Perseus And Greek Mythology

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When most people think of Greek or Roman Mythology, what comes to mind immediately are familiar names like Hercules, Perseus, and Theseus. In this paper I will address the religious practices associated with heroes, the origins of the term, examine what makes a hero, analyze the heroic content of the stories of the three heroes previously named, and look at information and ideas from Joseph Campbell’s excerpt on the ‘Monomyth.’
Evidence suggests that there were cults of people who worshipped certain individuals deemed worth of ‘Hero’ status. These heroes had sacrifices done in their names regularly, or received dedications. According to Daniel Ogden’s A Companion to Greek Religion, this worship became quite prominent in the Archaic Period.
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In the case of Hercules, we see an insane amount of physical strength portrayed during his twelve labours that were assigned to him by King Eurystheus. As we discussed in class, many of his labours can be interpreted as humankind conquering the elements (i.e. the Nemean Lion, diverting rivers to clean the Augean Stables), making him seemingly even more heroic. Perseus undergoes some extreme development throughout his life. As a baby he is thrown into the ocean with his mother by his grandfather, and they are saved by only by the divine intervention of Zeus who brought them ashore. Then as he is approaching adulthood his mother is taken by a local man who makes Perseus attempt to acquire the head of Medusa to get her back. He receives a lot of help from the gods and gains their favor, which allows him to complete his task and reunite his family. This reunification is Perseus’s most defining and heroic characteristic. As for Theseus, he is known for his slaying of the Minotaur, an impressive feat in and of itself, and also for his wisdom and intelligence. Theseus is thought to have helped make Athens into the ancient powerhouse it once was through the establishment of democracy. Essentially his claim to fame was being a wise ruler. All three of these figures exemplify the qualities stereotypically considered heroic (bravery, strength, etc.), but they each have one thing that makes them …show more content…
The article goes into detail about several key points that are very applicable to the discussion of heroes seen in previous paragraphs. One of the most important items discussed is how myths relate to our own lives. He basically states that if we want to know how to live life to its fullest extent, we look to myths for our answer. This could be why people in both ancient and modern times fantasize about the stories of old and the heroic figures contained within them. He also talks a lot about the symbolism behind monsters and heroes. Monsters are meant to be the embodiment of everything humans dislike about themselves, their environment, or anything else negative, whereas heroes are meant to be the driving force that promotes innovation and positive changes to either an individual or a larger group. This explanation of heroes makes the religious aspect surrounding them more viable. People tend to worship things that they feel can help them to achieve something in life, or change something that seems unchangeable, and in this interpretation that is exactly what heroes do. Lastly, Campbell describes the basic structure for all myth, they are departure, initiation, and return. The departure is essentially the driving force for the whole story, without it nothing would happen. During this stage the protagonist or hero will face a situation that

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