Historians have always found the fine line between narrative as myth or history problematic, an issue that Herodotus, one of the great ancient Greek historians, attempts to deal with by rationalizing myth, so as to still incorporate it into his accounts, and actively distinguishing myth from history. Rationalization boils myth down into its most fundamental components, supporting the argument that myth is simply history spun out of proportion or misremembered by exposing myth’s basis in real life events. Recognizing this, Herodotus rationalizes the Helen myth to strip away the embellishment of more poetic retellings and reveal at the myth’s core larger scale motivations for the Trojan War – attitudes towards women and past conflicts – in order…
The author of ‘The Hero’s Test’ shows the heroic qualities of the main character, Theseus, quite clearly if you pay attention. Alisoun Witting, the author, have written examples of how Theseus is a hero, like courage, cunning, selfless, perseverance, determination, and even sacrifices at some point and many more. In the first to second paragraph Theseus already shows traits of being a hero right off the bat, the text states that ‘Theseus was puzzled: what was the cause of this public sorrow? ’ This one sentence alone shows that he cared about his people, and also shows that he was determined to find out what exactly made them sorrowful. The second form of text evidence is a few paragraphs ahead and is an example of sacrifice and courage.…
Theseus was an exceptional hero of Greek Mythology. His valiant efforts are shown persistently amongst his numerous feats. In search of his unknown father, Theseus begins his long, perilous journey towards the great kingdom of Athens. Along the way, Theseus encounters a series of obstacles, which mark the beginning of his achievements. In the beginning, Theseus stumbles upon the enemy, Periphetes, son of Hephaestus.…
Theseus and the Minotaur Athens has to ship young people to Crete as a sacrifice to be eaten by a monster, Minotaur. Theseus, prince of Athens, sails to kill the beast in the Labyrinth, a deadly maze on the island Crete,and tells his father, King Aegeus that his black sail will be white to show he…
Comparison of the Homeric Hymn to Apollo with Callimachus’ Hymn to Apollo reveals that Callimachus’ myth was composed centuries later. Although a writer may be directly influenced by previous writers’ accounts of the same myth, it is evident that Callimachus was not so influenced by the Homeric Hymn to Apollo in this work. Callimachus’ work’s difference in detail and length, mismatching etiologies, and lack of plot similarities all indicate an absence of a direct connection. Callimachus, an author of a later time, composes a Hymn to Apollo that is quite different from the Homeric version. One of the main differences is the difference in length with Callimachus’ version being substantially shorter.…
Imagine leaving your home to fight in the war, and then having to go on a long journey to return back home. Imagine that you are being welcomed by strangers in many different places and environments. Imagine that you have to experience hunger and fear while trying to reach a destination. Odysseus and Inman are both very smart individuals who go on a journey to return back home. They both have a destination and approach it with confidence.…
Continuing his adventure north of Isthmus, Theseus encountered and defeated the Crommyonian Sow, a very large pig bred by an old crone named Phaea. His next trial involved an elderly robber named Sciron who convinced travelers to wash his feet along a very narrow and stiff cliff, he then kicked them off the cliff to be eaten by a sea monster. Theseus saw right through the trick and pushed him off the cliff to be eaten by the monster. Another enemy he met in his journey was named Cercyon. He would challenge travelers to a wrestling match and when he won, he would kill the travelers.…
In Crete, he found out even though his crime was unknown, he still holds the reputation as a brilliant craftsman was well established. King Minos of Crete received him in great happiness because he was looking for an outstanding craftsman to build a large maze to keep in the Minotaur. The Minotaur, a half bull, and half man devoured a tribute of seven Athenian youths and seven maidens every nine years. The oppressed Athenians finally gained release from the Minotaur, through the heroism of Theseus who went through the maze and kill the Minotaur. When king Minos heard of this incredible deed he was angry.…
The labyrinth was an unnavigable stronghold where prisoners were led in only to be trapped with the Minotaur with no chance of escape. After quitea long period of this a hero, Theseus the son of the king of Athens, claimed he would destroy the beast and end the slaying of the tributes. As the legend goes, Theseus brought a ball of twine intothe labyrinth with him to unravel, giving him a path to follow after fighting the Minotaur. In boththese events he was victorious and was able to sail home, freeing Athens from sending annualtributes to be…
When Ariadne and Theseus run into the Minotaur the beast lunges towards Theseus. Theseus hops on the Minotaurs back and jabs a sword into his tough hide. The Minotaur pinned Theseus against a stone wall and “The pain was excruciating, but with effort of will, Theseus hung on” (Donaldson 18). If Theseus wasn’t brave enough to keep hanging on he would have died.” After another deep thrust of the weapon, the Minotaur’s ghastly howl became a gurgle, and the hulking body collapsed on the ground, dead” (Donaldson 18).…
Have you ever had an opinion that is different than everyone else's? Some people think Beowulf is qualified as a mythic hero, but others think he isn’t. This essay holds reasoning, facts, and evidence of why Beowulf does not qualify as a mythic hero. After reading Joseph Campbell’s The Hero with a Thousand Faces, you will understand how his writing is filled with mythic and supernatural scenes, and how Beowulf is not. If you take a story from Campbell’s…
The Hunger Games and the Myth of Theseus share a similar story, but are also different because… In the Hunger Games, children are sacrifice and sent to fight in a labyrinth like killing field. In the Myth of Theseus children are sacrificed and sent to Crete to die in the labyrinth. In both stories children are sacrificed to die.…
A Jungian Psychoanalytic Approach to Zeus’s Defeat of Cronus Since the Swiss psychiatrist and psychotherapist Carl Gustav Jung founded a series of analytical psychology theories first introducing the concept of “personal unconscious”, “collective unconscious” and “archetype” in 1953, an advanced Jungian psychoanalytic approach has been extensively applied to the interpretation of Art, literature and Greek myth. This essay will argue that Zeus’s behavior of defeating his father Cronus was motivated by “personal unconscious”, yet his fiery desire for supreme power and authority was an “archetype” genetically inherited from Cronus. Also, “the recurring pattern of the victory of the ambitious son in his battle for power against his ruthless father”…
Personal Reflection Throughout the duration of my reading of The King Must Die, I began thinking about what make Theseus so extraordinary. Why is he the king of so many places? Was he simply in the right place at the right time? I, personally, am opposed to that opinion.…
In Cassirer’s “Myth of the State,” he asserts that “myth does not arise solely from intellectual processes” (43). Rather, it comes from deep human emotions and is the expression of emotion. Cassirer connects myth with the notion of explaining death. He asserts that in mythical thought the mystery of death is turned into an…