GROUP 5Lauren, ShyAnn, Liz

MYTHS• Why do myths exist and why would humans devise stories like these?

• Myths are created to explain how things came to be. For example: Zeus is used to explain thunderstorms and anything having to do with the sky. Humans need to have explanations for things, and myths are how many ancient cultures explained what happens on Earth. Several of the common mythological stories are also used to teach us lessons. Much like The Tortoise and The Hare, myths have a deeper meaning than you first think.

• Why do we still pay so much attention to these myths today? • They are very interesting and a lot of the messages hidden in the texts apply

to modern life as well.

PRIAM

• Who are the parents of this character? • Laomedon is the father and Leucippe is the mother.

• Why is this human important? • He became the last king of Troy after his father Laemedon.

• What is the human’s story and why is it important? • He watched 13 of his 19 sons die. The death of his son Hector was the one

that ultimately ended Priam emotionally. He begged Achilles for the corpse of Hector and soon got it back. Troy then fell and Priam was killed by Neoptolemus.

PRIAM (CONTINUED…)

• Is there a message that goes with the character’s story?• A person can only withstand so much before they fall.

• Where do you see examples of this character today? • You can see it a lot in everyday life when you find someone struggling with

hardships.

HECTOR

• Who are the parents of this character? • Priam and Hecuba

• Why is this human important? • Hector was a chief warrior in the Trojan War

• What is the human’s story and why is it important. • Hector had many notable feats during the war. Some of the most famous are

when he defended Sarpedon, fought Ajax, and his ending fight with Achilles. Achilles killed Hector after Hector had killed Patroclus, a friend of Achilles. Hector’s body was dragged behind Achilles’s chariot and around Patroclus’s tomb. Later Priam came to retrieve Hector’s body from Achilles and he was buried with the honor he deserved.

HECTOR (CONTINUED…)

• Is there a message that goes with the character’s story? • Revenge is often the first response, but not always the best choice.

• Where do you see examples of this character today? • When someone is wronged by another, they often times seek revenge

instead of forgiving.

NARCISSUS

• What special power does this person possess? • Beauty

• Who are the parents of this character? • Narcissus is the son of Cephisus the River God and the nymph Lyriope.

• Why is this human important? • He is the man who steals the hearts of many and is the creator of the

narcissus flower.

NARCISSUS (CONTINUED…)

• What is the human’s story and why is it important? • Narcissus was insanely beautiful and the nymph Echo fell for him. When

Narcissus was calling for his friends, she decided to answer him. He quickly shot her down, leaving Echo to cry for the rest of eternity. Nemesis took pity on Echo and cursed Narcissus so that when he bent to drink from a pool, he would fall in love with his reflection. He ended up killing himself, and it is said that as he traveled through the Underworld he still continued to stare at himself in the reflection of the water. The nymphs, who still loved him, went to bury him but found only a flower in the place where his body was. The flower hence became known as the narcissus flower.

NARCISSUS (CONTINUED…)

• Is there a message that goes with the character’s story? • Loving yourself is important but don’t become vain, or obsessed with your

looks.

• Where do you see examples of this character today? • You see it in people who are very vain and treat others as if they are lesser

based off of appearance• Examples: models, celebrities, high school students

ACHILLES

• Why is this character a god? • He is not exactly a god, but his mother was a nymph so he isn’t completely human

either.

• What special power do they posses? • Was a great warrior.

• Who are the parents of this character? • His mother is the nymph Thetis and his father was Peleus.

• Why is this human important? • In the Trojan War, Achilles was a hero. He slew Hector and was also featured in

Homer’s work, the Iliad.

ACHILLES (CONTINUED…)

• What is the human’s story and why is it important? • Achilles was considered one of the best warriors to the point that everyone

was scared of him. In the epic he is greatly offended after Agamemnon takes the woman he won after they defeated a city. They were close to fighting, but Achilles mother convinced him not to fight and in the end convinced him not to fight in the Trojan War either. And he agreed, but then the Trojans attacked him and killed one of his best friends. After that he went into a fit of rage and killed many people. In the end Zeus himself sent down gods to restrain Achilles because he may bring about the fall of Troy before he had planned it, though Achilles found Hector, who killed his friend, and killed him in exchange. Once he had joined the battle of Troy, he died after being shot in the ankle, which was said to be his only weakness. He is a very central character in the story the Iliad.

ACHILLES (CONTINUED…)

• Is there a message that goes with the character’s story?

• Every person has a weakness, no matter how strong they are believed to be.

• Where do you see examples of this character today? • We have an Achilles heel, which refers to a person’s weakness.

HELEN OF TROY

• Why is this character a goddess? • She is a demigod. Her father is Zeus.

• What special power does she possess? • Beauty

• What is her special demigod gift? • Has no demigod gift.

• Who are the parents of this character? • Zeus and Leda, though some state that the parents were Zeus and Nemesis and

the egg produced was given to Leda.

HELEN OF TROY (CONTINUED…)

• What is this human’s story and why is she important? • She was considered to be the most beautiful woman in the world, and when

she was younger she was kidnapped. Then when she came to marrying age, many male suitors came and her father was afraid to pick one because then the others may revolt against him and kill him because he picked someone else. So they made a competition that whoever won got to be her husband, and all the losers will have to swear an oath to the winner. She married Menelaus after he won the contest and then she was either kidnapped or ran away with Paris, which was the cause of the Trojan War. Though a few accounts state that she stayed in Egypt.

HELEN OF TROY (CONTINUED…)

• Is there a message that goes with the character’s story? • Perhaps that beauty doesn’t get you everything. It is treasured, and causes

jealousy, but it is superficial.

• Where do you see examples of this character today? • There are many plays based off of this and many Greeks commonly called themselves Hellenic or Hellenestic. • Celebrities are often times prized for their beauty.

PARIS (A.K.A. ALEXANDER)

• Who are the parents of this character?• The king and queen of Troy, Priam and Hecuba. This makes Paris the prince of

Troy.

• What is the human’s story and why is it important? • Paris was predicted to be the downfall of Troy before he was even born. If not

for Paris then the Trojan War may not have happened at all. First he decides which of Hera, Aphrodite and Athena are the most beautiful; Aphrodite bribes him by offering him with the most beautiful woman in the world, Helen. Then since she’s married he has to go steal her. The man she was married to and those who had sworn an oath to him went to war against Troy. In the end Paris dies and Troy is defeated.

PARIS (CONTINUED…)

• Is there a message that goes with the character’s story?• There is always a consequence when you commit a crime. Sometimes, a big

consequence. Also, don’t take another man’s wife. That’s weird and leads to a lot of issues.

• Where do you see examples of this character today? • Most commonly seen in burglaries. People take things that don’t belong to them because of selfish wants and desires.

PROMETHEUS

• Why is this character a god? • He is used to explain the creation of mankind. He is a nourishing figure and

great benefactor to the human race.

• What special power do they possess? • Is considered to be the god of forethought and crafty counsel. He is credited

with the creation of humanity and was tasked with molding mankind out of clay.

• Who are the parents of this character? • Prometheus is the son of the Titan Iapetos (the Titan god of craftsmanship

and mortality) and Clymene (the Titan goddess of fame, renown, and infamy).

PROMETHEUS (CONTINUED…)

• Why is this god important? • Prometheus aided Zeus in the defeat of the Titans with his clever thinking. Zeus

showed his thanks by assigning Prometheus the task of molding mankind from clay. Tricked Zeus into claiming inedible parts of cow and bull sacrifices, while leaving the nourishing parts to humans for the benefit of mankind. Did so by placing two sacrificial offerings before Zeus in a sacrificial meal marking the “settling of accounts” between humans and gods. One was beef hidden inside an ox’s stomach (nourishment hidden in displeasing exterior) and the other was bull’s bones wrapped in glistening fat (inedible hidden inside pleasing exterior). Zeus chose the bull bones, setting a guideline for future sacrifices. Zeus became angry and hid fire from the humans as punishment, which Prometheus stole back. This caused Zeus to send Pandora, the first woman, to live with humans. She brought with her evil and disease in a jar. Zeus chains Prometheus to a rock in the Caucasus (Mount Kaukasos) as punishment for stealing fire and his liver is eaten daily by an eagle. Because he is immortal, it is regenerated by night. The eagle is a symbol of Zeus. Eventually, Hercules slays the eagle, freeing Prometheus from his eternal torment.

PROMETHEUS (CONTINUED…)

• Is there a message that goes with the character’s story? • Doing what is right and helping those in need.

• Where do you see examples of this character today? • A good example of Prometheus in modern society would be in charity and

mission work. People giving time and resources to those who need them most.

MIDAS

• Who are the parents of this character? • Cybele (mother) and Gordius (father)

• What is his story and why is it important? • Farmhands of King Midas found a satyr drunkenly napping in his vineyard and brought

him, bound, to Midas. Midas recognized the satyr as Silenus, who was the right hand satyr to Dionysus and ordered that they untied him. Midas treated Silenus with great respect, and when Dionysus retrieved him, he was so pleased with Midas’s hospitality that he offered to grant him a wish. Midas asked that everything he touched would turn to gold. Dionysus asked if Midas was sure that was what he wanted, but Midas stood firm in his request. He quickly grew to hate his newly received gift, as he accidentally turned his daughter into a solid gold statue. He also could not eat, as his food turned to gold when he attempted. He went to Dionysus and begged him to help get rid of his “gold touch”. Dionysus agreed to help and had Midas wash away his gift in the river Pactolus, which explains why it had such rich gold deposits.

MIDAS (CONTINUED…)

• Is there a message that goes with this character’s story? • Be careful what you wish for and always think things through.

• Where do you see examples of this character today?• Greedy people who spend their whole lives trying to gain wealth and then is ultimately destroys them. • People thinking anything a famous person touches is valuable. Seriously though, who wants a snot rag that was usedby Justin Bieber… That’s just gross.

WORKS CITED• "Priam | Greek Mythology." Encyclopedia Britannica Online. Encyclopedia Britannica. Web. 28

Aug. 2015.

• "Hector | Greek Mythology." Encyclopedia Britannica Online. Encyclopedia Britannica. Web. 28 Aug. 2015.

• Hamilton, Edith. Mythology: Timeless Tales of Gods and Heroes. Warner Books ed. New York, NY: Warner, 1999. 87-88. Print.

• "About Helen of Troy." About Helen of Troy. Web. 28 Aug. 2015.

• "Achilles." History.com. A&E Television Networks. Web. 28 Aug. 2015.

• "Paris | Greek Mythology." Encyclopedia Britannica Online. Encyclopedia Britannica. Web. 28 Aug. 2015.

• "PROMETHEUS : Greek Titan God of Forethought, Creator of Mankind ; Mythology ; Pictures." PROMETHEUS : Greek Titan God of Forethought, Creator of Mankind ; Mythology ; Pictures. Theoi, n.d. Web. 30 Aug. 2015.

• "Encyclopedia of Greek Mythology: Midas." Encyclopedia of Greek Mythology: Midas. MythWeb, n.d. Web. 30 Aug. 2015.