==Mythology== 1) Creation of the World A) Summary -Chaos existed -From Chaos sprung forth Night and Erebus -From Erebus/Night came Love -Love created Light and Day -Earth appeared -Mother Earth/Father Heaven appeared -From Earth/Heaven came the Cyclopes -Then came the Titans -Cronus(Titan) rebelled against Heaven -Cronus injured Heaven from blood came the Giants and the Furies -Cronus became master of Universe with sister/queen Rhea -Cronus and Rhea had Zeus, Rhea hid Zeus on Crete -Terrible war broke out between Zeus and Cronus -Zeus won with help of Prometheus -Punished Titans, Atlas had to hold the Heaven away from Earth -Monster named Typhon rose to try to kill Zeus, Zeus used Thunderbolt -Giants rebelled, w/ help of Hercules Zeus won again -Gods told Prometheus and Epimetheus to make Man -Epimetheus gave all the good qualities to the animals -Epimetheus asked Prometheus to help him in his mistake -Prometheus made man upright and gave man fire -Zeus angered, created the ultimate evil, Pandora, First Woman -Pandora released plagues, sorrow, and mischief -Hope was the only thing left B)Conclusions -Taught very vaguely the beginning of the world -Showed that the Greeks accepted this on faith alone -Women were seen as prognosticators of evil -Greeks were creative in there descriptions of the past 2) The Cyclops Polyphemus A) Summary -After the Great War between Cronus and Zeus all monsters were destroyed except the Cyclops -Zeus gave them their own land -Odysseus landed and took advantage of Polyphemus's bounty -Polyphemus was angered and devoured some -Odysseus and crew took a long timber and gouged out Polyphemus's eye -They escaped leaving him all alone and blind B)Conclusions -Explain why monsters, such as the Cyclops, were not seen -Basic tale of tyranny being overcome by the good-hearted 3) Cupid & Psyche A) Summary -Psyche was envied by Venus -Venus made Cupid make Psyche fall in love with the vilest thing -Cupid saw Psyche and shot himself -No man favored Psyche anymore, father found that he must take her to a cliff -Cupid whisked her away to a grand palace -Psyche didn't know it was Cupid as her lover -Sisters were jealous, planned for Psyche to kill Cupid -Psyche about to kill Cupid when she realizes that he is Cupid -Oil from lamp burns Cupid and he wakes up and runs away -Psyche sad for what she has done and goes to Venus to beg -Venus assigns her hard tasks which Psyche completes -Cupid comes back and falls back in love w/ her -Psyche and Cupid are married and Psyche is made a god B)Conclusions -Trust very important even then -Jealousy though powerful, is less powerful than true love 3) Pygmalion & Galatea A) Summary -Pygmalion is a sculptor that hated women -He started working on a statue of a woman -The more he worked on it the more he loved it -He was madly in love with it -Venus noticed this and granted it life -Galatea and Pygmalion got married B) Conclusions -If you believe in something enough it might come true -True love is in the most strangest of places 4) Phaethon A) Summary -Phaethon went to Helios the sun god -He asked if he was his son -Helios said yes and granted him anything he wanted -Phaethon said he wanted to drive the sun -Helios reluctantly yielded -Phaethon lost control and threatened to set the world ablaze -Zeus struck him dead B) Conclusions -Such is the price for extremity -Consider the consequences before devoting to a promise 5) Perseus A) Summary -An oracle told Acrisius that his grandson would kill him -He put his daughter in a underground house -Zeus came and Danae was pregnant, having Perseus -Perseus and his mother (Danae) were put in a wooden chest and set out to sea -Landed on island, found by Dictys, the fisherman -Ruler of the island fell in love with Danae and hated Perseus -Polydectes (Ruler) sent Perseus to kill Medusa -Hermes gave a sword -Pallas Athena gave polished bronze shield -Hyperboreans gave winged sandals, magic wallet, invisible cap -Went and slew Medusa -On his way back he rescued Andromeda -Took head back to Polydectes, he turns to stone -Perseus makes Dictys king -Perseus, Andromeda, and Danae went back to Greece -Perseus was in a discus throwing competition and the discus killed Acrisius B) Conclusions -Fate is inescapable, as Acrisius learned -Good will triumph over evil 6) Theseus A) Summary -Theseus went to Athens to claim his birthright -Medea (Evil Woman) jealous of the son attempted to poison -Theseus drew out sword and king dashed the cup out of his hand -Prince of Minos was killed and King ordered Athens to send 7 Girls/ 7 Boys -They would be sacrificed to the Minotaur -Theseus offered to be one of the 14 -King Minos's daughter fell in love with Theseus and gave him a ball of string -Theseus went into the Labyrinth and pummeled the Minotaur to death -His father waiting for the white sail, saw the black and killed himself B) Conclusion -Intelligence coupled with Strength is good -