The Heroes Of Ancient Greek Myths

Hercules was child born in a small village who was very strong. He was loved by both his parents and by all the village, because he was very generous with his ability. As he got older he kept growing even stronger. He did many odd jobs around the village to earn his living. One day a strange and terrifying roar came from the forest outside the village. The roars did not stop, but continued for several days. When the villagers realized the sound would not stop and could even be a threat, it was decided that Hercules, as the strongest man in the village should go to investigate, as he would be at the least risk. Hercules went, though he was very afraid. When he found the source of the roaring, he discovered it was a wounded lion. The lion was wounded, but was very clearly still mobile and all the more dangerous for being hurt. Hercules crept up on the lion from behind and strangled it. He brought back the head as a trophy to show the villagers. They all admired Hercules's courage as well as his strength. Many more similar incidents occurred and Hercules grew more and more confident until he became far too prideful and began to lose respect. He did not understand why, and when he contemplated his loss of popularity he

More clearly than the Bible, Greek/Roman mythology helps outline the life cycle that almost always applies to the traditional archetypal hero. With basic knowledge of the Bible we can determine right from wrong and its influence in real life when reading mythology. As the reader we experience this when seeing the actions the hero takes, as explained by Frye when he states, "... the central myth of the hero whose mysterious birth, triumph and marriage, death and betrayal and eventual rebirth..." (Frye, 67), explaining the archetypical story outline of the tragic hero. As an example of the archetype, the story of Hercules starts with the mysterious birth of a being that is half god and half man, with his father famously being Zeus. Following Hercules' diverse birth we also know he triumphed over the leader of the underworld named Hades, while also

Heroes are viewed differently today as the average person who is admired for courage or outstanding achievements such as firemen and police officers. The ancient Greeks viewed heroes as those that acquire more than just courage, they must be strong and inspiring as well. Although Achilles proved to be several of these entities, the Iliad begins with

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.

Hercules was a character portrayed in classic Roman Mythology. He was known to be the son of Zeus, and went on many great adventures throughout the lands; saving lives, defeating villains, and slaying treacherous monsters. Throughout his many trials, he gained fame, fortune, and a place amongst the Gods of Olympia. By looking at the mythological stories of Hercules, we can see that many of Joseph Campbell’s “Stages of the Hero’s Journey” can be applied to the stories about him.

Secondly, without his courageous personality Hercules could not have overcome many obstacles. Hercules gained experienced of a quality hero and achieved appreciation “the hero is now ready to move into the special world where he will change from the ordinary into the extraordinary” (Seger 3) because he transformed into a new individual. Seger states that “this happens at the first turning point of the story” which is called the initiation (road of trials) therefore the hero is ready to begin with his task. For example, in the movie, Hercules encounters with many challenging task which were a battle of series monsters that were sent by Hades. His most important challenge was to rescue the tough-talking beautiful girl Megara who is secretly involved with hades to posses Hercules in falling in love with her and take over his power. But they both fall in love and it becomes

Then, he is suddenly forced into an unknown environment; a huge difference between his regular circumstances and his new one is established (Vogler). Hercules, who is the hero of the film Hercules, is presented as the baby of loving parents and Greek gods Zeus and Hera, who reside on Mount Olympus. Zeus creates a winged horse named Pegasus, since he wants Hercules to have a friend. Everything in their life is perfect. However, baby Hercules is unexpectedly stolen in the middle of the night by Pain and Panic, the devious minions of the wicked Hades (Hercules). They almost take Hercules’ powers after they give him a mystical potion. A loving couple, Amphytryon and Alcmene, discover Hercules all alone and decides to adopt him. Hercules grows to be a young man, but the citizens of his town despise him and call him a freak because of his strange power. Hercules’ ordinary world is composed of all these events.

Moses from, the Bible, and Odysseus from, The Odyssey, are examples of heroes that were called upon by the gods. They both did not choose to or were born to become heroes. Moses and Odysseus were not perfect human beings before becoming heroes. Everything in their past was

Superman, Ironman, and Batman are all known for their determination, courage, and compassion, which are some characteristics of many modern day heroes. In Edith Hamilton’s Mythology, Perseus, Theseus, and Hercules are known as some of the greatest epic heroes of Greek mythology. Becoming an epic hero is no easy task; each individual must present themselves in such a way that sets them apart from any mortal or deity. Perseus is better known for slaying one of the stone-turning gorgons known as Medusa, with the help of Hermes and Athena. As for Theseus, he is known for killing the man-eating Minotaur with his bare hands.

In the movie, Hercules spends his early childhood in the home of the two mortals who found him, believing them to be his true parents. Hercules, because of his inhuman strength, is isolated from the nearby town, who all alienate him because he does not have full control of his strength and breaks things easily. In the end, Hercules gains control of his strength and uses it to help people, which is fine, but it is not how the Ancient Greeks valued a hero. The Ancient Greeks valued many things, a good family and status being some of them. In the original myth, Heracles was raised a prince, coming from a good birth with an upstanding family with status. In addition, he was a recognized demigod, the son of the king of the Gods himself, Zeus. The notion of an underdog who opposes the popular belief that they are destined to fail, which is seen heavily in Hercules (1997), is a storyline that is more popular in the modern world compared to Ancient Greece. Ancient Greeks believed in the notion of fate and destiny. Great heroes were destined to be great, they were great due to their backgrounds and their own attributes. Their actions may have lead them to become great, but Greek heroes were always destined for great things. The storyline Disney gives is entertaining to a more modern audience, but disregards the Ancient Greek

Myths and Legends provides readers with values, history, guidelines for living and morals that are relevant to our everyday lives. The myths of ‘Achilles’ and ‘Hercules’ are well-known in Ancient Greek mythology. These myths and legends provide readers to this day with valuable moral and life long lessons, allowing the appreciation for different cultures through ancient storytelling.

Hercules was a strong baby. Hera sent snakes to strangle him but Hercules strangled them! When

Hercules was viewed as “ a muscle bound Buffon” , brutal and a violent man.He had trouble ruling himself. Hercules had a lack of intelligence and wisdom. This often time would leave him feeling vulnerable and unstable. Hercules was often easily offended. He would never forget grudges. This led to his outbursts of emotions hitch got him in trouble. Growing up on earth, no body understood how to punish Hercules correctly. Yet, when they did find punishments he would take them without question. When Hercules came to age, he had found out who is real father was. He would speak up to the sky for signs but Zeus never answered. Hercules was responded to, but not by the person he wanted. Hera had ended up driving him mad. He ended up killing his own children. Since killing his children, Hercules was sentenced to do the 12 labors for his

The study of myth has evolved alongside theories of Greco-Roman society, and it is hard for the modern reader to read myths without imposing their own ideas on them. Most likely this has happened for as long as we have been studying mythology, and this has an impact on how we look at myths today. For example, our book talks about homosexuality and feminism as they relate to classical mythology. These ideas and topics were undoubtedly thought of in a totally different way than they are today.

Heroes are one of the most important subjects of Greek mythology, hero was considered someone that is more that an ordinary man but less than a god, so in effect it has it’s own place between humans and gods. Heroes like Achilleus and Hector in Homers Iliad fought on opposite sides of Trojan War. Hector as well as Achilleus possesses the essential qualities of a hero according to a heroic code, they both had a support from gods, honoured by other men and were leaders of their people just to name a few.