Gods, Heroes, and Men of Ancient Greece Chapter Summaries by Matthew Winnek – Flashcards
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Chapter 1: The Beginning of Things
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At the beginning of time, Chaos made everything; Erebos, Night, Gaia (Earth), Uranus (Sky), Pontos (Sea), and ErĂŽs (Love). Night created Destiny, Death, Sleep, Dream, Nemesis, Age, Eris (Discord), and the Furies. Pontos created Nereus, Thaumas, and Ceto who created monsters such as the Harpies, Cyclopses, Iris, Three Old Hags, Gorgons, and Medusa. Uranus and Gaia created the Titans, of which the youngest, Cronos, was the leader.
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Chapter 2: The Gods
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Cronos married one of the Titans, Rheia, and swallowed his 5 children whole. Rheia saved the 6th, Zeus, and sent him to be raised on the island of Crete by two nymphs. When he was full grown, he poisoned his father, causing his father to vomit out the other 5 full grown children. HadĂȘs with his invisibility cap, Zeus with his lightning bolts, and Poseidon with his trident led a rebellion against Cronos by persuading the monsters such as those with 50 heads and 100 hands with ambrosia and nectar. The cast Cronos into Tartaros and Zeus gained control of the sky, HadĂȘs the king of Tartaros, and Poseidon the king of the Sea.
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Chapter 3: Prometheus
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Prometheus was the inventor of man and all animals by forming them out of mud. He gave fire to man, without Zeus' consent, and taught them how to write, read, do arithmetic, to cure diseases, about the stars, to tame animals, and use animals for meat. He put all evil things into a box and set in his brother's care, Epitmetheus. Zeus, to get revenge, made a women (Pandora) and she, being stubborn, opened the box and released all the evils back into the world. Prometheus was thus sent to Mount Caucasus where every day an eagle would eat his liver, and every night it would regrow, and so the cycle would continue.
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Chapter 4: Demeter
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Demeter means Mother Earth, and she had a daughter named PersephonĂȘ. PersephonĂȘ was beautiful, and so HadĂȘs kidnapped her and took her to Tartaros. Demeter adopted an Earth boy and tried to make him immortal, but his biological mother stopped her from helping the boy. Therefor, Demeter threatened to destroy the whole race of mankind, resulting in Zeus granting her freedom. PersephonĂȘ, however, ate the seed of a pomegranate, forcing her to return to Tartaros. When PersephonĂȘ is with he mother on Earth it is spring, and when she's in Tartaros it's winter.
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Chapter 5: Athena
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Athena is the daughter of Zeus and one of Zeus' wives, Metis. She came out of Zeus' head when he split it with an axe, and she was a warrior from birth. She is the cleverest of all the gods, and taught man how to spin, weave, paint, and do other arts.
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Chapter 6: The Olympian Household
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Olympos is like a palace, with rooms for horses and chariots, food and drink, and the gods own chambers. Hephaistos is the general craftsman of gold, silver, and bronze; Athena was the fourth dressmaker; Zeus was the king and his mother, Rheia, and Hera his main wife; Demeter lived here with PersephonĂȘ in the summer; AphroditĂȘ was married to Hephaistos, who was disliked most by his mother, Hera. ArĂȘs, god of war, HĂȘbĂȘ and Eileithyia, goddesses of Youth and Birth lived here as well. During a trial, Hephaistos was thrown down to Earth and was crippled, but soon was brought back to Olympos lame.
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Chapter 7: Apollo and Artemis
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Son and daughter of Leto, a Titan. Apollo loved music and the bow (weapon), while his sister loved the bow (weapon) and became a great hunter. He went to the town of Crissa where he killed a dragon and built a temple. Then he took the form of a dolphin and led a Cretan ship to his temple to serve him. He learned the ancient art of divining from Pan and taught it to his priests.
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Chapter 8: Pan
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No one knows his true father, but he is half man and half goat. He was born in Arcadia and was served by goat-like people called Satyrs. Nymphs visited him, especially Echo, and he loved music, so he made the panspipes.
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Chapter 9: HermĂȘs
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Son of Zeus and Maia, and lived in the cave on Mount CyllĂȘnĂȘ in Arcadia. He loved music and made a harp out of a turtle shell and hide. He discovered how to make fire manually and was also a trickster. He stole 50 of Apollo's sacred cows, and killed 2 to use the meat as sacrifices for the gods. Apollo found out but couldn't definitely state HermĂȘs stole and killed the cows. Therefore he took the matter to Zeus, and Zeus made HermĂȘs show where he had hidden the cattle. In return for HermĂȘs friendship, he gave HermĂȘs his whip for the cattle and HermĂȘs gave Apollo his harp. HermĂȘs is the guardian of herdsmen and the herald of the gods, and Zeus' personal messenger. He leads the souls of men to HadĂȘs. He is notorious of good luck.
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Chapter 10: Artemis
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Loves hunting and the harp. She took over the moon and Apollo took over the sun. She is hard-hearted and was very strict. She killed Poseidon's two sons by simple being nimbler and smarter, and threw out two other goddesses to gain their worship. She is ofter described as PersephonĂȘ, Artemis, and the Moon since she took over HecatĂȘ, the waiter of PersephonĂȘ.
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Chapter 11: The Flood
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In the Iron Age, the humans didn't agree with the gods, so Zeus wanted to kill them. Therefore, he created a storm that would flood the Earth. Two people, Deucalion (son of Prometheus) and his wife Pyrrha, survived by building and ark and floating over the water. Zeus realized they were good people and made Poseidon recall his waves and remove the water from the Earth. The pair remade the human race by throwing pebbles over their backs, resulting in PEOPLEs.
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Chapter 12: Athena and Poseidon
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Athena and Poseidon both wanted Athens for their temples, so they competed for it. Poseidon gave a horse as a gift, while Athena gave a new tree, the olive tree. She won and gained Athens as her city. She made Athens her chief seat, but taught the Lindos of Lindos to be expert metal workers.
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Chapter 13: The Heroes: HeraclĂȘs
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HeraclĂȘs is the son of Zeus and AlcmenĂȘ. He performed wondrous feats as a child such as killing snakes with his bare hands. He followed the advice of Virtue and endured the 12 labors of HeraclĂȘs in order to fulfill his oracle reading by serving for King of Mycelia, Eurystheus. These included the Nemean Lion, the Lernaean Hydra, the Arcadian Deer, and the Erymanthian Boar. He also tricked Atlas into giving him the Golden apples of the HesperidĂȘs. He died by sacrificing himself to a robe covered with fiery toxins.
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Chapter 14: Typhon
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Son of Old Mother Earth; he stole Zeus' lightning and thunder and plotted to take over Olympos. He had the heads of beasts and had numerous hands. When the lightning and thunder hit the sky, it caused the stars to group together and made the constellations. Zeus got Cadmos to trick Typhon by playing the panpipes into hiding the lightning and thunder where Zeus could find it. Zeus then killed Typhon and all was good.
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Chapter 15: Cadmos
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Son of a king who was sent to search for his sister, Europa, who was taken away by Zeus. He followed a cow and killed a dragon and used the teeth to make 5 founders of the city of Thebes. He taught the Thebians the alphabet and was rewarded with Harmonia as a wife. Harmonia was given a necklace that, when worn, brought distress and sadness. SemelĂȘ, one of the owners of the necklace, was love by Zeus, and their baby was Dionysos.
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Chapter 16: Dionysos
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Raised by Rheia after Hera banned him from Olympos. While visiting a friends grave, he found a fruit that grew from a curly vine and drank the juice, and all his sorrow left him. He is the god of wine and miracles such as wine running from ship masts are attributed to him. He also gave Midas his golden touch. He exchanged his mother's life with HadĂȘs for the life of a myrtle plant.
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Chapter 17: Asclepios
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God of healing. HadĂȘs was mad that souls that would've belonged to him can be stolen by his healing herbs. He had several sons such as Panacea and Hygieia.
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Chapter 18: Jason
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Should've been heir to throne; as a baby was put in the hands of Cheiron the Centaur. He grew up to be kind, wise, and peaceful. Pelias feared Jason so sent him on an impassive quest to recover the Golden Fleece.
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Chapter 19: The Ram with a Golden Fleece
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NephelĂȘ was jealous of HellĂȘ and Phrixos. She killed all corn and made the people sacrifice a golden ram and the fleece was nailed to a tree. A dragon guards it.
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Chapter 20: The Argonauts
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People searching for the Golden Fleece with Jason of the ship Athena built, the Argo. They saved a blind man from the Harpies.
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Chapter 21: Cupid and His Mother
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Hera and the gods pitied Jason so AphroditĂȘ persuaded her son Cupid to make the medical woman on the island of the Golden Fleece, Medeia, fall in love with Jason.
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Chapter 22: Jason and Medeia
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The king makes Jason fight his fire breathing bulls, which will use him to die to get the fleece. Medeia prayed to HecatĂȘ and made anointment to protect himself from the fire and the blows of the bulls and to sacrifice an ewe to HecatĂȘ. He
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Chapter 23: The Brazen Bulls and the Dragon's Teeth
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Medeia prayed to HecatĂȘ and made anointment to protect himself from the fire and the blows of the bulls and to sacrifice an ewe to HecatĂȘ. He fights the bulls and drops the dragon's teeth into the ground, which become warriors, and they fight over a stone Jason threw, and all died.
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Chapter 24: The Golden Fleece
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Media charms the serpent guarding the fleece, and she, Jason, the fleece, and the other Argonauts escape back to their homeland. Jason fell out of love for Medeia and cheated on her, and Medeia went into a state of rage and killed Jason's new wife with her magic, and killed her own children and married the old king of Athens.
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Chapter 25: Theseus and the Robbers
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Son of Aigeus and Aithra; when he was old enough, he would take a sword and shoes to the King (his father) in Athens. He was raised by his mother and grandfather, and when he was old enough he faced a giant, and faced 4 robbers; Sinis, the pine-bender, a wild sow, Sciron, and the Hammerer. He killed them all and made it safely to Athens to meet his father.
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Chapter 26: Theseus and Medeia
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Theseus meets his father in Athens, and his new wife, Medeia (from Jason). Media wants her own son to be king, but since Theseus is the heir she tries to kill him. When the king caught Medeia trying to poison his wine, he banisher her from the country.
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Chapter 27: Theseus and the Minotaur
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Theseus, knowing he could kill the Minotaur, volunteered as one of the 7 men sacrificed to the Minotaur. While on the ship, Theseus proved himself to be a son of Poseidon. He dove into the sea, and found the ring the king threw into it and emerged dry. At Crete, the king's daughter, AriadnĂȘ, had pity on Theseus and had the creator of the maze, Daidalos, give him (indirectly) string to help him exit the maze. Theseus killed the Minotaur and he, the other 13 sacrifices, and AriadnĂȘ escaped back to Theseus' home on a ship.
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Chapter 28: Daidalos and Icaros, and the End of Theseus
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Daidalos and his son, Icaros, were locked in the Maze where the Minotaur was as punishment for helping Theseus. Daidalos made he and his son wings to escape the prison, but his son flew to high to the sun and his wings melted, and he drowned. Daidalos made it to Sicily, and the King Midos found him and went to retrieve him, but he drowned in his bath. Theseus was king of Athens after his father died and he ended up dying, but helped the city of Athens greatly.
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Chapter 29: Meleagros and the Brand
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Meleagros killed his own mother's brothers in a fight against a boar, so his mother recalled a memory when Meleagros was a child; Three Fates came to her and one said that when the brand was extinguished, Meleagros would die.
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Chapter 30: Atalanta
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Atalanta was on the west of the Golden Fleece; she was a manly woman and was raised by hunters after her father abandoned her. She was a tough woman and said that the only way she would marry was if someone beat her in a footrace. A man named Milanion challenged her to a race, but lost. He then asked AphroditĂȘ for help, and she gave him apples that were unmissable and grew heavier as time passed. He won and married Atalanta, but offended Zeus so he and his wife were turned into lions.
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Chapter 31: Peleus and Thetis
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Son of Aiacos and raised by Cherion; he married a sea nymph named Thetis and had a son, AchillĂȘs, which Thetis made immortal by burning the mortality off of him and dipping him in the river Styx. Peleus caught her at this and she ran away into the sea.
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Chapter 32: Apollo and Admetos
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Admetos was the King of Pherai and needed Apollo's help to win over the trust of Pelias for his daughter, Alcestis. Apollo tamed a lion and boar and attached them to a chariot for Admetos to rid into town on. He won the trust and married Alcestis right away. Apollo cleared some anger Artemis had against he and his new wife, and all was good. Admetos, however, was going to die, but someone could save him if they died for him; so his wife died for him, and he and HeraclĂȘs got HadĂȘs to return her soul to her body.
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Chapter 33: Helios and Phaëthon
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Helios let his son do anything he wanted for one day, and the son, Phaëthon, chose to drive the sun for one day. Ignoring the father's warnings, he drove it, lost control as the constellations fought him, and burnt the world. Zeus was mad at him and killed his with lightning.
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Chapter 34: Orpheus and EurydicĂȘ
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Son of Apollo and gifted at the harp. His wife was EurydicĂȘ, and she died from a snake bite. Orpheus went down to HadĂȘs in the Underworld to retrieve her, and went unharmed by playing the sweet tune of his harp. He played for HadĂȘs and he let her go, but warned him not to look back at her 'till they got to their door. He looked back, however, and she disappeared into a puff of smoke.
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Chapter 35: DanaĂȘ and the Shower of Gold
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DanaĂȘ's father was told that a grandson would kill him, so he locked DanaĂȘ in a tower with little to no visitors. Zeus, however, saw her and fell in love with her. He came in the form of Golden Snow, and formed to become a solid to talk to her. She had a son with Zeus named Perseus, and DanaĂȘ's father, King Acrisios, locked Perseus and DanaĂȘ in a box with holes for breathing and set them into the sea. Zeus had pity on them, and saved them.
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Chapter 36: Perseus and the Gorgon Medusa
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A man on the island Perseus and his mother washed up onto took them in and raised Perseus with DanaĂȘ. Perseus was noticed by the king (his father) and was sent on a deadly mission to retrieve Medusa's head. He got help from HermĂȘs (winged shoes and sharp sickle), Athena (a shiny shield and a bag), and HadĂȘs (cap of invisibility). Perseus flew to the Three Old Hags and persuaded them (stole their eye and tooth) to tell him where the Gorgons were. He then found them and killed Medusa, bagged the head, and left.
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Chapter 37: Perseus and Andromeda
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Perseus met Atlas on his journey, and Atlas begged him to free him from his strenuous job, so Perseus turned him into a stone Mountain called the Atlas Mountains. Perseus came to the kingdom near Joppa and met the king, his wife, and their daughter. The wife had upset Poseidon by stating that the daughter, Andromeda, was more beautiful than all the sea nymphs in the sea. Poseidon set a monster to kill her as a sacrifice, but Perseus killed it with the sickle and took the daughter (after turning her former husband to stone) as his wife. He left her temporarily to take the head to the king, and found the king forced his mother to marry him. Perseus turned the king and some of his men to stone, and returned the gifts to the gods. Athena put the head in her shield and it turns people to stone.
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Chapter 38: Pegasus and Bellerophon
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Pegasus is Zeus' prized pet, and goes to a spring he made called the Horse's Fountain to drink on Earth. Bellerophon is sent to kill a goat/lion monster after being accused of being in love with the king's wife. He is told to catch Pegasus by the fountain, and fails the first try. Athena then gives his a golden bridal and it works, and he rides Pegasus to kill the monster. He fell from Olympos after Pegasus dragged him up there, and was crippled for the rest of his life.
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Chapter 39: Iamos the Pansy-Child
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Grandson of Poseidon and son of Apollo. When born, placed in a thicket and found by servants, which assigned two snakes to feed him. He was found in a bed of pansies. He started the city of Olympia.
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Chapter 40: The Golden Apple of Discord
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Eris, or Discord, wasn't invited to Peleus and Thetis' wedding, so she made a pure gold apple with the inscription "For the pretty one". Athena, Hera, and AphroditĂȘ fought over who the apple belonged to, and they went to a man named Paris. Paris went to Troy, and Helen left her husband. Then King MelelĂ€os waged war on Troy for 10 years.
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Chapter 41: The Arms of AchillĂȘs
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Son of Aaicos and raised by Cherion; took part in the Trojan war and was invincible except for part of his heel. His best friend, Patroclos, took his armor and died in it, so AchillĂȘs mother, Thetis, got new armor from Hephaistos, and AchillĂȘs, wishing to die than live (due to mourning) got shot in the weak spot and died.
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Chapter 42: ArĂȘs in Battle
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Gods side in the Trojan War; ArĂȘs and AphroditĂȘ on Paris and Helen's side, and Athena on a man named DiomĂȘdĂȘs, whom she instructed to cut AphroditĂȘ. He did so, and she complained to Zeus and ArĂȘs, her husband, so ArĂȘs went down to kill DiomĂȘdĂȘs. DiomĂȘdĂȘs went to fight ArĂȘs, and Athena helped. DiomĂȘdĂȘs stabbed ArĂȘs with a spear, and he too complained.
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Chapter 43: Odysseus
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Odysseus leaves his family on Ithaca to go fight in the Trojan War. The journey was 20 years, 10 there and 10 back. On the way back, they came upon an island with sheep. The men got trapped by the cyclops Polyphemus, and later stabbed his eye out to blind him. They then escaped and Poseidon was mad at them,s o he set them off course. They met a woman named CircĂȘ the witch, and she turned Odysseus' men into pigs. Odysseus got help from HermĂȘs and convinced CircĂȘ to change his friends back. After their ship capsized and all but Odysseus died, Odysseus washed up on an island and met the witch Calypso which helped him for 7 years. Odysseus returned home safely to his family, which was still waiting.
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Chapter 44: Cupid and PsychĂȘ
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Cupid is sent to kill PsychĂȘ, the new woman who is more beautiful than AphroditĂȘ. Cupid falls in love with her, and hides her, but she is temped by her sisters to see who the mysterious night figure is. She sees it's Cupid and Cupid gets mad and ditches her. AphroditĂȘ finds PsychĂȘ and makes her do tasks that she gets aid in from other beings. She is forced to take a jar down to PersephonĂȘ for some beauty, and she opens the jar while on the way down and inhales the gas, which makes her unconscious. Cupid breathes into her and she awakes, and she completes the task. Cupid marries PsychĂȘ and she is mad immortal and lives in Olympos.
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Chapter 45: Great Pan is Dead
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Christianity has taken over as the main religion in the world, so the Greek gods have "died", and sailors test this by saying they will yell that the great Pan is dead if they drift, which they did.
