Gods and Goddesses:
After two different Greek reading units, I have now ready
many stories that involve the gods and goddesses. The first unit I read was an
Ovid unit and most of the stories involving gods and goddesses were based on
misconduct by Jupiter. This week I read Homer’s Iliad and the stories
focused much more on intervention by the gods and provided some insight into
how humans are viewed by the gods.
The main impression I gathered from this weeks stories are
that the gods and goddesses almost act as though humans are just a form of
entertainment for them. They seem almost humored by watching humans and knowing
they can change the course of any sequence if they so wish. They also seem to
have very laid back personalities, but also seem to pick sides. In What Thetis did for her Son, Hera very clearly is on the side of the Greeks and
in multiple stories Apollo takes action to help the Trojans.
The entire story was full of instances in which the gods
interacted with humans. First was Zeus allowing the Trojans to battle well
after Achilles’s mother went to him begging for his help. In this instance Zeus
intervened because a woman who had previously helped him was begging him.
Apollo intervened multiple times, helping Hector both kill Patroclus and run
from Achilles. We are never really given a reason as to why Apollo is so
vehemently assisting the Trojans. The last major example of intervention was Athene
tricking Hector so Achilles could kill him. Athene helped Achilles through much
of the story but we also don’t have a distinct reason for her intervention
either.
There are not many examples of the gods interacting with
each other, except for when deciding what a human’s fate will be. The best
comparison I can think of is that they all act like a family together.
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| Thetis begs Zeus to help Achilles. (Jean Auguste Dominique Ingres) |
Bibliography:
Not only do I find it interesting that the gods interacted with the humans for their own enjoyment, but there are several instances in Greek mythology where the gods come down as random objects/animals. Personally, I feel as though the gods were really dramatic and would have been incredibly bored if they were stuck up there with just each other. To have happiness we must have misery. Great Job!
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