity, an outdoor altar, statues and votive offerings to the gods, and often features of landscape such as sacred trees or springs. Many temples benefited from their natural surroundings, which helped to express the character of the divinities. For instance, the temple at Sounion dedicated to Poseidon, god of the sea, commands a spectacular view of the water on three sides, and the Parthenon on the rocky Athenian Akropolis celebrates the indomitable might of the goddess Athena.

The central ritual act in ancient Greece was animal sacrifice, especially of oxen, goats, and sheep. Sacrifices took place within the sanctuary, usually at an altar in front of the temple, with the assembled participants consuming the entrails and meat of the victim. Liquid offerings, or libations ( 1979.11.15 ), were also commonly made. Religious festivals, literally feast days, filled the year. The four most famous festivals, each with its own procession, athletic competitions ( 14.130.12 ), and sacrifices, were held every four years at Olympia, Delphi, Nemea, and Isthmia. These Panhellenic festivals were attended by people from all over the Greek-speaking world. Many other festivals were celebrated locally, and in the case of mystery cults , such as the one at Eleusis near Athens, only initiates could participate.

Hemingway, Colette, and Seán Hemingway. “Greek Gods and Religious Practices.” In Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History . New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 2000–. http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/grlg/hd_grlg.htm (October 2003)

Further Reading

Burkert, Walter. Greek Religion . Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard University Press, 1985.

Hornblower, Simon, and Antony Spawforth, eds. The Oxford Classical Dictionary . 3d ed., rev. New York: Oxford University Press, 2003.

Pedley, John Griffiths. Greek Art and Archaeology . 2d ed. New York: Harry N. Abrams, 1998.

Pomeroy, Sarah B., et al. Ancient Greece: A Political, Social, and Cultural History . New York: Oxford University Press, 1999.

Robertson, Martin. A History of Greek Art . 2 vols. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1975.

Additional Essays by Seán Hemingway

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Additional Essays by Colette Hemingway

• Hemingway, Colette. “ Art of the Hellenistic Age and the Hellenistic Tradition .” (April 2007)
• Hemingway, Colette. “ Greek Hydriai (Water Jars) and Their Artistic Decoration .” (July 2007)
• Hemingway, Colette. “ Hellenistic Jewelry .” (April 2007)
• Hemingway, Colette. “ Intellectual Pursuits of the Hellenistic Age .” (April 2007)
• Hemingway, Colette. “ Mycenaean Civilization .” (October 2003)
• Hemingway, Colette. “ Retrospective Styles in Greek and Roman Sculpture .” (July 2007)
• Hemingway, Colette. “ Africans in Ancient Greek Art .” (January 2008)
• Hemingway, Colette. “ Ancient Greek Colonization and Trade and their Influence on Greek Art .” (July 2007)
• Hemingway, Colette. “ Architecture in Ancient Greece .” (October 2003)
• Hemingway, Colette. “ The Art of Classical Greece (ca. 480–323 B.C.) .” (January 2008)
• Hemingway, Colette. “ The Labors of Herakles .” (January 2008)
• Hemingway, Colette. “ Athletics in Ancient Greece .” (October 2002)
• Hemingway, Colette. “ The Rise of Macedon and the Conquests of Alexander the Great .” (October 2004)
• Hemingway, Colette. “ The Technique of Bronze Statuary in Ancient Greece .” (October 2003)
• Hemingway, Colette. “ Women in Classical Greece .” (October 2004)
• Hemingway, Colette. “ Cyprus—Island of Copper .” (October 2004)
• Hemingway, Colette. “ Music in Ancient Greece .” (October 2001)
• Hemingway, Colette. “ Ernest Hemingway (1899–1961) and Art .” (October 2004)
• Hemingway, Colette. “ Etruscan Art .” (October 2004)
• Hemingway, Colette. “ Prehistoric Cypriot Art and Culture .” (October 2004)
• Hemingway, Colette. “ Sardis .” (October 2004)
• Hemingway, Colette. “ Medicine in Classical Antiquity .” (October 2004)
• Hemingway, Colette. “ Southern Italian Vase Painting .” (October 2004)
• Hemingway, Colette. “ Theater in Ancient Greece .” (October 2004)
• Hemingway, Colette. “ The Kithara in Ancient Greece .” (October 2002)
• Hemingway, Colette. “ Minoan Crete .” (October 2002)

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Ancient Greek Mythical Characters Essay

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Heracleidae

Seven against thebes.

Bibliography

Daedalus is a character from Greek mythology, a famous artist and craftsman known for his numerous inventions, as well as for building the Labyrinth on Crete. He is also known as the father of Icarus; he made wings for Icarus and himself to escape from Crete by air together. The story of Icarus and Daedalus is told in a Roman source, Ovid’s “Metamorphoses”; the Isle of Crete was blocked by the order of King Minos, but Daedalus wanted to return to his home, Athens.

Thus, he devised the wings for himself and his young son; but the son disobeyed his instructions and sank in the sea. It is stated that Daedalus is a symbol of the ability of Athenians to invent and solve extremely complicated problems. Making The Labyrinth is one of the embodiments of this ability; creating the wings enabling people to fly is another.

Artemis is the Ancient Greek goddess of wild animals and hunting, of fertility and virginity; she is also the embodiment of femininity. This daughter of Zeus and Leto is usually portrayed as a huntress with a bow and arrows, sometimes accompanied by a deer. According to one of the myths, Agamemnon angered Artemis during the Trojan War by slaying one of her animals. Agamemnon was advised to sacrifice his daughter Iphigenia to appease the goddess.

Apparently, the Ancient Greeks, who very much disliked human sacrifice, believed Artemis to be rather cruel and ruthless if they thought she would wish Iphigenia to be sacrificed. That the goddess of femininity and virginity possessed such traits is not surprising; it was common in that (rather a sexist) culture to think of women as of ruthless and cunning beings.

Medusa, a mythical being of the Ancient Greece, was one of the three of the Gorgon sisters, the only one mortal among them. She had the appearance of a hideous human female with snakes instead of hair; her gaze was able to turn anyone into stone permanently. Ovid tells the story of how Perseus beheaded Medusa in order to protect her mother from Polydectes, who fell in love with her and whom Perseus believed to be dishonorable.

Numerous gods helped Perseus and equipped him for battle so that he could slay Medusa. Thus, Perseus killed one woman in order to protect another. Interestingly, late classical myths state that Medusa was at first a beautiful woman who offended Athena and was transformed into a beast of malevolence, an embodiment of female rage. Thus, Medusa was first abused by one woman, and then slain to save another, which, perhaps, also shows the attitude of the Ancient Greek (male-dominated) culture towards women.

Heracleidae, or Heraclids, were the numerous descendants of the Ancient Greek hero Heracles and his multiple consorts. The words are most often used to denote the descendants of the oldest son of Heracles, Hyllus, one of the generations of whom were able to capture the Peloponnesus, a land once owned by Heracles. According to Euripides, the children of Heracles were pursued by the Herald Copreus working for King Eurystheus, who was responsible for many of Heracles’ problems and thought the hero’s sons would take revenge on him.

The play finishes with the death of Eurystheus; other myths state that Heraclids would recapture the Peloponnesus later. According to some historical hypotheses, the recapture is associated with the Dorian invasion, which might have taken place in the latter half of the 2 nd millennium B.C. These hypotheses reflect the fact that some historical events often might stand beyond the stories told in myths and beliefs.

Seven against Thebes is the third (and the only one extant) part of Aeschylus’ trilogy about Oedipus; it was first staged in 467 B.C. The story starts when Polynices leads an army to Thebes in order to take power from Eteocles; both are sons of Oedipus, who married his own mother and, having learned of it, left their children to divide the kingdom via bloodshed. According to the story, Polynices leads six other heroes to attack and capture Thebes; there are seven bloody battles, in which most of the heroes die.

Tydeus, a fallen hero, even eats the brains of Melanippus. Noteworthy, the story was written circa 467 B.C., approximately 10-12 years after the unsuccessful invasion of Xerxes supported by Thebes; thus, Thebes was rather disliked by the other polises. It is, therefore, not surprising that the cruelty, greed, and other adversities of human nature are depicted as attributes of Thebans.

Theseus was one of the most famous Ancient Greek heroes, the 11 th King of Athens, the son of either Aegeus (an Athenian king) or Poseidon (the God of the Sea), and Aethra. Theseus was famous for numerous feats, including the death of the Minotaur. According to Plutarch, Theseus, assisted by Ariadne who had fallen in love with him, killed the Minotaur, the beast who had been terrorizing the population of the Isle of Crete.

Theseus then found the way out of the Labyrinth using Ariadne’s thread, and sailed off Crete with Ariadne and “the youths.” Interestingly, by finding the Minotaur in the Labyrinth, killing him, and finding the way out, Theseus shows his Athenian strength and intelligence (even though he was helped by Ariadne). Importantly, the Labyrinth was built by Daedalus, and is, thus, also a result of Athenian ingenuity. Thus, Athenians attempted to make Theseus one of their most famous heroes, and a symbol of their wisdom, intelligence, and strength.

Aeschylus. “ Seven against Thebes. ” Theoi Greek Mythology . Web.

Euripides. “ Iphigenia at Aulis. ” The Internet Classics Archive . Web.

Euripides. “ The Heracleidae. ” The Internet Classics Archive . Web.

Ovid. “ Metamorphoses, Book 8. ” Theoi Greek Mythology . Web.

Ovid. “ Metamorphoses .” The Internet Classics Archive . Web.

Plutarch. “ Life of Theseus. ” Theoi Greek Mythology . Web.

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