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117 Cards in this Set
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What two greek words were the word mythology derived from and what do those words mean?
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> Muthos - authoritative speech, story, plot
> legein - to tell, collect, or give a rational account |
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Define the word "myth".
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myth: A traditional story
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What is required for something to be considered a myth?
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A story. There must be an actual plot involved.
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What are the three main categories of myths?
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> Divine myth
> Legends > Folktales |
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What characterizes a myth as divine?
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> Involve super natural beings (usually gods)
> Often etiological for some sort of process science would be used for today. |
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What characterizes a myth as a legend?
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> Concern deeds done by heros in the past
> etiological for why something in society exists as it does. |
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What characterizes a myth as a folktale?
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> Involves ordinary people instead of heros or gods.
> Intended to entertain > Justify customs of a culture or civilization. |
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Plot of Europa Myth
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1. Girls including the princess Europa
2. They came across a beautiful white bull 3. Europa got on its back 4. The Bull is in fact Zeus 5. Zeus carried Europa to the island of crete where he had sex with her. 6. Europa gives birth to Minos. 7. Minos becomes a great king in Crete 8. Europa's father sends his son Cadmus to find his sister. 9. Cadmus hit the greek mainland, founded Thebes, and invented the alphabet. |
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Dominant cultures of the Early Eastern Mediterranean world.
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> Egyptians
> Mesopotamians > Hittites > Minoans |
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Egyptian Culture Highlights
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> Hieroglyphics
> Absolute Divine Monarchy > Farming and Exacting of Tribute |
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Mesopotamian culture highlights
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> Located in mesopatamia
> Gave rise to Phonecians and Syrians to the west > Used Cuneiform > One Major god and king per city state > Thrived via commerce |
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Cultural Highlights of Hittites
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> Located in Asia Minor
> Used Cuneiform > Powerful Military based on Iron weapons > Thrived via taxes and tributes |
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Minoan Cultural Highlights
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> Located on Crete
> Named for legendary king Minos > Economy was largely commercial > powerful navy |
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How did the monarchy in Egypt work?
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> Pharoh was considered to be a descented of the main god, the sun god Ra.
> Egypt's divine monarchy was likely kept in place to keep upper and lower egypt united and maintain the centralized irrigation system |
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What were some rich cities in mesopatamia?
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> Babylon
> Sumerian Ur |
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Who was Hammurabi?
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Hammurabi was a king of babylon that wrote one of the earliest known law codes
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Who ruled Thera, and where was it located?
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Thera was ruled by the Minoans from Crete. It was located off the southern coast of Greece about 60 miles north of crete. It was destroyed by a volcano which may have been one cause for the downfall of the minoans
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Define Polytheism
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Belief in many gods
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What mediterrainian civilizations were polytheistic?
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All of them except where Judaism was practiced.
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Why have gods?
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belief systems all exist in order to help humans make the world around them more understandable.
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Define anthropomorphism
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Gods depicted as looking feeling, and acting human.
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What mediterrainian civilizations had anthropomorphic gods?
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All of them
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Plot of the Baucis and Philemon story.
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1. Zeus and Hermes decided to test humans
2. The gods asked at each house for food and beds for the night 3. The gods drink but the wine never runs out. 4. Baucis and Philemon are granted one wish 5. They request that they die together when they die 6. Baucis and Philemon are saved while everyone else dies in a flood because they weren't hospitable. 7. When they die Baucis and Philemon embrace and are turned into a linden and an oak |
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Differences between gods and mortals
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1. Gods are stronger than men
2. Gods are larger than men 3. Gods are beautiful 4. Gods are perfect in form (minus hepheastus) 5. Gods are immortal |
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Plot of the Eos story.
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1. Eos, goddess of the dawn falls in love with the mortal Tithonus
2. Eos asks Zeus to make tithonus immortal, but forgets to ask for agelessness 3. Tithonus continues to age until he becomes an circada |
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Define Theriomorphism
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Gods depicted as looking like animals
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Who was the first god?
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Chaos
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Who was directly descended from chaos?
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> Erebus (Darkness)
> Nyx (Night) |
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Who was directly descended from Erebus (darkness) and Nyx (night)?
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> Aether (Radiance)
> Hemera (Day) |
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Who was directly descended only from Nyx (night)
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> Moerae (Fates)
> Nemesis (Retribution) |
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Plot of the story of Io.
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1.) Zeus falls in love with Io, who happened to be a priestess of hera.
2.) Zeus surrounds Io with a cloud of mist to conceal them from Hera 3.) Zeus changes Io to a cow to protct her, but Hera asks for the cow as a gift 4.) Hera tethers Io to a tree and has Argus (who has 100 eyes) watch over her. 5.) At Zeus' request, Hermes makes Argus fall asleep and beheads him 6.) Hera took Argus' eyes and put them in the tail of a peacock. 7.) Hera sends a gadfly to torment Io who wanders 8.) Finally Hera relents and Zeus touches Io to turn her back into a human. 9.) Io gives birth to Epaphus |
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Plot of the story of Aegyptus and Danaus.
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Background: Aegyptus and Danaus are sons of Epaphus who was the son of Io and Zeus.
1.) Aegyptus has 50 sons 2.) Danaus has 50 daughters 3.) Aegyptus and Danaus both want to rule egypt so they forbid their children from marrying. 4.) Danaus sails to greece with his daughters, but the sons follow 5.) In Greece, Danaus gives in and lets them marry, but gives his daughters a knife and tells them to stab their husbands on their wedding night 6.) Only one daughter spares her husband and they found the royal line of Argos. 7.) Aegyptus goes back to Egypt to become the ruler. |
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Issues regarding the Myth of Io.
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> Zeus has numerous affairs that make him the ancestor of many important families
> Zeus is not a god of a particular city, but of law and justice and thus protects human society. > His promiscuity complicates his role as the keeper of law and justice. A thorny issue. |
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Plot of the "Discovery of Callisto's Secret".
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1.) Zeus lusts for Callisto (most beautiful)
2.) Callisto is uninterested as a companion of the hunting virgin artemis. 3.) Zeus disguises himself as artemis to seduce callisto. 4.) Calllisto tries to hide her pregnancy from Artemis 5.) Artemis expels Callisto from her circle and turns her into a bear once she gives birth. 6.) Callisto's son, Arcas, becomes a great hunter and kills his mother. 7.) Callisto regains enough human form to explain to Arcas what he has done. |
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Name Aphrodite's Companions (not her lovers)
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> Eros (Cupid, Amor)
> Himeros > Pothos > Graces |
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Who were the Graces?
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There were three graces who represented beauty and grace. They bestowed beauty to young girls
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Plot of the Psyche Myth.
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1.) There was a beutiful girl named Psyche that Aphrodite was Jealous of.
2.) No one married her since Aphrodite might get mad. 3.) Her father (king) was told to place her on a cliff in wedding dress where a winged monster would take her. 4.) Cupid falls in love with her and takes her to his palace's garden. 5.) He married her, but told her she could never look at him. 6.) Her sisters convinced her to look at her husband. 7.) Cupid awoke and ran off 8.) she punished sisters by having them jump off the cliff to their death. 8.) Psyche asked Aphrodite for help and completed tasks to earn this help. 9.) Psyche had to get a box from persophone which she (against advice) looked into and fell into a deep sleep. 10.) Cupid woke her with a prick of his arrow and Zeus made Psyche immortal. |
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Plot of the story of Ploutos.
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1.) Demeter has an affair with a mortal named Iasion.
2.) Zeus got mad and killed Iasion 3.) Demeter gave birth to a son Ploutos (meaning wealth) |
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Who is Iris?
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Iris (meaning rainbow) is a goddess. She is a divine messenger for the gods, but never travels to the underworld, like a rainbow.
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List Hades Helpers.
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> Erinyes/Furies
> Charon > Cerberus > Persephone |
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Explain the role of the Furies.
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> Daughters of Gaea
> Avenge murder by driving the murderer insane. |
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Explain the role of Charon.
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> Ferryman of the underworld.
> Carries souls across the Acheron river, a river that existed at the boundary of the underworld. > Requried a fee, thus coins were placed under the tongues of the deceased. |
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Who is Cerberus?
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> Three Headed dog
> Let people enter the underworld, but never leave. |
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List the Famous residents of the Underworld
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> Tityus
> Sisyphus > Tantalus > Danaids |
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Who is Tityus?
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> A giant who tried to rape Leto.
> In the underworld, his liver was continually pecked by birds. > Liver was thought to be the seat of sexual passion. |
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Who was Sisyphus?
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> Vague reasons for punishement.
> Ordered to roll a boulder to the top of a hill. > It would roll back down whenever he got close. |
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Who is Tantalus?
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> Punished in underworld for attempting to feed his son to the gods.
> Placed in a pool of water and below a fruit tree. > Fruit always moved out of reach and water drained if he tried to drink. |
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What became of the Danaids (49 of them anyway)?
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> Forced to fill up a bathtub of water that had holes.
> Eternal Labor. |
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Characteristics of Nymphs.
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> Goddesses of the untamed natural world.
> Tree Goddesses - Lives tied to individual trees - showes Greeks held trees in high regard. > Water Goddesses - Sometimes lusted so much that they pulled people into the water drowning them. > Nymphs reflect the actual practice of males picking out wives from choruses at festivals. |
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Plot of the story of battle and Pan.
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1.) Athenians were in a battle and outnumbered by the Persians at Marathon.
2.) Runner sent to ask for aid from other Greeks. 3.) Runner told by Pan that the Athenians should honor Pan. 4.) Persians "Pan"icked and fled. 5.) Pan was worshiped for helping them win the battle. |
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What are the workshops used by mythical blacksmiths?
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Volcanoes
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List the mythical Blacksmiths and a brief description.
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> Hepheastus - head blacksmith of the olympians. Important but not equal.
> Cyclops - used to be main blacksmiths before hepheastus, they continue to assist him. Giants, one eyed. > Dactyls - dwarfs that lived in the wild said to have invented mining and discovered iron. |
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What are commonalities among all mythical Blacksmiths?
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> All have physical oddities.
> Live outside of established society > Inventive and clever > Kept on the border of cities to avoid fires, but still crucially important. |
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Plot of the myth of Dionysus.
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1.) Dionysus walks in the hills above athens.
2.) Meets a mannamed Ikaros who invites him in. 3.) Dionysus shows Ikaros how to make wine. 4.) Ikaros has neighbors over and gets drunk 5.) Neighbors accuse him of poisoning them and hang him. 6.) Ikaros' daughters hangs herself 7.) Dionysus returns to punish neighbors and teaches them how to properly mix wine with water. |
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Points to take away from the myth of Dionysus.
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1.) Dionysus is a god that mediates between disorder and the ordinary structure of society.
2.) Dionysus is a god of disorder, but only temporary disorder 3.) Dionysus and wine have the capacity for Good and Bad. |
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Boeotia
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> It was a plane
> Principle Settlement: City of Thebes |
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Attica
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> It was a plane
> Capital: Athens |
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Peleponnesus
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> It was a peninsula
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What are the different Age Periods in Greece?
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1.) The Early/Middle Bronze Age (3000-1600 B.C.)
2.) The Mycenaean Age (1600-1150 B.C.) 3.) The Dark Age (1150-800 B.C.) 4.) The Archaic Period (800-490 B.C.) 5.) The Classical Period (490-323 B.C.) 6.) The Hellenistic Period (323-30 B.C.) |
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The Early/Middle Bronze Age (3000-1600 B.C.)
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> Inhabitants of mainland were not considered Greeks
> Very different culturally > Worshiped Goddesses of fertility > Those who would become greeks were called Indo-Europeans and migrated from Central Asia > devoted to war > came with domestic horse |
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The Mycenaean Age
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> Named for the stone citadel Mycenae
> Greeks ruled by powerful kings > used bronze weapons > horse drawn chariots > HIghly controlled and centralized economies > Greeks called themselves Achaeans > Wrote in Linear B |
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The Dark Age
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> 1150-800 B.C.
> Dorians from Northwest Greece overthrew the Mycenaeans > Surviving Mycenaeans moved through Athens and took control of the central region of Greece, called Ionia |
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The Archaic Period
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> 800-490 B.C.
> Greek alphabet invneted > Era of political and cultural revival > emergence of the Greek Polis > culture based on make competition > Coinage invented > Commerce Thrived |
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Polis
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> A politically independent city-state that emerged during the Archaic Period
> concept of citizenship |
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Classical Period
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> 490-323 B.C.
> Emergence of democracy in Athens > social and political basis of Polis reorganized > written laws > science > peloponnesian war |
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Hellenistic Period
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> 323-30 B.C.
> Polis was crippled by Philip II of Macedon > Alexander the great carried greek culture across the world by occupying the persian empire. |
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Women in Ancient Greece
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> Two major life events were marriage and death.
> viewed as dangerous between puberty and marriage (when a parthenos) > Possibly never saw husband before marriage > held full authority over family > extremely secluded lives > cleansing miasma after birth and caring for dead |
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Slaves in Ancient Greece
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> Important to economy
> 1/3 to 1/4 of Athenian population > had no rights > Could raise money to purchase their freedom |
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Religion in Ancient Greece
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> Sacrificing to gods was an important ritual
> Gods were not to be taken lightly > Sacrafice could help in this life but had no effect on afterlife |
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Beliefs and Customs of Ancient Greece
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> Believed magic was effective
> Outside world could be manipulated by spells > Words connected to objects they represent > World filled with Spirits and Ghosts > Although gory murder and cannibalism are common in myth they rarely happened in reality |
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Homer
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> Wrote the Illiad and the Odyssey
> Wrote earliest Greek Literature > Lived around 800 B.C. when the alphabet was first introduced. |
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Illiad
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> epic poem written by Homer
> main theme is the wrath of Achilles and his anger over being mistreated by Agamemnon. |
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Odyssey
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> epic poem written by Homer
> Narrates the return of Odysseus to his home after 20 years. |
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Epic
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> A long narrative poem celebrating the deeds of heros.
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Hesiod
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> Wrote "Theogeny" and "Works and Days"
> became an aoidos > actually identified himself |
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Theogeny
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> Poem written by Hesiod
> describes the creation of the present world order > Draws largely from ancient Mesopotamian myth. |
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Works and Days
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> poem written by Hesiod
> describes a bitter dispute between Hesiod and his brother over the disposition of their father's property > considered wisdom literature |
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Homeric hymns
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> composed orally, but not by homer
> composed by aoidoi > invoked god or goddess by invoking cultic names and telling important story |
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Pindar
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> The greatest of the Choral Poets
> only his victory odes to athletes survive. |
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Bacchylides
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Choral poets from the island of Ceos
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Aeschylus
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> Earliest tragedian whose works survive
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Sophocles
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> career coincided with political and cultural dominance of athens
> vivid characters in tightly plotted dramas > characters locked in conflict |
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Euripides
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> considered an irrationalist because he emphasized the power of emotion
> characters in altered mental states |
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Callimachus
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> Great Scholar
> Author of the first scientific history of literature > influenced Roman poets |
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Apollonius of Rhodes
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> Pupil of callimachus
> wrote the argonautica in the style of homer |
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Library of Apollodorus
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> straightforward account of mythical events from the creation of the world to the death of Odysseus.
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Pausianias
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> responsible for the great geographical survey of Greece
> Preserved material that would have otherwise been lost |
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Vergil
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> greatest roman poet
> wrote aeneid |
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Ovid
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> Roman poet
> wrote metamorphoses > defined how people think about myth |
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Phaethon
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> Son of Helius and the oceanid Clymene
> Drove helius' sun chariot too close to earth > helius struck him down to protect the earth. |
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selene
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> Daughter of Hyperion and Theia
> Mood goddess > Fell in love with Shepherd Endymion and had zeus place him in an eternal sleep so he wouldn't age. |
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Eos
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> Daughter of Hyperion and Theia
> goddess of the dawn > Fell in love with Tithonus (cicada story) |
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Oceanus
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> He is a titan
> He is a river that flows around the world > All water that emerges from wells, springs, fountains, and rivers are also fed by Oceanus. > Father the oceanids with Tethys |
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Monsters
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> Begot by Pontus and Gaea
> had mixtures of animal and human features |
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Nereus
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> Begot by Pontus and Gaea
> wise old man of the sea > Had the nereids with Doris |
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Nereids
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> Sea spirits
> Parented by Nereus and Doris > represented good aspects of the sea |
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Uranus and Gaea
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> Uranus was Gaea's first child
> He covered her completely > They parented the Titans > Uranus kept all offspring inside Gaea until he was castrated by cronus |
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Cronus and Gaea
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> Parented the olympians
> Cronus feared his children and swallowed them as they were born. > Gaea gave Cronus a stone instead of Zeus > Zeus forced Cronus to vomit his siblings |
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Titanomachy
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The war between the Titans and the Olympians
> Caused because the Titans resented the rule of the Olympians |
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How did the Olympians win the Titanomachy?
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Zeus released from Tartarus the hecatonchires and the cyclops.
> The titans were imprisoned in Tartarus |
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Typhoeus
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> Parented by Gaea and Typhus
> conceived to attach Zeus because Gaea resented Zeus' victory of the Titanomachy > After being defeated by Zeus he was placed under mount Etna |
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Birth of Athena
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> Conceived between Zeus and Metis (cleverness)
> Prophesies said that the child would depose Zeus > Zeus swallowed Metis to prevent this > Athena emerged from Zeus' foreehad |
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Gigantomachy
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Battle between the olympians and the Giants
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Enuma Elish
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> means "When on High"
> Recited in new years festival for city of Babylon in honor of Marduk. |
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Apsu
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> mesopotamian god of fresh water
> Male |
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Tiamat
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> mesopotamian god of salt water
> Female |
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Ea / Enki
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> descendent Apsu and Tiamat
> He "who knows everything, the skillful, the wise" > Cast a spell on Apsu and Mummu to defeat them. > Fathered the hero Marduk |
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Gaea vs. Tiamat (turning on kids)
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> Tiamat who originally defended her descendent gods, turned and begot an army of monsters to destroy them (including MardukI
> Gaea, who originally defended Zeus and the Olympians by telling them to release the hecatonchires turned and attacked them by begoting Typhoeus |
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Gaea vs. Tiamat (new husbands)
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>Gaea united with Typhus to create typhoeus
> Tiamat chose a new husband Kingu when she turned against her offspring. |
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Ki
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Sumerian Earth god, analogous to the Babylonian Ea
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Who wrote Prometheus Bound?
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Aeschylus
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Punishments distributed for stealing fire:
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1.) Prometheus was punished by being bound to a rock in unbreakable bonds and having his liver pecked at by an eagle each day.
2.) Mortals were punished by the infliction of women via pandora. |
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How did prometheus steal fire from the gods?
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By hiding it in a fennel stalk
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Lycaon
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> king of Arcadia in Oeloponnesus
> Practiced human sacrifice and cannibalism |
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Deucalion
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> Prometheus' son
> Only Deucalion and his wife Pyrrha survived the flood sent by zeus to destroy humanity |
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Pyrrha
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> Daughter of Epimetheus and Pandora
> wife of Deucalion > Only Deucalion and his wife Pyrrha survived the flood sent by zeus to destroy humanity |
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Hellen
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> Son of Deucalion and Pyrrha
> Gave his name to the greeks (hellenes > All greeks were descended from Hellen |