1Demeter
Goddess of the Grain and the Rich Harvest. Mother of Persephone. Involved greatly in the fertility myths
2Persephone
Daughter of Demeter and Zeus. Abducted by Hades and carried away to be his bride. While she is with Hades, Demeter refuses to let the crops grow and slowly kills the world.
3Kore
Nickname for Persephone, meaning "daughter" or "girl"
5Eleusinian Mysteries
Initiation ceremonies held every year for the cult of Demeter and Persephone based at Eleusis in ancient Greece.
6Triptolemus
One of the Princes of Eleusis to whom Demeter Taught her secret rites
7Inanna
Most influential on later religion and myth. Goddess of love and war.
8Dumuzi
Lover of Inanna. Shepherd god of Sumeria
9Hieros gamos
"Sacred Marriage"
Ariande is abandoned there by Thesius
She helped him kill the minitar and then he abandoned her
10Isis
"Throne"
Greatest goddess of Egypt, absorbing all other Egyptian goddesses
11Osiris
Brother and husband to Isis
King of Egypt
12Cybele
Primarily a goddess of fertility, but she could also heal disease, give oracles, and give protection in war
13Attis
Lover of Cybele
Phrygian god of vegetation, and in his self-mutilation, death, and resurrection he represents the fruits of the earth, which die in winter only to rise again in the spring
14Agdestis
Son of Cybele and Attis
Strength and violence were so great that they could not be resisted.
His bestial lust raged crazily toward both sexes
15Adonis
the god of beauty and desire, is a figure with Northwest Semitic antecedents, where he is a central figure in various mystery religions
16Dionysus
"Son of Zeus" Son of Semele, born from Zeus' thigh
God of the lower classes, Wine
Myths of Resistance
17Semele
Mother of Dionysus
Zeus blasted her with lightening bolt
She is killed and Dionysus is sewn into Zeus's thigh
18Ino
Queen of Orchomeneus, Semele's sister and wife to King Athamas
She is ordered by Hermes to raise Dionysus
19Nymphs of Nysa
Raises Adonis
Temporarily turned into a goat
Returns to Greece after going into manhood
20Bacchae
"Women possessed by Bacchus"
Female followers of Adonis
21Maenads
"The Raging Women"
Another name for Bacchae
22Thyrsus
A staff crowned with a pinecone or a bunch of ivy leaves (Figure 11.3)
23Satyrs
Male followers of Adonis
Half human creatures with a boner (Sometimes enormous)
Tails and ears of a horse
Later acquired goatlike legs
24Silenus
General term for any old satyr or the name of one satyr in particular: an ugly, drunken, extremely fat one, given to the telling of tall tales
25Midas
King of Phrygia, Granted 1 wish
26 Everything he touched turned to gold. Got boned as his food and drink even turned to gold
27Ariande
Married Dionysus "Sacred Marriage", daughter of King Minos
Abandoned by Thesius
She helped Dionysus kill the minitar and then he abandoned her
28Lycurgus
King of the tribe Thrace
Opponent of Dionysus
29Minyads
"Daughters of Minyas"
Refused to join the new, esctatic religion
Sat in chambers, dutifully worked their looms, and spke critically of those who had gone to the mountains to rage as Bacchae
30Pentheus
King of Thebes
Opposes Dionysus
31Thespis
First person to ever appear on stage as a character (Not himself) in a play
32Hades
God of the Underworld
"The Unseen one"
33Pluto
Another name for Hades
"The enricher"
34Erinyes
Furies
Mythical portrayals of the ghosts of slain members of one's own family
35Psychopompos
Nickname for Hermes
"Soul-Guide"
36Tiresias
The most famous seer in Greek myth and an important character in Euripides' Bacchae
37Tantalus
Guilty of violence against the gods
Fed the gods a little boy to see if they are all knowing
Punishment: Can't reach the food or water near him
38Sisyphus
Punished for challenging the gods
Forever forced to push a boulder up a hill, but it rolls back down
39Elysium
The Elysian Fields
Only a blessed few are able to end up in this after world
40Orpheus
Son of a Thracian
Famous for his sweet singing to the lyre
He is known for journeying to the underworld
41Eurydice
Wife of Orpheus
Rape was attmpted on her by a beekeeper, on her weeding day. As she fled from the keeper, a snake bit her on the heel and she died
42Zagreus
Another name for Dionysus
unknown meaning
43Pythagoras
Best known for his philosophical claim that the essence of reality resides in mystical relations between numbers, proportions, and measures
44Er
"Springtime: the season of rebirth"
Killed in battle, but ten days afterward when the bodies were placed on a funeral pyre, he was found still alive and able to tell his story
45Acheron
"Sorrowful"
The boundary proper of Dis's realm
46Charon
The grim ferryman who delivers the souls across the river into Hades
48 King of Lapithsl lusted after Hera, so Zeus made an image of Hera in the clouds, banged "Human-like Hera" his come landed on the Earth, creating the father of the future Centarus. Further punishment was bound to a wheel of fire
49Hero
Someone who stands out from others, someone distinguished by prominence, bravery, or merit
50Gilgamesh
The Epic of Gilgamesh
51Enkidu
Gilgamesh's companion
52Humbaba
The guardian of the Sumerian forest
53Utnapishtim
"He saw life."
Only mortal to survive to survive the flood
54Heroic Nudity
Nudity represents heroism.
55Argive Plain
The richest province in Greece in its physical remains from the Greek Bronze Age and in its wealth of myths
56Perseus
Founder of Myceane (Populous center of wealth and power)
Perseus' tales are closer to folktale than those of any Greek Hero
57Tiryns
A fortress surrounded by amazing walls of immense stones carefully fitted together (Perseus ruled Tiryns, when he founded Myceane)
58Io
Daughter of Melia and Inachus
59 Ancestor of three great dynasties: The house of Argos, Thebes, and Crete
61 bears 50 daughters with numerous wives
62Danaids
50 Daughters of Danaus
65 and oracle told him that Danae will bore a boy but will kill his father. Acrisius imprisons Danae in a bronze chamber. During this time, Zeus falls in love with Danae and comes to her in a shower of gold and thus conceives Perseus with her
66Danae
Bangs Zeus and bears Perseus
67Polydectes
"Much-receiver", the king of the island desired Danae as his mistress. Danae was unwilling and Perseus defended her refusal.
68Gorgons
3 death dealing terrifying female creatures: Stheno (Strength) Eurylae (Far leaper) Medussa(Wide Ruling)
69Medusa
1 of the gorgons
Crazy bitch with snake hair
70Graeae
Gray-haired women
71 Certain helpful nymphs
72 sisters of the Gorgons...they were hideous hags and lived near the end of the world (only had 1 eye and 1 tooth
between them!)
73Andromeda
Cerpheus's daughter (first glimpse we see of her is that she is chained to a rock, about to be devoured by a sea-monster, Ceto)
74Girl's Tragedy
Folktale that contains these elements: Prohibition, seclusion, violation of the prohibition, threat of punishment or death, Liberation
75Heracles
Greatest of Greek heroes
He rids the civilized world of dangerous animals and men
76Alcmena
Promised to avenge the death of all brothers when the Argive plane was invaded by pirates
Upset that All of her brothers have died
Twins are explained because she slept with two different men in one night.
77Eurystheus
Son of Stheneleus
78Amphitryon
Son of Alcaeus(Killed uncle Electryon and took Alcemena and fled)
Family betrayal
79Megara
Daughter of Creon, wife of Heracles
Hera then put a spell on Heracles and killed his wife/kids
80Nemean Lion
First Labor
Savage lion ravaging the countryside
Beast couldn't be killed with bows and arrows
Impenetrable
81 immortal skin
Heracles Defeated it with its claw and wore its skin
82Hydra Lerna
Second Labor
"Water Serpent of Lerna" Many heads ravaged fields and livestock, even its breath was death
Heracles got help from his nephew Iolaus
Every time the snake's head was cut off it grew two more
So Heracles branded the snakes heads to stop it from reproducing, thus he cut off the immortal head and buried it beneath a rock
83Ceryneian deer
Third Labor
Magical animal with golden antlers and brazen hoofs which belonged to Artemis
Task was to bring in this "Magical animal"
Wounded the animal, after searching for a year
He let the deer go after showing it to Eurythesus assistant for proof
84Erymanthian boar
Fourth Labor
Task was to capture it
Approached centuars, they treat him good until the wine is drunk then they want to fight Heracles, he fights them of
Heracles then finds the boar and presents it to Eurytheus
85Chiron
Wise centaur involved in the fourth labor
86The Augean Stables
Augeas has stables built but never cleaned them, lots of sh!t built up
Heracles cleans them for a promis of Augeas' cattle
promise broken because Heracles obligation was to Eurytheus
87Stymphalian birds
Sixth Labor
Deadly birds with arrow-firing wings and armor-piercing wings
Heracles shot each down with arrows
88Cretan bull
A magnificent animal summoned by the sea by Minos
Heracles is ordered to capture the bull, he did so and then showed it to Copreus for inspection, then the Bull ran away
89Horses of diomedes
Diomedes-SOn of Ares, and king of a savage tribe (His horses dined on human flesh)
Once Heracles gets a hold of the horses, he feeds Diomedes to them
90Admetus
"indomitable" king over a town in Thessaly
Treated Zeus so well that Apollo gave him this boon: Admetus need not die if he could find someone else to die in his place
91Alcestis
Side Deed
Admetus' wife, the only one willing to die for him
92Girdle of Hippolyta
Hippolyta-Amazon Queen
Heracles sent to bring her to Eurytheus so he could give the girdle to his daughter
Heracles gets a hold of the girdle and the Amazonians go crazy towards Heracles
Heracles then strangles Hippolyta, removes her girdle and sails away
93Cattle of Geryon
10th Labor
Geryon-Monster with 3 bodies
Helius offers him a boat in which to travel to the island in attempt to seize the moster's cattle
One on the island, Heracles killed the monsters guard dog, Orthus as well as Geryon
94Cacus
Side Deed
A three headed, fire breathing monster who stole a herd of cattle and hid them in his cave
Heracles hears the cattle, goes to the cave, kills Cacus with his primitive club
95Apples of the Hesperides
Eleventh Labor
Hesperides-Nymphs of the West
Task: Was to bring back the apples of the Hesperides
Apples grew on a magical tree with golden bark and golden leaves
Didn't know where the apple and tree was so he got help from the sea-god Nereus
96Busiris
Side deed
Son of Poseidon "Greek corruption of the Egyptians"
Heracles tricked the King of Egypt, seized Busiris and his sun then slit their throats
97Cerberus
Twelfth Labor
Heracles ordered to descend into the underworld and bring the dog to Eurthytheus, it was then realesed when Eurthytheus got proof of Heracles' possession of the dog
98Metopes
12 stone panels on which the earliest evidence for the canonical cycle of 12 labors is found
99Iole
Eurytus' beautiful daughter, offered as a prize in an archery contest
Heracles won but wasnt given her because of fear from the king
Heracles kills the king son
He is forgiven only by being a slave to a woman for three years and give everything he earned to Eurytus as blood mone
100Omphale
Queen of Lydia, bought Heracles for the 3 years
During the time they begin cross-dressing with each other
During his Lydian period he captured the Cercopes
101Cercopes
2 Ruffians (gangsters) who robbed passerby and treated them cruelly
102Deianira
"Man killer" Heracles was interested in her and so was Achelous
They battle but Heracles eventually wins
103Achelous
River god, usually represented as a bull
Loses battle of Deianira to Heracles
104Nessus
Centaur who feried travelers for a small fee
It tried to rape Deinaira and soon after got shot/killed by Heracles
Before it died however, he instructed Deinaira to collect his blood and come, a powerful love potion if she ever needed it
105Heraclids
The many sons Heracles left behind (Eurytheus was determined to kill them)
Heraclids then fled for refuge into Athens where the Athennians bravely refused to surrender them to Eurytheus and so they killed Eurytheus and his five sons
106Theseus
Athens' greatest hero
Many legends during 5th and 6th century bc about Athems becoming an important military power and cultural center
107Cecrops
Brought the people of Athens the arts of civilization and taught them to worship Zeus, abandon human sacrifice, build cities, and to bury the dead properly
Also introduced monogamous marriage
108Erichthonius
Another early king of Athens, who came to the throne after Cecrops died
He was born from discarded come of Hephasteus, that Athena angrily wiped off her leg with a piece of wool and threw it to the ground
Up sprang Erichthonius
109Cephalus
Jealous of the beauty of Procris
Disguises himself as other men to get with Procris
His seamen turns scorpions but then is cured by Procris
110Procris
In love with Cephalus but they are jealous of each other
Disguises herself as a boy to prove Cephalus will engage in pederasty and not be a fiathful husband
111Procne
Daughter of Pandion
112Philomela
Second Daughter of Pandion
113Tereus
Pandion calls Tereus when he's in military trouble
As a thank you, Pandion gives Tereus Procne to marriage
Tereus sails to get Philomela so the sister can be reunited
Tereus rapes her, then cuts out her tongue
She is forced to weave tapestry to tell the story
Procne finds the tapestry, disguises herself, has a banquet and invites Tereus, sacrifices their son and makes Tereus eat the son
114Itys
Son of Procne and Tereus
Procne kills Itys and serves his flesh in a meal to Tereus scott tenorman style
Tereus tries to kill the sisters but all three were turned to birds by the Olympians
115Erechtheus
Son of Pandion, brother to Procne and Philomela, King
116Aegeus
Upper hand in family when his dad died, but couldn't bear a son with any of his mistresses/wives
Poseidon then possess Aethra and Theseus is conceived
117Aethra
Daughter of Aegeus and Aethra
118Procrustes
Theseus is sent on 6 Labors mostly attacking everyday people (Bandits)
Procrustes is the 6th bandit
"Bed that fits all"
Stretches short guests, cuts limbs off tall guests
119Amazonomachy
The abduction of Antiope provoked this "battle with the Amazons"
120Hippolytus
"Breaker of horses" Became the bastard son of Theseus, since Theseus dumped Antiope and begot a new wife and married Phaedra
Fan of hunting hated sex
121Phaedra
Daughter of Minos, married Hippolytus
122Bellerophon
Corinthian Hero
Became a myth with him successfully and courageously completing each task
123Pirithous
Son of Ixion, king of the Lapiths
Wanted to test Theseus' bravery and skill so he raided Theseus' flocks and was caught red-handed. He sincerely apologized and volunteered to become Theus' slave. Theseus was impressed by Pirithous and suggested that instead of killing one another, that they become friends
124Lapiths
A Thessalian Tribe
125Centaurs
Half men half house creatures
All about rape
126Centauromachy
Came to symbolize the struggle between civilization and barbarism
127Pisistratus
Famous leader of Athens who first came to power in 561 BC and governed Athens off and on until his death, when his sons succeeded him