Heroes Gods And Monsters Of The Greek Myths Analysis

Heroes, Gods and Monsters of the Greek Myths, a novel by Bernard Evslin, retells short stories of the most famous gods and monsters of Greek Mythology. Evslin creates a simplistic way for the reader to understand more about these myths, through short story telling. Each god and monster is given their own chapter, and are explained thoroughly, but simplistically to help the reader understand these stories better. Evslin’s method of storytelling was effective and the way each story connected made it an easy and enjoyable read. I found it helpful that each piece was told through a maximum of about six pages. Only the important details were included in each of the myths, which makes this book useful for educational purposes. I can see this book

The religion in the Ancient Greek was polytheistic, in other words, Greeks believed in many Gods. The Greek Gods, were very important for the people who lived in the ancient Greek. The Gods were like humans, they behaved like humans and their body and face were also exactly like a person. The Gods get married, had children, they were good or bad, and lived on Mount Olympus.

The great act of heroism and bravery plays a significant role in the ancient Greek myths, the greatest of these depictions are shown with Perseus, not Theseus. Perseus was the demigod son of the Lord of Olympus, Zeus and Danae, daughter of King Acrisius. Perseus is most well known for his noble deeds, like saving a stranded maiden from an impending death and slaying the mortal gorgon medusa for king Polydectes. Theseus, on the other hand, is the son of the great Earthshaker Poseidon and Aethra, daughter of King Pittheus. Theseus is most well known for traversing a path full of the harshest criminals, and slaying the mighty Minotaur. Both of these heroes have outstanding achievements, but one of them is braver than the other. The two points of comparison proving Perseus is braver than Theseus are Courage and Compassion.

Is there value in celebrating certain individuals as heroes? Heroes encourage individuals to aspire to be greater. Heroes possess attributes such as bravery, honor, and justice. On the other hand, heroes aren’t perfect they do have flaws. However, flaws do not negate the positive influence heroes possess.

Mythology is a collection of myths and stories belonging to a particular belief system or cultural tradition. Even though there are a variety of different myths taught around the world, Greek mythologies are more famously known for their fruitful stories and complex relationships. Greek mythologies mostly concern their gods and heroes such as; Hercules, Achilles, Theseus, and Perseus. Of the many Greek heroes, Jason is the most heroic due to the fact that although he is abandoned at a very young age, he is still able to survive, also he proves to Hera the goddess who hated heroes that he is worthy to be favoured by her, and he completes the impossible quest of the Golden Fleece.

Archetypes have persisted in literary works through the sands of time and continue to be used to this day. Throughout traditional and modern literature, the formulaic structure of myths and the use of archetypes has been utilized in a consistent manner. Although many would argue that the universal use of archetypes has been erratic and intermittent through time, the use of the major hero and mentor archetypes within the tale of King Arthur and The Odyssey, and the refined usage of archetypes in modern literature, exhibit the universality of archetypes in different cultures and time periods.

Heros are found throughout the books in history whether they be from old greek literature or modern day movies; But none of them are like the story of Hercules. Though the story in the disney movie differs from the actual original story there are some things that are relate to each other in some form or another.

Greek mythology can be viewed as a mirror to the ancient Greek civilization. Ancient Greek myths and legends often reflected how the Greeks saw themselves. Myths were used by Greeks to make justifications of every existing aspect of earth as well as their own society. In myths, Greek gods & heroes often represented key aspects of the human civilization. From Greek mythology, we can learn about the favorable characteristics of humans, such as their behavior and valuable skills that were approved of by the ancient Greek society. We can also learn about what was viewed as immoral or of little value. In addition, reviewing the Greek myths allows us to determine that the Greek society was generally a patriarchal society and agricultural and war were strong elements that shaped the ancient Greek society.

Johann Kaspar Lavater once said, “The jealous are possessed by a mad devil and a dull spirit at the same time.” People who have become jealous are taken over by an evil greater than themselves, but are also taken by a insecurity they have inside of them, strong people taken over by jealousy so much- that they change so horribly no one wants anything to do with them. William Shakespeare’s Othello teaches us that in jealousy as either envy or fear, the only thing that could come out is the monster deepest inside of someone that even the best people wouldn’t want anyone to see.

In the end, the book had multiple stories about love and happiness, but jealousy seemed to be one of the important themes. It created chaos, ruined other's lives, and caused trouble throughout our myths. That emotion proves how powerful it can be, and what destructive effects come from it. Although many stories were of Hera and Zeus, it backs up the idea that no matter how many times one experiences jealousy, the feeling is just as strong as the last. In Mythology, jealousy cause someone to make irreversible

The Odyssey is often cited as an epitome of the hero’s journey and the monomyth. The hero of the story, Odysseus is on a 10 year battle homeward from the Trojan War to see his wife and son again. With the help divine intervention, Odysseus is able to return home and save his wife from the evil suitors who have continuously tried to win her. One could easily argued that Odysseus is an exemplar of the hero, but there is another story: Odysseus is the opposite of a hero and is not worthy to be called such. He is the villain where the gods are the hero. Odysseus is cruel and quick to anger, arrogant, and does not truly win in the end.

Super heroes and mythological characters in stories inspire us to be our better selves in various ways. One way super heroes and mythological characters inspire us to be our better selves is to help and save others. In the article “Into the Maze of Doom.” It says, “I cannot flee. I must kill the Minotaur or more young Athenians will die”. (14) This tells me that he was brave and he risked his life to save others. In the article “What’s With These Guys?” Kristen Lewis, it explicitly states, “They risk their lives to protect the innocent and the vulnerable, often against seemingly impossible odds.” (18)

In Ancient Greek Myths, there are many monsters, but one of the most fearsome is the Cyclops. This diabolical monster has one eye and is known for being simple and sometimes being cannibalistic. They were also known as the son of the Titans named Uranus and Gaea. Uranus hated his children and Gaea plotted against Uranus because of this unnatural hate. These hideous monsters terrorized the world with their abnormal horrifying eye and their giant look that they had. One of these monsters weaknesses is that they are simply unordinary stupid and they lack any amount of social skills. This means that nothing could be explained to them because they are so stupid and they also would solve problems with their brute force because they lacked any amount of social skills to think themselves or talk themselves out of a situation. These fearless cannibalistic giants also were not scared of any gods, a matter of fact, they would attack a god if they angered them. Greek monsters are scary, but there are also American monsters of today who can be scary themselves.

Another myth that focused on jealousy would be the one of Aphrodite and Psyche. Aphrodite was jealous of the attention Psyche received from men on Earth. The Goddess of Love and Beauty sent her son Cupid to make sure she didn't receive that attention anymore. She told Cupid, "'Use your power,' she said, 'and make the hussy fall madly in love with the vilest and most despicable creature there is in the whole world'" (Hamilton 122). The original plan did not follow through and he instead fell in love with her. Had the plan worked, Aphrodite would have ruined Psyche's life, jealousy being the

The Odyssey is a tale of a great hero trying to get home. An epic hero. An epic hero is a courageous and honorable person. Homer’s character Odysseus exemplifies this in many ways. No matter what is thrown at him he never stops trying to get home, getting past a Cyclopes, the Lady Circe, and sirens. He even gets through the Underworld and lives. Despite this, Odysseus does have faults about him, though not as many as there are qualities. He is a worldwide symbol, an archetype, of both nobility and bravery. Odysseus, the epic hero of the Odyssey, a great leader with many attributes as well as flaws, is no ordinary man.