Role Of Fate In Ancient Greece

The start of the period known as "Classical Greece" starts at around 800 B.C.E. and ends around 400 B.C.E. Classical Greece tells tales of Athens against Sparta, the Peloponnesian War. But that is only some of the events, as the achievements are a feat to behold. New branches of mathematics, such as geometry established new theorems, columns were prominently used in buildings of importance, and the first Olympics were first held to honor the gods and celebrate human achievement. The contributions of classical Greece are seen in Western civilization in the continuation of the Olympics, in the realistic depiction of subjects in various forms of art, in the development of medical ethics, in the architectural use of columns in the Western building

To the Greeks, the afterlife underworld was known as Hades, a grey world ruled by Lord of the Dead, also known as Hades. If they had lived a good life and were remembered by the living, they could enjoy the sunny pleasures of Elysium. If they were wicked, then they fell into the darker pits of Tartarus while, if forgotten, they wandered eternally in the bleakness of the land of Hades (Mark). My thoughts is that the Greeks thought like this because they only looked at how they made a difference in the life they were living and never really expected a meaningful afterlife. As stated by Joshua Mark, “if forgotten, they wandered eternally in the bleakness of the land of Hades.” That tells you that their life journey was to be remembered after death to enjoy the sunny pleasures of Elysium. This is why the Greeks and the Romans were different when it came to afterlife

The Three Fates are a group of women in Greek mythology that governs every mortal being from the time of their birth to their death. In Greek mythology they are called Moirai and could have been depicted as just one entity in certain periods of time, such as stories by Homer. In the Theogony they are three separate entities that worked in unison. Clotho, the spinner, spun out the threads of life of every being onto her spindle. Lachesis, the allotter, measured out each thread of life with her measuring rod. Atropos, the inexorable, is the one who cut each thread of life. She uses her shears to cut the threads and in doing she also determines how and when the being dies. In history Moirai were described as vile, ugly, and stern women that appeared 3 days after a boy has been born and when they arrive they are often depicted over the child spinning and planning the child’s life. Why the Moirai are depicted to use tools for spinning is because in ancient history, spinning or cloth weaving has been a womanly task. No sources has stated

This belief of the Ancient Greeks is apparent in Homer’s Odyssey, where Odysseus visits the underworld. Scholar Sarah Johnston writes: “Elpenor tells Odysseus that if his funeral rites are not carried out as soon as the men return to Circe’s island, he will become ‘a cause for the gods wrath’ upon Odysseus” (Restless Dead 10). As Elpenor threatens Odysseus, it is evident that the Ancient Greeks believed that if funeral rites are not performed, harm will come to Odysseus by way of the gods. If not harm from the gods, the harm could come from their ancestor personally as a revenant, in which it is believed their ancestor’s spirit returns to its body. This fear of harm from revenants is also evident in the story of Polykritos from lecture. In this story, Polykritos returns to his town demanding his son, and soon after he takes his son, tears him to pieces, and devours all but his head before running away (Feb. 2nd Lecture). The story of Polykritos shows that the people of Ancient Greece believed revenants posed a threat to the living. By failing to carry out proper burial rituals, the living put their own bodies at risk. This fear was so strong that the Greek’s burial ritual included placing a chin strap over a dead persons head so their spirit may not

Homers complex writing is devoted to the extend he gives on the perspective into the Greek underworld, stories in which were prevailing in the Greek society. The numerous conditions of the reality of the afterlife are deeply described rather than the setting of the underworld. The underworld is described as the House of Hades which is where your death and inevitable fate lies. It is signified in The Odyssey Book XI, concretely in the scenes of Odysseus mother’s death in the Cimmerians, the Greek culture expresses a depressing but inevitable view of death as a complete dichotomy of the fate but shows the indication of more than just one afterlife.

In Greek culture, it is a custom to bury the dead to please the gods. The Greeks also believed that when you don’t bury someone they will wonder the earth. Antigone wanted to give Polynecies a proper burial because it is right in the god’s eyes. She also wanted him to have an afterlife. She never lied to Creon when she was caught burying the body. Therefore, Antigone is correct when she disobeyed the law to bury her brother and then confessed to it.

Religion is a large part of modern life. It influences our belief system and values, as well as shapes who we are as human beings. However, most individuals decide upon and follow a belief system on a voluntary basis. Imagine not only being forced to follow a belief system, but having this system dominate your every action. This is the case for classic epic heroes, such as Oedipus, Odysseus, and Aeneas. This conflict inspires the theme of fate vs. free will in each of these classic epics. Although these characters have free will, they are not permitted to use it as an attempt to avoid what is inevitably destined for them. Therefore, each author establishes an interconnected relationship between fate and free will, which ultimately impacts the journey of each character.

Many cultures have shown the same fears throughout history, and often they have had the same reactions to these fears, especially the fear of death. Myth is a common structure of ancient and modern cultures. Mythology surrounding death, and what happens after death, has long been a way for many cultures to try to make sense of the unknown and to confront their fear of it. However, in ancient societies, myths about death had a more immediate and visible effect on the people and their daily activities. Though not geographically close, the Egyptians, Greeks, and Scandinavian or Norse cultures all had myths that made these effects visible, and are still visible to us today. Although all these cultures had myths regarding death, there were

of their fate but could not change it. So it was uncontrollable and supernatural phenomenon for Greeks. As in Oedipus Rex, Prophet very clearly

Fate is the development of events beyond a person’s control, regarded as determined by a supernatural power. Destiny is the events that will necessarily happen to a particular person or thing in the future. These definitions connect because you can’t control them. In The Odyssey, Odysseus couldn’t control where he was going, or his actions, which you will find out more about as you continue reading.

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.

Politcal Economy is the earlier name for economics , the Ancient Greeks came up with the name but in

Oedipus Rex is part of the three Theban plays set in the city of Thebes, in which the main character of the play is a king – Oedipus. By looking at the religious context of the play, we can better understand how religion influenced the play.

Ancient Greece has impacted many civilizations through philosophy, government, art and architecture. Their ideas and concepts are still widely used today and have benefited many people's lives. The Ancient Greek civilization made many contributions to the Western World.

Fate is defined as “the universal principle or ultimate agency, by which the order of things is presumably prescribed; the decreed cause of events, or time.” It is one of the major topics, which occurs in the Iliad. Fate is shown in both actions and consequences like battling in the Trojan War, and the result of either surviving, or dying. Fate takes in the lives of the mortals in the Iliad in many ways. It is used in foreshadowing different scenarios as we read from one book to the next. It defines what is happening in transition from scene to scene, and it determines what is going to happen in the mortals as the book goes along. Fate takes in all the mortals’ lives through life and death, dramatic irony, and conflict through every character.