Throughout history, many ancient cultures created stories involving great heroes and gods to explain certain aspects of their daily lives. These stories would form an important part of the culture’s religion and are referred to today as mythology. One great hero from ancient Greek mythology is Perseus. According to both ancient standards and today’s standards, Perseus would be seen as a great hero. The many actions that Perseus is said to have done in his adventures prove his heroism.
Perseus was born to Danae and the Greek god Zeus. Acrisius, the father of Danae, was told by the oracle of Apollo that Danae’s son would kill him. After finding out that Danae had her son, Perseus, Acrisius shut Perseus and Dane up in a large chest cast the chest out to sea. After a while out in the sea, they landed on the island of Seriphos, where they were saved by the king Polydectes’s brother, Dictys. Polydectes, after hearing about Danae, wanted her to marry him. In order to get rid of Perseus, so that no one would be able to stop him from marrying Danae, Polydectes came up with a plan. He pretended to be marrying the daughter of one of his friends and required everyone to bring him a wedding gift. Polydectes knew that Perseus, being very poor, would arrive empty-handed. Perseus vowed that he could bring Polydectes anything that he wanted and so Polydectes demanded Perseus to bring him the head of the gorgon Medusa, hoping that he would be killed. Perseus set off on his adventure to kill Medusa and while stopping to rest one night in an unknown land, Perseus realized how hopeless the adventure seemed to be. “Gorgons were horrible, instead of hair they had black serpents that writhed on their head, they had brazen hands that could...
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...his adventures. Both of them give Perseus something to help him in his adventure; from Athena the shield and from Hermes, the sandals and sickle. The god Dionysus ends up being the one to kill Perseus.
In conclusion, Perseus is one of the greatest heroes from ancient Greek mythology. According to both the ancient and modern definitions of what a hero is, the exploits and adventures of Perseus all make him fit into both standards of what a hero is.
Works Cited
Albright, Tommy. “Perseus.” San Diego State University Online. 6 January 2014
“The Concept of the Hero.” Harvard Online. 6 January 2014 .
“Oxford Dictionary.” Oxford Online. 6 January 2014 .
Greek mythology is a beloved part of literature that has given humans thousands of stories to tell. From stories about deadly quests, powerful deities, to the even more famed aspect of Greek Mythology, its epic heroes. One of the many authors who took inspiration from Greek Mythology, and will serve as reference for this paper, is Hamilton, Edith. Mythology. 1988. The most well known epic heroes from Greek Mythology which Edith Hamilton writes about in her book are Hercules, Jason, Perseus, and Theseus, but the debate lies in which of these heroes is the best. To which the answer is, Theseus is the better epic hero because he possessed superior strength, intelligence, and courage, he was the most just from all other heroes,
Odysseus has all the qualities made to be a true hero. Not only did Odysseus fight on behalf of the Greeks in Troy (Trojan War), but everything he went through he learned a valuable lesson at the end; Odysseus endured so much during his journey going back to Ithaca but he never gave up on any of his principles. He also had good escape strategies, and he risked his life to save others. Imagine you being on the same journey Odysseus went through, do you honestly believe you would have survived? He made some minor mistakes along the way but nobody’s perfect. That’s why Odysseus is a hero because, he’s strong, and intelligent and was able to get out of sticky situations.
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Many think being a hero is having super powers, but on the contrary it's more than that. A hero is one who is distinguished for their courage and bravery, and looked upon for their great deeds. A hero like this is not just found in modern society today, but in mythology as well. In the epic poem The Odyssey by Homer, Odysseus earns the title of a true hero by conveying many qualities such as: determination, courage and leadership.
His grandfather, is King of Argos, his name is Acrisius. Acrisius had a daughter named Danae, however he wanted a son. So in search for an answer towards having a son, Acrisius went to the Oracle of Delphi. The Oracle said that Acrisius’ daughter, Danae would be the one to carry a baby boy, but this child would kill Acrisius. To avoid his own death, Acrisius created an underground chamber to lock his daughter in, therefore, she would be unable to conceive a child. Little did Acrisius know that Zeus would shape shift into golden rain and conceive a child with Danae. Naturally, Danae gave birth to Perseus. When she was let out of this underground chamber Danae met Polydectes. Polydectes was determined to make Danae his wife and that is exactly what happened. Perseus was unable to grant his mother and Polydectes a gift, so he was told to bring back Medusa’s head. Perseus was successful in retrieving Medusa’s head. On his journey back home he met a beautiful Goddess who was in distress. Perseus saved her from a horrific sea monster and they instantly fell in love and wanted to be joined together in holy matrimony. However, Andromeda’s uncle was no too pleased with this decision. He wanted Andromeda only for himself. Therefore he planned to murder Perseus but was unsuccessful since Perseus had the advantage of Medusa’s head. Perseus showed Andromeda’s uncle Medusa’s face and he then was turned to stone. When he returned home with the gift, he found out Polydectes was abusing his mother. Instead of giving him the present he used it against Polydectes and turned him to stone as well. Acrisius became aware of what Perseus was capable of doing so he decided to flee. Although that didn’t help as much as he believed it would. Perseus and his grandfather ran into each other at the Games Ceremony, in Larissa. When Perseus went to throw the discus it slipped from his grasp and clashed into his grandfather’s head, killing
In Ancient Greece, the culture and daily life was based on mythological tales. These stories told tales from slaying a gorgon to going to the underworld to visit Hades; lord of the underworld. In many epics there was a hero born from noble birth, who went on adventures as far as the mythological underworld. Perseus from the epic Perseus, was a hero, more hero than any other Grecian man. He met all 9. "Epic Hero" criteria, but the three that really stick out, is he was born from a noble birth, he had slain a gorgon(Medusa), and he had slain Medusa out of pride and poverty. Perseus met all these criteria in a way no other hero does from an epic.
Odysseus, the protagonist of the Odyssey by Homer fits the outline of an epic hero because he is courageous, quick-witted, and a natural leader. Odysseus isn’t only known for his muscles, also his clever mind. He is one of the great heroes that possesses both brains and brawn. He is also a hero with outstanding skill and bravery. It is no wonder why many teachers refer to Odysseus as a powerful hero. I believe Odysseus is a hero because he is clever, can overcome obstacles, is very brave, a leader but like all great heroes, he has his weaknesses.
The settings are the Grey Sisters Place, some place with Athena, island of the Gorgons, Into the air, and Atlas’s island. The settings are different because it has more than Perseus. The events are that Perseus was sent off the quest, He then gets a lot of gifts after that he goes to see the Grey sisters and steals their eye then goes to see Atlas she gives him the hat of darkness. After that goes to Medusa’s cave and he cuts off Medusa’s head, he escapes Medusa's sisters. The event is different because he has a lot of things to do before going and killing medusa and in the poem Perseus he just got a shield and cut her head.
The archetypal hero cycle is a series of 17 steps, which explain a hero’s journey from his initiation up until he gains his freedom to live. As explained by Campbell in his book, The Hero With A Thousand Faces, the hero cycle is a series “of three phases, including the departure… initiation,… and the return” (Handout). These phases of initiation, departure and return break down the 17-stepped hero cycle into smaller, more specific segments, which are included in those three main phases. Following the guidelines that Campbell set in place Perseus is the epitome of an archetypal Greek hero. With the blood of both gods and royalty, Perseus was brought up in a rich environment where he would eventually grow into his destiny. From the moment Perseus left his home, his hero cycle had already begun. Perseus’ hero cycle would not be finished until the young royal returned home and completed his 17 steps.
Perseus grew up to be a strong fearless lad. One day he claimed to King Polydectes, “Oh, Host and Benefactor, I owe you too much gratitude to repay you with the common gift of a horse. I shall bring you the head of Medusa!”(Evslin.110) Perseus set off for his mission, he encountered the gray sisters and the apple nymphs forcing them to give him information about Medusa’s location. Then he went to Medusa with three gifts from the apple nymphs: a sword, a shield, and the Cap of Darkness. Successfully Perseus killed Medusa and while bringing Medusa’s head towards the island of Sephiros. He encountered a sea serpent who was creating trouble by the nearby town of Cepheus. Perseus drew out Medusa’s head and turned the sea serpent into stone. Throughout Perseus’s mission he encountered many obstacles and he handled each challenge in a smart and clever way, unlike King
A hero is a person with great strength or courage. Odysseus portrays a true hero in The Odyssey. He is the true hero of this epic because he has saved his men on many occasions using his cunning behavior and vast intellect. It shows he has the courage of a true hero.
The novel Persepolis, written by Marjane Satrapi, portrays a diverse amount of symbolism throughout the novel which contributes to the protagonist developing into a young women. The main character, Marji Satrapi flourishes at an early age in her life due to the setting of the novel. Satrapi acquires knowledge about different insights of the Iranian government which constitutes her self judgement. Satrapi reckons that the individuals that make up the population of Iran should all support the idea of the government before the ministry of Iran can commence a war. “For a revolution to succeed the entire population must support it" (Satrapi 17). Marji expresses that the revolution will vanish due to many individuals not supporting
In the 1981 clash of the Titans movie the King Acrisius of Argo imprisons his daughter Danei *Danaë because he is jealous of her beauty. The god Zeus visits her and makes her pregnant. King Acrisius in a fit of rage puts Danae and the baby, Perseus, to sea in a wood coffin. Angry, Zeus kills Acrisius and orders the god Poseidon to release the giant sea monster the Kraken to destroy Argos. Perseus survives, but his mother doesn’t, his journey by floating to the island of Seriphos where he grows up.
Aegus, Theseus’s father, commands him to go to Athens. Theseus becomes determined to choose the perilous land passage from the peloponnesus across the Isthmus of corinth to Athens and had to face different types of enemies. “Theseus made land travel safe between Troezen and Athens and earned fame and honour”(Roseberg & Baker 246). Theseus confidence not only allows him to accomplish finishing the dangerous passage, he also made two easy ways to get there. Perseus meets a beautiful girl name Andromeda. Andromeda explains how the lord of the sea sends a ravenous sea monster upon their land. “I will rescue your daughter, in return Andromeda will be my wife” (206). Perseus was confident that he would defeat the monster. Knowing that her life would have had to be sacrificed, Perseus was confident in his abilities and is aware of his own strength which leads him to be positive in the defeat of the monster. Although Perseus is
Hades shows himself to Perseus and with the rage of what Hades has done to Perseus, Perseus grabs a lighnting bolt from his sword and throws it at Hades sending him back to the underworld. Saving Andromeda and she offered to make him king and he had refused. Zeus asked if he wanted to join him in Olympus but refused and requested to stay a demi-god but Zeus granted him Io as a companion. In the story according to the Greeks Danae is the daughter of King Acrisius. When he had them put in a box and thrown into the ocean and saved by the fisherman named Dictys they both were still alive and Danae ended up falling in love with Dictys and they were married. Dictys’ brother King Polydectes wanted to take Danae as his wife, Perseus hearing the news he offered to pay any price for his mother not to marry King Polydectes. Sense Polydectes was afraid of Perseus he quickly made an offer that he will allow his mother to stay married to Dictys, only if he brings back the head of Medusa. Bravely, Perseus accepted his