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Athenas impact in greek mythology
Athena, Aphrodite
Athenas impact in greek mythology
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I AM ABOUT TO WRITE A BOMB PAPER ON ATHENA. One of the people regarded to be the most wise said regarding issues with someone, “To praise is not enough, I should have praise myself, not suffer my divinity to be despised unscathed” (Kolphone) proved to also be incredibly arrogant and quick to anger. This person was the Goddess Athena. Many of the greek gods could cause problems both with the people they protected and with each other. Their conflicts, whether won or lost, are part of what formed greek culture. The gods gave the Greek morals to follow and tools to aid daily life. Out of the many gods few are remembered today, like Athena. The ones remembered are the most influential of them all. Athena is one of the most influential and recognized gods of Greek mythology for giving the people both her position as a goddess, the morals or rules she taught through her actions, and innovations to for work and pleasure.
Athena’s birth had some impact on society, although, nobody is completely knowledgeable on exactly how she was born. The only constant to the story is that Zeus, her father, had a headache. She then burst from his skull full grown and complete with armor. The story is also told with a brother of Athena, Hephaestus, sees Zeus in pain and splits his head open with an axe (Tuccinardi). She is sometimes said to have no mother, which isn’t true according to other sources. Her mother could have also been Metis. Before Zeus married Hera he was involved with Metis. It’s unclear whether they were married or not. Zeus had to swallow Metis according to a prophecy that she’d bear a son who would overthrow him, then head a headache (Atsma). Her birth shows no matter who her parents were, she was still a successful goddess. Athena ...
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...at the nymphs would crowd her while she worked to see her amazing grace. Lydia refused to give Athena credit for teaching her to weave. Athena is not someone you don’t give credit to for she has a large ego to match her divinity. She went as on old woman in disguise to tell Lydia to give credit for her ability, but the young girl lashed out at her and challenged Athena to compete unknowingly. THey each wove a tapestry of their own. When they were finished Lydia’s was just as good as Athena’s and this enraged her. She tore up both tapestries and Lydia hung herself in fear of her fate. Athena commanded her to live then turned her into a spider saying she could weave all she wanted now (Kolophon). While her actions were harsh they did show the people that you must always give credit when it is needed or you may suffer some sort of consequence, like Arachne did. Athena
Athena’s interesting life started by a very strange birth. When Athena’s mother Metis was impregnated, Athena’s father, Zeus, swallowed her. (2) Soon Zeus had great head pains, so he got Hephaestus to cut open his head with an axe. (5) When he sliced open Zeus’s head, Athena emerged fully grown and with a set of armor on. (2) Even though Zeus had many other children, Athena became his favorite. (8) She had many half brothers and sisters to compete against for this title including Hermes, Hephaestus, Apollo, Ares, Hebe, Artemis, Aphrodite, Persephone, and Tityus. (3)
While working, there were people who would come from remote areas and watch her weave skillfully. On page 19, the text says, “If Athene herself were to come were to come down and compete with me, she could do no better than I.” Her bold action was challenging Athene, a goddess, to a weaving competition. Additionally, on page 19, “Arachne herself flushed red for a moment, for she had really believed that the goddess would hear her.” Arachne took an action that could possibly embarrass herself. During their competition, Arachne had designed “a pattern of which showed evil or unworthy actions of the gods, how they had deceived fair maidens, resorted to trickery, and appeared on earth from time to time in the form poor and humble people.” and Athene had designed “a border of twined branches of the olive, Athene’s favorite tree, while in the middle, figures began to appear. As they looked at the glowing colors, the spectators realized that Athene was weaving into her pattern a last warning to Arachne.” Athene had created that embroidery to warn Arachne, and Arachne made an embroidery to disgrace the goddess. Arachne’s bold action caused Athene to be angry and then turned Arachne into a spider. Arachne’s consequence for her bold action was her descendants and herself to turn into
Athena, the Greek goddess of both wisdom and war, is often considered the craftiest of all Olympian gods. She was born of a headache, and erupted from Zeus’ head fully armed and ready for battle. However, beside all this pomp, she is a rather caring, if war-loving, immortal. Throughout the entirety of The Odyssey she conveys an entirely platonic, almost motherly love for Odysseus. It is this that makes her significant character in Homer’s work. In The Odyssey, Athena is portrayed as a, if not the, major female figure throughout the entire epic poem. With her affection for Odysseus and her frequent appearances she plays a major role throughout the entire poem. Evidence of this integral role will be presented as proof of her importance to the story.
Women in ancient Greek times did not have equal or political rights. Athena and Antigone, who were both very heroic women went above and beyond the stereotypical woman. In society today, women are still not looked as an equivalent to men. Athena and Antigone share the Greek heroic traits of honor, perseverance, and of living in a higher class. In Sophocles’ Greek tragedy, Antigone, and Homer’s epic, The Odyssey, the female characters, Antigone and Athena are not solely traditional female characters, instead, they embody the heroic characteristics, honor, perseverance, and high social standing.
Athena was the goddess of war and wisdom. Daughter of Zeus and Metis, but born from only Zeus. Gaea the Earth goddess told Zeus that his child would u...
Athena is a very intricate and complex character who has a vital role in the epic poem. She is the Goddess of war and battle, a very interesting role for a female to possess. Because she is the Goddess of war, she has...
Ultimately, Athena has a great effect on all three of the main characters within The Odyssey. She is the one who finally sets in motion the return of the great warrior king Odysseus and helps him attain revenge on the suitors once he arrives in Ithaka. Athena helps to make Telemakhos brave and hopeful for his father to return home, giving him the courage and direction he lacked without his father for the first twenty years of his life. Even Penelope received help from the grey-eyed goddess in finding ways to protect herself from the advances of the suitors. Reading the classic epic poem The Odyssey, one can see how the great goddess Athena's relationship with Odysseus, Telemakhos as well as Penelope exemplifies how she impacted everyone she came across.
As a resident on Mount Olympus, Athena rightfully represents both intelligence and strategy (Grant, Hazel 83). Symbols that identify with the goddess include the owl for wisdom and the olive branch for peace (Athena or Minerva… 1). Athena was a goddess of war who preferred peace to fighting (Lies 47). The deity was depicted in full wartime armor, including a helmet and spear. However, despite her rough accessories, Athena also showed off extreme femininity in her clothing as well as features (Buxton 79). Athena was Zeus’s favorite daughter. Zeus, the king of the gods, allowed her to dress in his Aegis (Lies 47). The Aegis was a breastplate made of goatskin that bore the image of a gorgon to instill panic in foes (Buxton 79). She was born fully-grown and already dressed in her full outfit, ready for war. Furthermore, Athena was the only Olympian not born of a mother. She sprang directly from her father, Zeus’s, head (Lies 47). She was different from the others of her kind, which may be why she was so honored so highly in early Greece.
The Mark of Athena, written by Rick Riordan, is a thrilling, suspenseful, and action packed book about seven demigods going on a dangerous quest to save the world. The seven main characters are Percy, the son of Poseidon, Jason, the son of Zeus, Annabeth, the daughter of Athena, Piper, the daughter of Aphrodite, Frank, the son of Mars, Leo, the son of Hephaestus, and Hazel, the daughter of Pluto. All of these seven demigods are a mix between Roman and Greek demigods. Since ancient history, the Romans and Greeks have hated each other. But in order to complete their quest, both Romans and Greeks must overcome their differences. The plot summary of the story starts out with Leo. As an eidolon, a possessing Greek spirit, takes over his body, he starts attacking the Roman camp. This action destroyed the little trust and respect that the Romans had for the Greeks. However, this was Gaea’s doing. Gaea is one of the oldest goddesses of all. She plans to take over the world and destroy mankind. Stopping this awakening goddess is the main mission for these demigods. As the demigods sail to the...
To summarize Athena’s love as an angel to Odysseus and his family, she managed everything in her power to bring him back home. She helps him to defeat all the suitors who destroyed his house. It is kind of Athena has devoted her all life to Odysseus and his family.
The people of Greece believed in mythology and believed they were blessed by the deity which inspired the artists’ creation of the spectacular sculptures including Athena Parthenos, the goddess of wisdom. Wisdom during this period was highly regarded. Most of the sculptures in Athens were made of different types of bronze. (See Figure 1.)
Mythology was very important to the men and women of ancient Greece. They worshipped the gods and goddesses, wrote poems about them, and based a great deal of art work off of them. The people of Greece looked to the gods and goddesses for help in all aspects of their lives; including health, agriculture, and war. Reading about Greek mythology can inform people about the society of Greece itself because the Greek gods were created by the people of Greece. Three main goddesses who were worshipped by the Greeks were Hera, Athena, and Aphrodite. These three goddesses represent three different types of women in Greek society. Sarah Pomeroy, author of Goddesses, Whores, Wives, and Slaves, believed that “the goddesses are archetypal images of human females, as envisioned by males” (8). Pomeroy understands the significance in the differences between Hera, Athena, and Aphrodite, and what those differences meant for the women of Greece who were required to follow three important rules. The first rule was for the women to live a life of domesticity and motherhood. This was very important to the men in the society. The women were the only ones able to bear children. Also, if they were forced to stay in the house, men could keep a greater control on their wives, and not have to worry about them having affairs. The second important trait was virginity until marriage. Its importance to the Greek culture lied in the fear of a woman’s power. The men of the society felt it best that a woman remained a virgin until she was married; however this same attribute was not required of a man. Their belief can be explained by this quote written by P. Walcot in the article “Greek Attitudes Towards Women: The Mythological Evidence”: “The Greeks believed women...
An ancient history website states that “Athena was a major protagonist in Homer’s account of the Trojan War in the Illiad where she supports the Achaeans and their heroes, especially Achilles, to whom she gives encouragement and wise counsel. " Athena is first shown in the Illiad when Agamemnon threatens to go to Achille’s tent in the camp and take Biseis himself. Along side Hera and Poseiden, Athena tended to help the Greek side during the war. With the help from others, Athena comes up with the idea of a Trojan horse and that the warriors hide inside the horse and that the horse would be brought into the city and given as a gift.
The Odyssey brought to light many Mythological characters, as important as Odysseus was I don’t believe the poem would have had as much meaning if Athena wasn’t in it. Athena was known for her reasoning and strategic skill. She knew when to sit and watch and when to intervene. With Athena around, many had the ability to be someone they normally weren’t in both good and bad ways. Athena came to Odysseus, Penelope and Telemachus at different times for different reasons.
When Arachne was working on her loom, the whole world would stop to marvel at her wonderful talent. They said that the goddess of art herself, Athena, must have taught her. Arachne was proud of her work. Maybe even a little too proud, since when she heard the people say that she had learned from Athena, she became angry and bragged that her weaving was even better than Athena’s. News of Arachne’s bragging reached Athena, and she grew angrier than a hornet.