The Twelve Labors Of Heracles In Homer's Odyssey

Mythological creatures are a constant in many Greek myths. Whether they play a large role in the plot of the myth, or they are simply a bystander, these creatures encompass excitement and fantasy to stories many years after their origin. From Heracles ' Twelve Labors, in which the Greek hero slain multiple monsters, to Odysseus ' adventure in Homer 's the Odyssey, these beings play an exciting role in the growth of many Greek heroes in Classical Mythology. The Twelve Labors of Heracles began because the goddess Hera despised Heracles. Her husband, Zeus, cheated on her with a mortal woman named Aclmene, who gave birth to the child. In an attempt to ruin his life, Hera uses her goddess powers to drive Heracles insane, who then murders his wife, Megara, and their children. Upon coming out of this insane mindset, and seeing the horrible thing he has done, Heracles goes to the Oracle of Delphi, the oracle of the prophecy god Apollo, and asks the Oracle …show more content…
The Nemean lion was a vicious monster that resides in Nemea. Said to have impenetrable golden fur, the Nemean lion is impervious to attack, with claws sharper than any sword that could cut through any armor. The indestructible lion was thought to have taken women into its lair in order to lure warriors. When whichever brave warrior would attempt to rescue the woman, she would turn into the lion and kill him. When Heracles went to the lair in an attempt to kill the lion by shooting arrows at her, he found that she could not be slain by any weapon. He waiting until she entered the cave through one of its two entrances, closed off one and entered himself through the second. He was then able to kill the lion by strangling her, and after she was dead, he tried to skin her and take her hide. When he was unable to penetrate the skin with his knife, the goddess Athena assisted him by telling him to use the creatures own claws to cut through the