Greek Mytholoical Monsters

Hercules, born of Alcmena and Zeus, was conceived when Zeus took the form of Alcmena’s husband and lay with her. Her true husband lay with her again later that night and she conceived twins. One would be born to her human husband, and the other fathered by Zeus himself (Hamilton). Zeus bragged about his soon to be born son alerting and infuriating Hera to Hercules existence. Hera was notorious for tormenting her husbands’ illegitimate offspring since she couldn’t harm Zeus outright for his infidelity (Hamilton). Hera persuaded Eileithyia to slow Alcmena’s labor in a fit of piqué, almost killing her (Hamilton). Alcmena in fear of Hera’s wrath gave her son to nature. Zeus (in some accounts Hermes) stole him away to Olympus, where he suckled at Hera’s breast while she lay sleeping, granting him immortality (McLeish). When Hera awoke during the suckling she pushed Hercules away and the milk that sprayed out formed the Milky Way (Leeming). Zeus took the infant and placed him back in his crib before departing to Olympus again. Enraged Hera sent two massive serpents to kill Hercules and his brother as they lay sleeping

Poseidon met a Nereid named Amphitrite; like her sister Thetis she proved a reluctant bride, but Poseidon finally was able to win her. As husband and wife they played roles very much like those enacted by Zeus and Hera; Poseidon has a weakness for women, and Amphitrite with good cause is angry and vengeful (1). Together they bore three children, Rhode, Triton, and Benthesicyme. Triton was a merman that consisted of human above the waist and fish-shaped below the waist. He is seen many a times blowing a conch shell and can change shape at will. Poseidon had an infatuation with Scylla, daughter of Phorcys, and this angered Amphitrite. Amphitrite changed Scylla into a barking monster with six heads and twelve feet by throwing magical herbs into her bathing pool (2). Poseidon fooled around with thousands of goddesses, nymphs, and mortal women in his lifetime and also married another important goddess. Medusa is best known for her snake covered hair and her evil glaze, but she was married to Poseidon also. She was a part of the Gorgons (three sisters whose hair was writhed with serpents). When Perseus beheaded her, she was pregnant. From her dead body sprang a winged horse, Pegasus, and a son, Chrysaor. Pegasus is best known of the two but Chrysaor is known as "he of the golden sword." Chrysaor wed Callirhië and they had two offspring, one of which was Echidna. Echidna wed Typhon and had four offspring Orthus,

One of the most interesting qualities of Greek mythology is probably the depiction of monsters in the myths. However, these monsters are not all unique. In fact, they all fall into very distinct categories, making them almost the same. Most monsters in Greek mythology look and act in the same ways. Several monsters from these myths look the same in that they have very similar qualities such as being large, snake or human like. However, they are also very alike in that they behave in very similar ways, from guarding something or roaming freely and causing chaos. Generally, the monsters in Greek mythology follow this outline and are depicted in a way to show these qualities.

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.

Greek mythology has been passed on and retold over generations. Literature and movies have been created to entertain as well as provide specific themes based off of myths. There are many heroes that mythology talks about and each one has lived an epic life, but there is one famous hero that has been immortalized throughout history. Hercules is the son of Zeus and a mortal named Alcmene. Zeus impregnated her while her husband was away and this is where his story began. Zeus' wife, Hera, found out about the affair and was outrageous about his careless actions. She tried to prevent Hercules' birth; however, when that didn't work she sent snakes to kill the baby. Hercules was too mighty for the snakes and strangled them before they could even hurt him. As stated in this source, "Hera remained angry. How could she get even? Hera knew that she would lose in a fight, and that she wasn't powerful enough to prevent Zeus from having his way. Hera decided to pay Zeus back for his infidelity by making the rest of Hercules' life as miserable as she could" (Crane WEB). Hercules grew up to be a great young warrior and was all around. With this god-like strength, also came an uncontrollable temper that made him react at times without thinking, but later made him realize the wrongdoings of his violence. He later then married a woman named Megara and had two beautiful children. But one day, Hera instilled a fit of rage into Hercules and made him slaughter his family with his very own hands. He was shocked by his actions and asked Apollo for assistance since he was drowning in guilt. Apollo later then gave him specific tasks to help Hercules redeem himself for the bloodshed he caused. The hero was sent to Eurystheus, and under his strict hand, he was to accomplish twelve labors over the next twelve years.

“Monsters, in the language of mythology, were beings of unnatural proportions or parts, usually regarded with terror, as possessing immense strength and ferocity, which they employed for the injury and annoyance of men”(Thomas Bulfinch). This quote defines a monster and describes them as unnatural and often feared by the people they terrorize. There are many different types of monsters and all monsters fight different heroes, but all their purpose is the same, to strike fear in the people surrounding them. In Greek mythology heroes are often sent to defeat these creatures that are thought to be unbeatable. Heroes are often sent to beat these monsters as a way to gain passage to a better life. The heroes who fight with

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

Depending on which god a person angered and their situation in life, this hostility could be deadly. For example, Poseidon was the god of the sea but he also had control over earthquakes (Moford, Lenardon, and Shan 171). Odysseus’ famous journey took place mostly on the sea, which put him at the very mercy of this powerful god. However, as controller of both earthquakes and ocean, Poseidon could harm almost any mortal, unless that mortal was aided by another god in the moment of the attack. Other gods possessed similar grand jurisdictions, such as Apollo, the god of the sun and medicine, Hera, goddess of the earth, Hestia, goddess of the hearth’s fire, and Zeus, the god of the sky, among others. Each of these figures reigns over equally important aspects in the life of mortals. Additionally, as most Greeks never met the goddess in myth or in history, the actions of their elements were an even greater sign of their mysterious

Anyone who attempted to behead the Hydra found that as soon as one head was cut off, two more heads would emerge from the fresh wound. To defeat the Hydra, Hercules called on his friend Iolaus for help. As soon as Hercules cut off one head, Iolaus would seal the wound with a hot iron or a torch so that nothing could grow to replace it. After removing the Hydra's immortal head, Hercules buried it under a large rock.

Hercules, or better known as Heracles, was a Greek demigod that is the Son of Zeus and a mortal woman that was named Alcmene. When he was an infant, Zeus's wife Hera was really jealous of Heracles, so she sent two snakes to kill him. She was unsuccessful however, as he enjoyed strangling the snakes to death with one in each arm. He grew to become proficient in the bow and arrow, became a great wrestler, and possess superhuman strength. He later married and had five children. But, Hera tried to strike Heracles with madness and was successful. While Heracles was full with madness, he killed his five children all at once, in one day. When he recovered from his madness, he ventured to Delphi to consult the Oracle. He ordered Heracles to serve

Do you want to hear the most terrifying story ever? Well that's just where our story begins. Hades and his brothers Zeus and Poseidon defeated their father and the Titans to end their reign, claiming rulership over the cosmos. They split their rule between the three of them. Hades is a Greek god who is easily mistaken as evil and death.

“The Hydra was gigantic, nine-headed water-serpent, which haunted the swamps of Lerna.” That was a quote from theoi.com. The Hydra came from the, not-so-nice goddess, Hera. Sister and wife of Zeus. Hera created the Hydra to kill the, half mortal, half immortal, “hero”, Hercules. Even though Hercules was the strongest man on Earth, the Hydra had nine heads, which one of them was said to be made out of gold and was immortal. The Hydra lived in swamps of Lerna, one of the largest prehistoric mounds of land and water, and would scare the townspeople and anyone who came near it. Villagers and townspeople would go to compete with the beast and every once and awhile, someone would cut one of the heads of the Hydra, thinking that the head would fall

There are a lot of greek gods but there is a few that are often mentioned in this book. There's Athena goddess of knowledge, she is Annabeth's mother. There is Poseidon, Percy’s father, god of the Sea, and Ares father of Clarise, god of war. Also. Hermes he has a lot of half-blood children but Luke is the most recognized. One not godly but unnatural being is the cyclops. Tyson is a cyclops but he is friendly, which is rare for a cyclops.They are usually deadly, giant, smells, manipulative, and extremely strong, like the cyclops protecting the golden fleece in the Sea of Monsters. There are also Satyrs, they also live and train at the camp, Grover is a satyr, he is half man half goat. He has curly hair, and small horns. There are also unnatural portals that pass to the Underworld, Olympus, and there is one in the Bermuda Triangle to goes to the Sea of Monsters. The portal to the Underworld is in

The most powerful weapon known to the Greeks was Poseidon’s earthquakes. There are many gods in Greek mythology that are talked about in lots of stories and movies such as Zeus, Poseidon, and Athena.

Greek Mythology has influenced many “monsters” we reference in various works of current literature. Anywhere from 3 headed dogs to women with snakes for locks of hair, all of these deformed common things originated from Mythology. Not only do we still reference the monsters themselves in all forms of art today but also we implement the qualities the monsters posses unto characters in our stories.