Greek Myths

Keywords review for midterm

Note that this list only contains keyterms that I'm not entirely sure of. Lots of them omitted for the sake of time.

Concepts

aetiology: a story explaning a cause or origin.
anthropomorphism: attaching human traits to non-humans.
apotropaic: averting bad luck.
autochthonous: born from earch. birth of Erichthonios by Hephaistos and Athena + Gaia.
chaos: void, not chaos.
chthonic: related to earth and underworld, e.g. giants (created when Ouranos' blood shed on earth)
cosmogony: birth of the cosmos and order. It's a process instead of an event.
epithet: nicknames.
Eros and Erotes: love and plural loves.
muthos and logos: myths and thinking in greek. This indicates that myths are more than just stories. They are also narratives for religions and rituals, explanations of how the world works, samples of how we should behave and thought experiements.
omophagy: eat raw meat.
pantheon: all the gods that are worshipped.
partheno: virginity, asexuality, usually refers to Athena. parthenogenesis: virgin birth.
polytheism: worship of multiple gods.
theogony: birth of the gods.

Places

Acropolis: associated with Athena.
Arcadia: where Hermes was born.
Areopagos: hill of Ares. Homocide trials.
Bosporos: where Io went to when she was chased by Hera, "cow crossing"
Crete: where Zeus was raised.
Delos: where Leto gave birth.
Delphi: Apollo's sacred place.
Dodona: Zeus' sacred place where he gives out prophecies and oracles.
Eleusis: where Demeter went to to search for Persephone. Surrounding this area there are Eleusinian Mysteries, which are rituals practiced for Demeter and Persephone.
Lemnos: where Hephaistos was raised.
Mount Aetna: where Typoon was buried. His restless turnings were the cause of earthquakes and lava-flows.
Mount Ida: where Zeus was concealed on Crete.
Mount Kyllene: where Hermes lived as a child.
Mount Olympos: where the Olympians were during and after Titanomachy.
Mount Othrys: where the Titans were during Titanomachy.
Kypris: where Aphrodite was born.
Kytherea: Aphrodite's temple.
Tripod: Pythia sits here to produce her oracles at Delphi.

Things

adamant: the weapon given by Gaia that Cronos used to castrate his father Ouranos.
ambrosia and nectar: food that the gods consume.
obol: the coin the dead use for Charon to carry them across the river Acheron.
phallus: a penis-like object that marks boundaries.

Names

Titans

12 Titans:
They are offsprings of Ouranos and Gaia.
Oceanos ("ocean"), Coios, Crios, Lapetos, Hyperion("Going Above"), Cronos, Tethys, Phoebe, Themis("Divine Law"), Mnemosyne("Memory"), Theia, Rheia, Pontos("Sea")

First-gen Titans:
Oceanos, Rheia, Lapetos, Cronos, Hyperion, Mnemosyne, Tethys

Cronos/Saturn: sky, married Rheia, and castrated his father Ouranos with the help from his mother Gaia
he suppresses his offsprings by swallowing them but his wife Rheia managed to save Zeus, with the help from Gaia and Ouranos
Mnemosyne: memory, mother of the muses
Tethys

Olympians

12 Olympians:
Zeus, Hera, Poseidon, Demeter, Hestia/Dionysos, Hades, Aphrodite, Apollo, Ares, Artemis, Athena, Hermes, Hephaistos

First-gen Olympians:
Zeus, Hera, Poseidon, Demeter, Hestia, Hades

Zeus
- Names: Jupiter
- Domains: law, oaths, justice, kingship, politics, (excess) power
- Symbols: thunderstorm, scepter, throne, eagle, Mt.Olympos
Demeter
- Names: Ceres
- kourotrophos: nurturer of children. Demeter nurtured Demophon.
- Daughter: Persephone (Proserpina, kore)
Poseidon
- Names: Neptune
- Domains: uncontrollable strengths
- Sons: Polyphemos (single-eyed), Triton (fish-tailed)
Hera
- Names: Juno
- Domains: marriage
- Children: Ares, Eileithyia (childbirth), Hebe, Hephaistos (by herself)
Hades
- Names: Pluto
- Domains: underworld, wealth, death
- Symbols: scepter, cornucopia
Hestia
- Names: Vesta
- Domains: hearth, oikos ("home")
Athena
- Names: Minerva, Pallas (Greek), Tritogenia
- Domains: wisdom, (rational) wars, woman's crafts: weaving, etc.
- Symbols: aegis, halmet, shield, spear, Nike, owl
Aphrodite
- Names: Venus
- Symbols: dove and geese
- Children: Phobos and Deimos (“Fear” and “Terror”, with Ares)
Hephaistos
- Vulcan
- Domains: hard crafts
Ares
- Names: Mars
- Domains: bloody wars, accompanied by Eris ("strife")
- Children: mentally monstrous, but not physically monstrous
- he is the most hated god
Apollo
- Names: Apollo
Artemis
- Names: Diana
- Domains: virginity, transitory satate, blood, outside civilization (liminal: "threshold")
Hermes
- Names: Mercury, Argus slayer, psychopompos ("conductor of the souls")
- Domains: messenger, trickster, commerce, thieves, travelers, boundaries
- Symbols: caduceus, winged sandals, winged hat
Dionysos
- Names: Bacchus, Father Liber
- Domains: wine, mania, theater, transitory state
- Symbols: thyrsos (grape wand), ivy, grapes, kantharos (cup), satyrs and maenads
Other gods
- Zeus' wives
  Themis (titan, "devine law"), Metis, Demeter
  - Maia: daughter of Atlas, mother of Hermes.
  - Metis("intelligence"): mother of Athena, swallowed by Zeus
- Amphitrite: wife of Poseidon, daughter of Nereus
- Asklepios (Aesculapius): son of Apollo, god of medicine.
- Charis (“Grace”): three goddesses. grace, beauty, elegance, good order, flourishing nature, joy.
- Charon: ferryman of the dead.
- Eileithyia: personification of childbirth.
- Eos: goddess of dawn. abducts ephebes: Tithonos.
- Moirai (Fates): Clotho, Lachesis, Atropos
- Ortygia: nurse of Apollo.
- Proteus/Nereus: the old man of the sea.
Ancient gods
- Boreas("north wind"): Hyperion (titan, "going above") => Eos ("dawn") => Boreas
- Eris("strife"): Nyx ("night") => Eris, 15 beings related to conflict and suffering
- Gaia/Ge("earth"):
  - Gaia + Ouranos: titans, kyklopes, hundred-handers
  - Gaia + Pontos: sea gods and sea monsters
  - Gaia + Tartaros: Typoon
- Nyx("night"): chaos => Nyx
- Ouranos/Uranus: suppresses offsprings by eating them, castrated by his son Cronos
- Pontos: sea. Pontos + Gaia => sea monsters and sea gods. Pontos alone => Nereus ("the old man of the sea")
- Tartaros: deep pit
- Zephyros("west wind"): Hyperion (titan, "going above") => Eos ("dawn") => Zephyros
Humans
- Adonis
- Agave/Agaue: doubted Semele's presence. punished by Dionysos.
- Aineias (Aeneas): son of Aphrodite and Anchises.
- Aktaion: saw Artemis bathing.
- Arachne: challenged Athena to weave, turned into a spider.
- Hesiod: a sheperd into a poet. Wrote Theogony under the inspiration of the muses.
- Hyakinthos: Apollo's Ephebe lover.
- Women/Ephebes seduced by Zeus.
  - Europa: bull. daughter of Agenor. sons: Minos, Rhadamanthys, Sarpedon
  - Lida: swan. queen of Sparta. daughter: Helen (w/ Zeus). sons: Polydeukes, Kastor (w/ Zeus, known as the Dioskouroi), Klytaimnestra.
  - Ganymede: trojan prince. replaces Hebe, Hera's daughter. erastes (lover) + eromenos (beloved)
  - Io: turned into a cow guarded by Argos.
  - Kallisto: follower of Artemis, expelled after found pregnant. turned into a bear by Hera. son: Arkas.
- Koronis: Apollo's lover, she betrayed her and was killed by Artemis.
- Marsyas: competed with Apollo to play instruments, punished.
- Orion: loved Artemis and tried to raped her. killed.
- Pythia: high priestess of the Temple of Apollo at Delphi
- Smyrna/Myrrha: mother of Adonis. transformed into a myrrha tree because she fell in love with her father.
- Teiresias: turned from man to woman then back. blined by Hera.
- Triptolemos: learned sewing, ploughing, reaping from Demeter.
Animals and monsters
- Amaltheia: the devine goat that nurtured Zeus on Crete. Turned into a star. Source of Zeus' aegis, which he shakes to induce terror in armies.
- Argos: the hundred-eyed monsters that guarded the cow Io turned into.
- Giant: created by the earth and the blood spilt when Ouranos was castrated. Fought giantomachy with Zeus. Defeated (barbarism defeated).
- Kyklopes: offsprings of Ouranos + Gaia. Zeus' ally during titanomachy. Forged Zeus' lightenings.

Keywords review for final

More concepts

Authropogony: humans are created.
Anthropomorphism: similar to personification; attaching human traits to animals or divine figures.
Autochthonous: from the land; related to local myths; contrast to migration or colonization.
Catasterism: constellation.
Katabasis: going down; to the underworld
Nostos: journey home
Oligarchy: ruled by a few, e.g. Thebes
Xenia: proper behavior of a guest; specified by Zeus

More places

Arcadia:
Names: Lykaon, Atalanta, Hermes
Argos:
Names: Danaos, Perseus, Io, wife of Polyneikes
Athens:
Names: Theseus, Aigeus, Medeia
Calydon:
Names: Oineus(king), Meleager
Corinth:
Names: Bellerophon, Sisyphos, Jason, Medeia, Kreon, Apsyrtos, Oidipous
Crete:
Names: Zeus, Pasiphae
Troizen:
Names: Theseus
Troy:
Names: Paris
rivers of the underworld
- Styx
- Acheron: Charon carries the dead who pay him an obol
- Lethe: forget
Elysian field: place for the heroes after they die

Monsters

Echidna: Half woman half serpent.
Offspring of Phorky and Keto. Wife of Typhon. Many monstrous offsprings:
- Chimera: three-headed beast with the head of a lion, head of a goat, and head of a serpent. killed by Bellerophon.
- Kerberos: three-headed hound of Hades.
- Lernaian Hydra: Lerna (swamp). multiple heads. heads burnt by Heracles -> poisonous arrows. the crab that pinched Heracles -> constellation Cancer.
- Sphinx: offspring of Oithos and Chimera. woman's head, lion's body, wings. defeated of Oidipous.
- Nemean Lion: offspring of Oithos and Chimera. skin that cannot be pierced, skinned w/ his own claws by Heracles. constellation Leo.
Sirens: part bird, part woman, beautiful voices that leads to death ("Muses of the underworld").
Promises eternal glory but you'll die. -> fame but fame after death.
Kill themselves when they fail to seduce the listeners??
- w/ Argonauts: Orpheus (son of a Muse) sang more beautifully; see story of Orpheus below.
- w/ Odysseus: tied to the ship; other crew members used wax.

Stories

The Argonauts

Who didn't go?
- Atalanta
- Theseus and Peirithoos
- Heracles: leave at some point??
The golden fleece
- from the golden flying ram that carried Phrixos and Helle, children of Athamas and Nephele ("cloud")
- Helle fell into the ocean (("Hellespont") and Phrixos was received by King Aietes
- the ram became a constellation Aries, golden fleece dedicated to Ares, guarded by a dragon
- see Kadmos' family and Medeia's family
The Argo: with Athena's help, built by Argos; material from Zeus' oak tree at Dodona.
Adventrues
- The Lemnian women: punished by Aphrodite; killed all the men; only woman who spared her father: Hypsipyle, exiled.
- Kyzikos: night battle; cult to Kybele.
- Amykos: son of Poseidon; boxing challenge; defeated by Polydeukes.
- Phineus: prophet, blinded by Zeus for oversharing information; Harpies (bird women) snatched off his food; Zetes and Kalais, sons of the North Wind, saved him.
- Clashing rocks: mouth of Bosporos (also the place that Io crossed); send a dove
- The East (Colchis): King Aietes sent them for impossible tasks
  - yoke fire-breathing bronze bull to plow
  - sow dragon's teeth
  - fight warriors that are grown from teeth
  Getting the fleece w/ Medeia's help: she killed her pet dragon, put the dragon to sleep.
  Escaping: Medeia killed her brother Apsyrtos and threw his body parts into the sea to slow down her father.
- Back to Greece:
  - death of Pelias: Medeia told Pelias' daughters that she could restore his youth (patricide)
  - Akastos exiled Jason and Medeia to Corinth ruled by King Kreon (Jason's cousin)
  - Medeia killed her children, remarried King Aigeus (Theseus' father); Jason dies alone

Calydonian Boar hunt

Atlanta
Abandoned by her father (different versions) because he wanted a son.
First blood in the Calydonian boar hunt, awarded the hide.
Defeated in a footrace w/ Hippomenes/Milanion, who threw golden apples to distract her. Married.
Meleager
The Moirai predicted that he would die when the log burned out. His mother Althaia hid it until he killed his uncle in the boar hunt. She burnt it and killed him. Then she killed herself.
Other people associated w/ Meleager:
- Tydeus: one of the seven against Thebes. Meleager's half-brother. He is also Polyneikes's brother-in-law.
- Deianeira: wife of Heracles. Meleager's sister.
Bellerophon
killed the Chimera w/ Pegasus.
Pegasus was born from Medusa's blood when Perseus cut off her head. Other version: Poseidon was his father.

The Trojan War

background story
- Troy: trickers
  - Laomedon: king of Troy; cheated Poseidon and Apollo to build the walls for Troy; cheated Heracles to save his daughter; killed by Heracles.
  - good looking and rich: Ganymede, Tithonos (Eos), Anchises (Aphrodite)
- wedding of Thetis and Peleus
  - Thetis: daughter of Nereus; Prometheus's oracle; shape changing ability
  - Peleus: wrestled w/ Thetis
  - Eris ("strife") not invited, so she sent the golden apple
- judgement of Paris
  - participants: Paris, Hermes, Hera, Athena, Aphrodite
  - Helen of Sparta: sister of Klytaimnestra; wife of Menelaos
characters
Greek
- Achilleus: son of Peleus and Thetis, raised by Cheiron; fire + Styx;
  Disguised as a girl on Skyros; revealed by Odysseus.
  Killed by Paris/Apollo; Odysseus got his armor, which led to Ajax the great killing himself.
  Patroklos: Achilleus' best friend, lover?? disguised as Achilleus during his withdrawal; killed by Hector
  Neoptolemos/Pyrrhos: Achilleus' son; sent to get Heracles' bow and arrows (from Philoktetes who was left on Lemnos)
- Odysseus: stories after the Trojan war
  - lotus eaters: forgetfulness of home/desires
  - Kyklopes: Polyphemos, son of Poseidon, blinded by Odysseus -> revenge from Poseidon; Outis ("no one")
  - Kirke: one year spent here; w/ help from Hermes not tranformed into animals
  - Teiresias: to peace Poseidon, leave again
  - Sirens: tied to ship
  - Skylla nad Charybdis: dog-head waisted, serpent tailed female; bottomless devouring
  - loss of companions due to greed and stress (bad behavior and bad leadership)
  - Kalypso ("the concealer"): daughter of Atlas; hid Odysseus for seven years
  - Phaiakians: gave Odysseus a ship to return home (Athena's help)
  - Penelope: deceived her suitors; w/ Athena's help, Odysseus disguised as an old man (recognized by his nurse, his son and his dog); Odysseus killed all the suitors w/ his bow
  - placate Poseidon's anger: journeyed inland w/ an oar
  - death of Odysseus: killed by his son w/ Kirke, Telegonos
- Nestor:
- Ajax the greater: only weakness: shoulder; stabbed himself in the shoulder and died because of Achilleus' armor
- Ajax the lesser: raped Poseidon's daughter in Athena's temple on the Greek's journey home -> double kill by both Poseidon (skewing) and Athena (lightnings)
- Protesilaos: first to jump off the ship, newly married to Laodamia; killed by Hector
- Palamedes: drafts unwilling Odysseus to war; Odysseus framed him for treason; stoned to death; avenged by his father Nauplios
Trojan
- Priam and Hekabe: king and queen of Troy; kids: Paris/Alexander, Hector, Cassandra
- Cassandra: Apollo's lover; cursed by Apollo to never be believed
- Hector: son of Priam and Hekabe; killed by Achilleus in revenge for Patroklos
- Aineias: son of Aphrodite and Anchises; escaped Troy and founded Rome
the trojan horse: nightime massacre; extremely bad events done by Neoptolemos -> hardship returning home
- death of Hector's son Asytanax
- death of Priam
- rape of Cassandra in Athena's temple
- human sacrifice of Polyxena

Hubris

In English: "excessive pride" vs In Greek: "outrage", "insolence", "arrogance", "excessive violence".
Hubris is a mal-functioning relationship between human and divine. Proper mode of interaction (animal sacrifice) -> no sacrifice or improper sacrifice.

Arachne: challenged Athena to weave, turned into a spider.
Bellerophon: positive: slayed the Chimera; refused to sleep with the wife of his host (behave well in human society)
negative: tried to reach Mt.Olympos with Pegasus.
Danaides: the fifty daughters of Danaos; killed their husbands (sons of Aigyptos, Danaos's brother); punished to fill up a jar w/ a hole.
Hypermnestra: spared her husband Lynkeus.
Erysichthon: chopped down the tree and the tree spirit ("Dryad") prayed to Demeter for vengeance; eternal hunger and ultimately ate himself.
Ikaros: flying is hubristic -> fallen into the Ikarion sea.
Daidalos: killed his nephew Perdix because Perdix was also skillful; built the Labyrinth for Minotaur on Crete; invented wax wings to escape Crete.
Ixion: offened Hera; tied to a spinning wheel forever.
Kassiopeia: boasted that Andromeda, her daughter, was more beautiful than the Nereids; Poseidon avenged them; Andromeda tied to a stone.
Lykaon: king of Arcadia; treated Zeus with human flesh; impiety towards human (killing them) and impiety towards gods (testing Zeus); entire household destroyed, turned into a wolf. Linos: one of the sons of Lykaon; killed by Zeus.
Marsyas: competed with Apollo to play instruments, punished.
Minos: vowed to sacrifice the bull to Poseidon but didn't; as a punishment his wife Pasiphae fell in love w/ the bull.
Niobe: mocked at Leto, Artemis and Apollo killed all her children.
Phaethon: human son of Helios; rode the chariot, struck by Zeus with his thunderbolt. aetiological stories for different climate (when he drove the chariot) and amber (his sisters cried over his fallen body and turned into trees that produced amber).
Sisyphos: tricked Death and claimed that he was cleverer than Zeus; punished to constantly push up a stone.
Tantalos: served his son Pelops; version 2: shared ambrosia and nectar w/ neighbors; eternal punishment -> tantalized.
Tityos: offened Leto; two vultures constantly picked out his liver.

Heroes

Shared features of heroes: dead; worshipped; divine percentage (don't fit in human society); greater but not necessarily better; passive greatness.
The race of heroes eventually die out (Trojan war as a wipe-out plan?)
Types of heroes:

foundation heroes: establish city, custom... e.g. Prometheus, Kadmos
civilizing heroes: overcome disorder; kill monsters... e.g. Perseus
traveling/questing heroes: tranform spacial boundaries; reach Hyperborea (far north), Hesperia (far west)... e.g. Jason
culture heroes: introduce a skill, craft, technology ("techne")...e.g. Triptolemos (sowing)

Hero worship (epichoric vs panhellenic):

heroon: a shrine for a hero, usually a tomb. ("niasma" -> pollution caused by the dead)
holocaust: whole burning; you shouldn't share food with the dead
blood libation

Perseus

main theme: Medousa, Andromeda
Birth and youth:
father: Zeus; mother: Danae, daughter of Akrisios, king of Argos -> shower of gold; sent off to sea; saved by fisherman Diktys ("net man"), whose brother Polydektes wanted to marry her.
Akrisios is the descendant of Io and Zeus

The quest of killing Medousa:

step 1: help from Hermes and Athena -> adamant sickle, bronze shield, advice
step 2: Graiai ("old women") -> sisters of Gorgons, shared one eye and one tooth; shared info
step 3: nymphs -> magic pouch (kibisis), cap of invisibility (Hades' hat? petasos?), winged sandals (Hermes' sandals?)
step 4: Gorgons -> far west; women with wings, tusks and beards; killed in her sleep; some versions met Atlas
step 5: Andromeda -> daughter of Kassiopeia (hubris) and Kepheus, king of Ethiopia; chained to a rock; saved by and married to Perseus. Her fiance, who was also her uncle, Phineus was turned into stone by Perseus.
step 6: back to Greece, everything returned (head of Medousa goes to Athena's aigis); killed Polydektes w/ Medousa's head
step 7: accidentally killed Akrisios (infected foot); left Argos and founded Mycenae -> great grandfather of Heracles

Heracles

main theme: twelve labors, apotheosis
Appearance: lionskin cloak, club (uncivilized), bow and arrow (civilized).
Characteristics: physical: strength, violence; sexual: endurance; appetite for food and wine
Games established: Olymbic games, Nemean games, Pythian games
Birth and youth:

mortal father: Amphitryon; divine father: Zeus; mother: Alkmene; Zeus disguised as Amphitryon before he came back from battle.
Hera's hatred: sent Eileithyia to delay his birth -> Eurystheus (his cousin) ruled Greece instead of Heracles. half-brother: Iphikles
Hera milked him -> aetiological story of the milky way.
Lyre teacher Linos (son of Apollo) smashed by Heracles
first wife Megara and their children smashed by Heracles

The ten/twelve labors and Parerga (side works): -> Delphi oracle

The Nemean Lion: w/ help from Athena; pierced the lion skin w/ its own claws. Nemean games. constellation Leo.
(not counted)Lernaian Hydra: w/ help from Iolao, who helped Heracles burnt the heads he chopped off. Since there is help this one isn't counted.
Erymanthian boar: brought to Eurystheus alive, who hid in a pithos. Chiron was killed by accident by an arrow during this event??
Keryneian hind: a deer sacred to Artemis, captured after year-long pursuit.
(not counted) Angeias' stables: change the courses of two rivers to wash it. King Angeias didn't pay so this one isn't counted. Killed by Heracles.
establishing the Olympic games??
Stymphalian birds: man-eating birds; shoots/strangles/frightens them off.
The Cretan bull: the bull of Minos and Poseidon; also the Marathonian bull killed by Theseus.
Diomede's mares: man-eating horses; Diomedes was fed to his horses.
Hipplyta's belt: Hera claimed that Heracles would snap their queen so Heracles had to kill her to get the belt.
Geryon's cattle: Heracles threatened Helios to use his golden bowl to cross the sea; killed Geryon (three-bodied man).
Golden apples: garden of Hesperides; either tricked Atlas or just smashed everything.
Antaios: son of Poseidon and Gaia; wrestled with Heracles and killed on his way to fetch the golden apples.
Kerberos: multi-headed dog of Hades; subdued without using weapons; Eurystheus hid in pithos.

After finishing the twelve labors, Heracles was enslaved by Omphale, queen of Lydia.
Hubris:

Apollo's tripod: Pythia refused to give Heracles an oracle, so he stole her tripod; origin of the Pythian game.
Helios' golden bowl
- he shot the sun so that Helios was threatened to give him his golden bowl.
- he shot the ocean because the golden bowl shook too much... lol that was kinda funny...no idea why though

Death and immortality:

death:
- Nessos abducts his wife Deianeira
- Deianeira uses Nessos' blood to make a love potion
- Heracles wears the poisoned cloak and dies
- Philoktetes and his father got his bow and arrows in return for lighting his funeral pyre.
immortality (apotheosis):
- golden apple of the Hesperides
- descent to the underworld
- defeat of death in a wrestling match
- defeat of old age
- purification through fire after mortal death
- marriage w/ Hebe after he became a god

Theseus

main theme: six labors, the Marathonian bull, Minotaur, underworld w/ Peirithoos
Birth and youth:

Athenian hero (vs Heracles: Panhellenic); born in Troizen, right across Athens.
mortal father: Aigeus; divine father: Poseidon; mother: Aithra, daughter of Pittheus, who decoded the oralce from Delphi.
Aigeus left him a sword and a pair of sandals.

Six labors (completed on his way from Troizen to Athens):
Most of them are killed the same way that they killed others.

Periphetes/Korynetes: the club wielder -> Theseus got his club after defeating him.
Sinis: the pine binder; died in the same way. his daughter married Theseus.
Phaia: a white-haired woman who owned the Krommyonian sow (a man-eating pig)
Skeiron: the foot washer; highway robber who forced people to wash his feet...
Kerkyon: the wrestler
Prokroustes: the bed stretcher.

In Athens:
Aigeus didn't recognize Theseus and Medeia tried to poison him.
Sent him to fight the Marathonian bull, aka, the Cretan bull, aka, the bull Pasiphae fell in love with.
Minos and Pasiphae's son Androgeos was killed by the Marathonian bull. As a result, Minos demanded human tribute from Athens for Minotaur.

On Crete (Knossos):
Story of Minos, Pasipahe, the Cretan bull, Minotaur.
Theseus volunteered to be one of the tributes. Killed the monster with help from Ariadne, who gave him a ball of thread to find his way out.
Theseus abandoned Ariadne on Naxos, who later became Dionysos' permanent wife.
Forgot to change sail from black to white, so Aigeus killed himself (Aegean sea).

Women abducted by Theseus:

Ariadne: daughter of Minos
Phaidra: Ariadne's sister. fell in love w/ Hippolytos (see below), and accused him of raping her, killed herself; to avenge her Theseus prayed to Poseidon who sent a bull to spook him to death.
Antiope/Hipplyta: the sister of the Amazonian queen/ the Amazonian queen; Athenian Amazonmachy
Hippolytosson of Theseus and Hipplyta; raised in Troizen; as an ephebe devoted to Artemis and rejected Aphrodite
Perigune: daughter of Sinis the pine binder.
Helen

Underworld and death:
Theseus and Peirithoos (king of Lapiths) abducted Persephone; punished by being tied to a chair in Hades.
Heracles rescued Theseus but not Pirithoos.

Families

Atlas' family

Iapetos: Zeus' cousin
Atlas: "endurer"; hold the sky in the far west
Prometheus: "foresight"; the trick at Mekone ("ekrinonto"): instructed human to trick Zeus (cover meat w/ innards, bones w/ fat; aetiology) -> function of sacrifice is to divide ("dais")
theft of fire (necessary for sacrifice, which allows communication w/ gods)
punishment: the caucasus mountain (far east)
we are descendants of Prometheus; see below Deukalion and Pyrrha
Epemetheus: "hindsight"
Pandora: "all gifts"; marries Epemetheus w/ a jar (pithos; significance of agriculture) of all evils and hope (is hope a good thing?)
Deukalion: son of Prometheus; survived the flood because of of their respect for the gods; shrine of Themis ("divine right"), oracle "bones of upir mother"
Pyrrha: Deukalion's wife; daughter of Pandora and Epemetheus
Hellen: "Greek man"; son of Deukalion and Pyrrha

Pelops' family

Pelops: threefold identities: son of Tantalos, brother of Niobe, eromenos of Poseidon; significant descendants: Agamemnon (grandson), Theseus (great grandson)
Oinomaos: king of Elis; requested chariot race (Olympic games), owned Ares' horses; his charioter (Myrtilos) was the son of Hermes, Pelops tried to bribe him but couldn't so he killed him.
Hippodameid: daughter of Oinomaos, wife of Pelops

Next generation: Pelops and Hippodameid's children

Atreus: exiled; his wife Pelopia slept w/ many men, including his brother Thyestes. Pelopia is a descendant of Minos, see below. Atreus killed Thyestes' son during the Thyestean Banquet.
Thyestes: exiled; raped his own daughter Pelopeia; the story of Atreus and Thyestes could be seen as vengeance of Hermes for killing his son.
Chrysippos: bastard son of Pelops; kidnapped by Laios; killed by his brothers

Next generation: Atreus and Thyestes' children

Agamemnon: son of Atreus; king of Mycenae; husband of Klytaimnestra; father of Iphigenia, Orestes, Elektra, Chrysothemis; leader of the Greek army in the Trojan war; killed by Klytaimnestra and Aigisthos
Klytaimnestra: daughter of Tyndareos and Leda; wife of Agamemnon; lover of Aigisthos; killed Agamemnon; killed by Orestes
Aigisthos: son of Thyestes; lover of Klytaimnestra; killed by Orestes
Helen: sister of Klytaimnestra; sister of the Dioskouroi; escaped to Egypt??
Menelaos: Atreus' son; brother of Agamemnon; husband of Helen of Sparta

Next generation: Agamemnon and Klytaimnestra's children

Iphigenia: sacrificed by her father to Artemis at Aulis
Orestes: matricide to avenge his father (Apollo's oracle), pursued by the Erinyes; trialed at Areopagos by the dikasts (jurors)

Kadmos' family

Kadmos: Europa's brother; received oracle from Delphi to build a city; killed the serpent of Ares w/ Athena's help and sowed their teech from which grew the Spartoi
Pentheus: offended Dionysos, torn by his mother Agave.
Aktaion: offended Artemis, torn by his dogs.
Learchos: offended Hera, torn by Ino and Athamas.
Laios: the only survivor of Kadmos' family -> see Oidipous' story below.

Oidipous' family

Antiope: raped by Zeus, exiled, persecuted by Dirke (female relative), her children revenged for her.
Amphion and Zethos: Amphion is a great Lyre player.
Laios: abducts Pelop's son Chrysippos, for which Pelops cursed his family and city.
Jocasta: great grand children of Pentheus.
Oidipous: raised by monarchs of Corinth; self-exiled from Corinth after he learned his oracle from Delphi; defeats Sphinx
fulfillment of the oracle: Teiresias accused Oidipous; Oidipous blinds himself and cursed his two sons
Polyneikes: "much strife"; exiled; married daughter of king Argos; initiated the seven against Thebes.
- Kapaneus: died of hubris to Zeus (thunderbolt)
- Amphiaraos: prophet; foresaw that everyone would die. swallowed by the ground and became an underworld prophet.
- Tydeus: more about him see above; hated because of cannibalism.
Eteokles: "glory"
Antigone: Oidipous' daughter; bury her brother Polyneikes against the order of the new king Kreon.

Jason and Medeia's family

Aiete's family: cursed by Aphrodite (on Helios' descendants); sister (Medeia) killed brother (Apsyrtos).
Pelias' family: cursed by Hera (for his mistreatment for Jason); daughter killed father (under the plot of Medeia).
Jason's family: cursed by Zeus; future bride at hands of children (future bride killed by Medeia).
Jason and Medeia's family: cursed by Zeus; mother killed children (Medeia killed her children).
Aigeus' family: father (Aigeus) almost killed son (Theseus) -> plot of Medeia.

Main Characters

Jason:
His uncle Pelias took his father Aison's throne. He was raised by Cheiron.
Carried Hera across a flooded river. Lost his sandal -> prophecy: Pelias sent him for the golden fleece.
Medeia:
daughter of Aietes, king of Colchis
Medeia killed Glauke and Kreon, and her own children
Medeia fled to Athens and married Aigeus, king of Athens
Aietes:
Medeia's father; king of Colchis; son of Helios; brother of Circe and Pasiphae.
Received Phrixos with his golden fleece.
His son Apyrtos was killed by his daughter Medeia.

Other Names

Midas: showed hospitality to a satyr, granted the wish to turn things into gold. Later washed away this boon in river (aetiological story why there is gold in that river).
Orpheus: son of Kalliope w/ Apollo/Oiagros, one of the Argonauts. marries Eurydike, who was bitten by a snake and died on their wedding day. descent to the underworld, looked back. withdrawn from society -> death. constellation: Lyra.
Three judges of the dead: Minos/Tripolemos, Aiakos, Rhadamanthys