Fates In Greek Mythology Research Paper

The Greek gods were thought of as the most powerful forces to ever exist in ancient times. In turn, they played a pivotal role in the Greek people’s lives. Their power and influence over the Greek people is evident in many of the stories in Greek literature. Zeus, Poseidon, and Hades, the most powerful Greek gods, each played a part in the story of Antigone by Sophocles.

Fate as defined by the Merriam Webster dictionary is ‘an inevitable and often adverse outcome, condition, or end’. Sophocles discusses fate vs free will in his plays. In the play Oedipus Rex there was a prophecy that Oedipus was destined to kill his father and marry his mother, he attempts to escape his destiny by running away to Thebes where he meets his fate. In the play Antigone, that main character Antigone decides to go against Creon’s (her uncle who has inherited the throne) decree and bury the brother, Polynices, knowing the consequences would lead to her death. In Sophocles’ plays Oedipus Rex and Antigone, the theme is mankind not being able to escape their fate.

In this paragraph will be information on Greek Gods and Goddesses. There was a governing body for the Grecians. This mythological group was very important. They were usually the reason for war and many believed that they were so superior that they would bring disease and death upon others that they dislike or the people that would try to out shine them. They were called The Olympians. There were twelve Olympians, however before I name them there actually were 13, but Hestia gave up her position for Dionysus. There was Zeus, Poseidon, Hermes, Hephatus, Hera, Demeter, Aphrodite, Athena, Artimes, Dionysus, Aries (Ares or Aris), and Apollo.” (Greek Gods and Goddesses) There was one other God that is also very important to the Olympians. His name was Hades and he was the God of the Dead. He was not considered an Olympian though because he was always to be in the Underworld. Hades had one day decided that he wanted a partner however

In Greco-Roman Culture, humans imagine the deities of mythology to be and act certain ways, due to the needs they must fill. People invented certain deities for reasons that align with what they needed from them. To examine how a deity has a certain purpose, one must first examine what they are like. Athena and Ares are examples of deities invented for very specific purposes. One must first look at Athena and Ares’ similarities and differences in relation to their characteristics, their sexuality and physical appearances, as well as their different powers and how they are worshipped, to discover why they were created.

Fate and free will played major parts in creating the characters and stories in many of the Greek mythologies and tragedies. The Greeks believes that the Gods and the Oracle's could predict a person's fate before or after birth, and that no one, even the Gods could intervene in that person's fate. They also believed that a person's or God could not create their own fate. This belief stems from the three fates: sisters, The Moirai or Fates were three sister deities, incarnations of destiny and life. Because of these three old women, fate could not be avoided or altered. As such with these stories, in the Iliad fate leads Achilles down his path of glory and his early demise, and cause Oedipus to sleep with his own mother and kill his father. Free will is the power of acting without constraint and fate; acting by one's own decisions. Even though Achilleus and Oedipus have fate, they both also have free will. For instance, Achilles has a double fate: if he goes home, he will live long without glory or if he stays at Troy, he will have lots of glory, but a short life. As such, in Sophocles Oedipus the King, when Oedipus was born he was fated to kill his father and lay with his mother, thought his ability of free will caused his fate to come true.

In ancient times, the world was protected by the Creators—comprised of three goddesses and four gods. There was Otelia, the Great Protector and Goddess of Love; Aria, the Goddess of the Hunt; Ethena, the Goddess of all domestic arts; Lyros, the God of Vengeance; Athar, the God of Death and Fortune; Cyreus, the God of Craft; and Iros, the God of Deceit. Lyros and Otelia created civilizations and the world as we know it; Aria taught us the Ways of the Hunter; Ethena and Cyreus gave us fire and crafting, but Iros generally kept to himself and developed a plan that would change the world—he plotted the betrayal of all the gods.

Many people might wonder, why did the Greek invented these gods and goddesses? The Greeks wanted answers. With the technology we have today we are able to explain the reason why it rains from the sky and why lighting forms, we are able to explain why the moon comes up when the sun hides in the horizon. We are even

One of the first mortals known was Demeter, the child of Zeus and Persephone, is known as the goddess of the underworld. After leaving Demeter, Zeus then moved on and mated with Leto with whom he then created the twin gods known as Artemis and Apollo. Apollo was known for many things following his birth. Apollo had a numours things he is remembered for, but a few is being the Olympian God of the Sun, the Light and the Music and the Prophecy. (GREEK-GODS.INFO 4).

The concept of fate and the influence of gods on mortals’ lives are prominent aspects of Greek mythology. While the gods of Olympus are commonly presented as the primary manipulators of human lives, the Fates are the true creators of destiny. Gods may be able to affect human lives in monumental ways, but predetermined destiny and the Fates’ intentions ultimately reign. The gods have respect for this authority, as well, as they’re aware that a limit on their ability to intervene is necessary to maintain the order of the universe. This leaves one to question the amount of knowledge that the gods themselves have of fate, and whether they have their own free will to refrain from intervening or if they truly must submit to the authority of the Fates and their plans. The gods do have some knowledge of the Fates’ plan, but they are also wise enough to avoid too much interference and therefore don’t necessarily need to be commanded; they sometimes help guide mortals by sending them messages and symbols—and sometimes even influencing them for their own advantage—but ultimate fate cannot be avoided.

Hestia was related to Zeus and she was his sister but unfortunately she was included in the Olympian gods and she was replaced by Dionysus cause she gave up her throne. She was the goddess of the hearth, family, and domestic life some people thought she was cool and some didn't really care. Her name meant house and a hearth and symbolising the home and its residents and not many people knew about her that much. She also did represent the coalition and relationship between the colonies and the mother cities and that was pretty cool.

Religion was a big thing in ancient Greece. It was personal but also present everywhere in Greece. The Greeks were polytheistic which means a belief in many gods. Each god that the Greeks believed in was in charge of an emotion or some piece of nature. The main gods lived in Mount Olympus. The main gods and goddesses were Zeus, Hera, Poseidon, Athena, Apollo, Artemis, Hestia, Demeter, Hermes, Aphrodite, Ares, and Hephaestus. Athens was named after the goddess Athena who is the goddess of war, arts, crafts, and wisdom. During this time goddesses were dominant so Greek woman had a big influence on religion. Since women were more soft spoken and had a higher voice than men they would whisper to the gods or sing softly to them. Women in ancient Greece were seen as oracles because of this.

Among the Greeks and Romans, it was believed that gods and goddesses influenced healing. There was a deity for almost every human biological function. The women of the family of Asklepios were mythological nurses. The world's history of nursing records Hygeia as being the goddess of health. In the Roman Empire, Roman noblewomen cared for the sick.

Like the Egyptians, Greek civilization had multiple gods that were immortal and very powerful, but there were twelve major gods that were the most important. Some of these gods and goddesses were Zeus, Hera, Athena, and Apollo to name a few. They were believed to reside on Mt. Olympus. Greek gods were immortal. The people of Greece built temples (much like the pyramids that were in Egypt), and gods were worshipped at these temples. Ceremonial rituals or any other special occasions took place here also. Most of the temples were constructed to honor a god, and they were sacred in their being. They sacrificed animals, held festivals, and sporting events. It is apparent that the Greeks adapted some similar qualities from Egyptian religion, but they are still unique in their own way.

The gods and goddesses are powerful beings capable of super-human powers, but nevertheless are characters fraught with very human frailties and flaws. In this way they created gods that had similarities with the common man in the society. This made the gods more tangible and easier to identify with. I think that this was necessary because they were not yet at the societal maturity level to have a single god on a cosmic plane.

Because one’s fate is already predetermined, Oedipus Rex could not have escaped the prognostication of the oracle Teiresias.