The Gods of Greek Mythology Essay

The Olympian gods shared all of mankind's virtues and faults. They were severe, punishing every unjust act, while protecting and assisting the just and the pious. They even had their own likes and dislikes which governed their behavior towards mortals. This was made very clear during the Trojan War (as portrayed in Homer's Iliad) when the gods got involved and assisted either Achaeans or Trojans, depending on whom each of them favored. The gods were vengeful but also excessively generous, while at the same time being propitiated by the material sacrifices they were offered by the faithful. The Greek deities had supernatural powers, particularly over human life, but were severely limited by the relentless force of fate (Moira).

Since the beginning of time the people of the world have their share of beliefs. Greek mythology is the arguably the most popular region of study. In Ancient Greece every citizen had a patron that would protect them and pantheism was commonplace. The Romans admired the Greeks in their art and culture and even took different aspects of their gods. Polytheism was widely accepted in all cultures so the seed of mythology bloomed. The time line of the creations of gods to the end of their reign is an important factor in Greek Mythology.

It has been known that the Romans and the Greeks have had many interactions with each other, whether it would be due to trading or just plain traveling, the stories of their myths have crossed each other in one way or another. This is may be the reason why there are many similarities between Greek and Roman Mythology. Even though a Greek god or goddess may have a different name in Roman Mythology they still performed similar tasks and were worshiped for similar reasons. I will compare and contrast Greek gods with their Roman equivalences to see how similar they truly are to each other. Probably the most famous Greek god, Zeus, was the god of all gods. Born to Cronus and Rhea, he was the ruler of the sky, and had

Growing up as a citizen of ancient Greek and Rome being raised to follow Greek and Roman mythology caused the ancient people to believe that they must act and behave like the gods. In creating this ideology, the people developed same personality and behavior habits as the gods in various myths. But even as the myths were written, the personalities of the gods and goddesses reflected the average human in that time period. The gods were so much like humans that it was normal to behave like them. Ancient Greek Philosophy stated “the gods depicted by Homer acted selfishly and were driven by emotions such as favoritism and jealousy. They behaved like ordinary people except they were immortal and had supernatural powers.” Unlike other religions were the gods have never sinned and are very different from humans, the gods in ancient Greek mythology make mistakes and commit horrific crimes that in today’s society would be highly unacceptable. For the people, it is a lot easier to be human and make mistakes rather than try to be perfect and sinless.

As Hephaestus is notified of Thetis’ arrival, he explores what their relationship has meant to him. Hephaestus recalls that “Thetis saved my life when the mortal pain came on me after my great fall…” (P. 480) After Hephaestus falls out of Zeus’ good graces, Thetis is able to lend her helping hand, displaying the hierarchical dynamic between the gods. The gods are indebted to each other, the likely reason that Hephaestus felt as though he needed to make Thetis the ornate shield. The duty and obligation to each other fuels the mutualistic relationships between the gods. Thetis’ motivation to help Hephaestus was not solely out of kindness; rather Thetis saw the opportunity to make a strategic move and put Hephaestus in her debt, knowing that she very well could use his services in her future. Hephaestus describes the pain that he felt as “mortal pain” signifying a distinction between the discomforts and vulnerability of mortals and gods.

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.

The relationship between gods and mortals in mythology has long been a complicated topic. The gods can be generous and supportive, and also devastating and destructive to any group of humans. Mortals must respect the powers above them that cannot be controlled. The gods rule over destiny, nature, and justice, and need to be recognized and worshipped for the powerful beings as they are. Regardless of one's actions, intentions, and thoughts, the gods in Greek myth have ultimate power and the final decision of justice over nature, mortals, and even each other.

Unlike religious gods today, the Greek gods resembled human being in their form and their emotions, and suffered from the same dilemmas humans throughout time have faced. The Greeks believe in many gods and think they are very much like people. They have both supernatural powers and human weaknesses. The gods would fight, play on each other, gets angry or jealous, and steal from each other. The Olympian Gods live atop Mt. Olympus in Greece behind a gate of clouds. They watch the mortals down on earth which they can visit any time, and are responsible for the success or failure of human life. The Greeks worship their gods, pray, give offerings, and build temples to please the gods so they will not give any punishments.

When looking at greek mythology you think of many different stories of all kinds of gods and goddesses. Some are more intelligent than others and some are more powerful than others. The gods and goddesses all resemble humans, and act similarly as well. Each god or goddess has his/her own personality. Three gods in particular that showed human characteristics are Zeus, Poseidon, and Hera.

At the same time, it reminds us that these myths do not really constitute the religion of the Greeks. These myths are more similar to proto-scientific stories that are meant to explain usual phenomena, such as thunderstorms or the setting of the sun. Some myths are pure amusement and are not meant to explain anything. On the whole, the later myths appear more religious, as Zeus, the primary god, begins to resemble the sort of omnipotent God--figure familiar to modern readers—in the Iliad, he is very human and moody, but by the Odyssey he is more wise and sympathetic. Zeus changes so much from the old philanderer he once was that he begins to look very much like the Judeo-Christian concept of God. These all concepts relate to the myths and if in today’s world one were to think of it as reality one would laugh on this.

The Greek and Roman gods were very human. They were jealous and used men to get back at each other. The men were always being caught in between gods fighting. One great example of this is Athens. The Athenians chose Athena to be their patron god, and Poseidon didn’t like that so he sent a flood to Athens because he was jealous of

The ancients Greeks were polytheistic which means they used to worship many gods. Greek gods and goddesses used to live at the top of Mount Olympus, the highest mountain in Greece. However, despite their great powers, gods and goddesses were much like humans, and sometimes they had to come down to hearth to get involved and intervened in the affairs of mortals, involving with men and women as patrons, enemies, and sometimes lovers. Greek mythology described their lives and every day actions and use their stories to help explain the unknown and sometimes teach a lesson.

Introductory Paragraph Hook Overview Thesis 1st Topic- The gods and goddesses of Rome Who they were quick list how they affected the Romans 2nd Topic- Where they came from Greece Conquering of Greece 3rd Topic- How it affects our lives today Products Stories Sports* Final Paragraph Summary Support of Thesis Conclusion

In the Iliad the gods would take different sides in war and they would interfere in the destinies of the heroes. They would seduce both man and woman, because they were all jealous of one another and that was a great part of the Greek way of life. The Greeks thought it was all right to love either sex, because they thought it was normal to share what they felt. One of the most famous tales is that of Hercules, as he is the son of Zeus and a mortal woman that Zeus seduced so he could have a son to be a hero. Hercules is the god of strength and courage, but he did not become a god right away, because the other gods would not except him, because he was made a god by the seducing of a woman. Zeus would change his form and shape, he would become a winged horse, or any animal, and he would appear as a young man with unbelievable looks. Aphrodite the god of love and a symbol of beauty would help people fall in love and help Zeus find young woman and man so he could have sex with either one. Hera was known to be jealous of all Zeus's fooling around so she would try to get him back, but Zeus did not care.

Greek mythology is an old historic way that greeks would explain things such as the universe or creation. Some found it absurd and some found it spectacular. Many different religions or cultures believe in different ways of how the universe came to be. They believe that Chaos, is an empty, and incomprehensible space. From it arose all things, terrestrial and holy (Chaos). Some people groups have many gods, one god, or no gods at all. All cultures should have an origin for animals or creatures, even Christians have creatures in the bible like the Leviathan. In Greek mythology there is a lot of emphasis on the origin of: the universe, gods, humans, and animals or creatures.