CLAS220 - Lecture Notes for March 15, 2012

Introduction to Classical Mythology

Dr. Michael Broder

University of South Carolina

March 15, 2012

Please write your Daily Write on a complete

sheet of paper, not a half sheet, and not a sheet with other Daily Writes

already on it.Violators will be docked 1 point no matter how good

their answer is.

If you leave the room early, I will ask for your

name and deduct 1 point from your Daily Write.

If it’s an emergency we can discuss it at another time.

But I know it is usually NOT an emergency. And I will not tolerate it without a penalty.

Daily Write #15: Review

At Herakles 1223, Theseus scolds Herakles for threatening suicide, saying, “Threats are no use, the gods don’t care.” Why do you think Theseus believes that the gods don’t care? Don’t you think he knows how the gods helped Greek heroes like Odysseus? Do you think Theseus’s attitude might have something to do with the Greek invention of history? If so, how? If not, please offer an alternate explanation.


• Why do you think Theseus believes that the gods don’t care?– Because he sees no evidence of their

concern; they either • Treat mortals badly, or• Are not involved in human affairs at all

• Don’t you think he knows how the gods helped Greek heroes like Odysseus?– Yes, he does, but he thinks the gods are

whimsical, arbitrary, and petty rather than fair


• Do you think Theseus’s attitude might have something to do with the Greek invention of history?– Some said yes, some said no

• If so, how?– Theseus believes that human events are the

result of human action, not divine intervention, similar to historians like Herodotus and Thucydides

• If not, please offer an alternate explanation.– Theseus believes that the gods are petty,

arbitrary, self-involved, and unfair, and this has nothing to do with the Greek invention of history

Daily Write #16

In the traditional myth of Herakles, the hero is driven mad by Hera, kills his wife and children, and must complete a series of labors to atone for his crime. Euripides changes this order of events. E.A. Haigh, in The Tragic Drama of the Greeks (1896), explains that by Euripides’ change, “The legend acquires a new significance, as an example of pathetic and unmerited suffering, and of stubborn endurance in the face of calamity.” What do you think of this interpretation? Can you think of any other reason(s) for making the madness and murders come after the labors instead of before?

Histories: Identification

• Author = Herodotus– Greek– c. 480-c. 420 BCE

• Title = Histories• Genre = History,

historiography, prose

History of the Peloponnesian War:

Identification• Author = Thucydides

– Greek– c. 460-c. 400 BCE

• Title = History of the Peloponnesian War

• Genre = History, historiography, prose

Mythology vs. History

• Two distinct types of knowledge about the past– Mythology = Knowledge of past

events through traditional stories– History = Knowledge of past events

through inquiry and research

Why do ancient Greek historians like Herodotus and

Thucydides refer to mythological people and events like Paris, Helen,

Agamemnon, and the Trojan War?

Because history cannot escape its mythological

past!

History’s Encounter with Myth

• Herodotus includes mythological stories of Io, Europa, Medea, and Helen in his account of the Persian Wars

• Thucydides locates the growth of Athenian naval power in the context of the Trojan War and Agamemnon’s leadership of the Greek forces

Important Distinctions Between Mythology and

History• Mythology

– Based on traditional stories

– Based on oral tradition– Favors poetry (epic, lyric)– Favors supernatural

explanations (gods, divine intervention in human affairs)

– Lacks a clear timeline• When the world began• When gods came into

being• When humans came into

being• When events happened

• History– Based on inquiry &

research– Written (not oral)– Prose (not poetry)– Favors rational

explanations (natural events, human actions)

– Has a clear timeline• Persian Wars took place

in 490 and 480 BCE• Peloponnesian War took

place from 431-404 BCE• Specific dates of battles

and other key events are known

Something to think about…

Are various texts we have read the products of a

historical society or of a pre-historical society?

Timeline of Authors & Texts

Homer, Odyssey (c. 750 BCE)Hesiod, Theogony (c. 700 BCE)

Archilochus (c. 680–c. 645 BCE)Semonides (c. 650 BCE)Homeric Hymn to Aphrodite (c. 650 BCE)Sappho (c. 620–c.570 BCE)Simonides (c. 556 -468 BCE)Homeric Hymn to Demeter (c. 525 BCE)Xenophanes (c.570 – c.475 BCE)Pindar (c. 522–443 BCE)Herodotus (c. 484–c. 425 BCE)Thucydides (c. 460 BC – c. 395 BCE)

Historical

Pre-historical

Homer, Odyssey (c. 750 BCE)Hesiod, Theogony (c. 700 BCE)

Archilochus (c. 680–c. 645 BCE)Semonides (c. 650 BCE)Homeric Hymn to Aphrodite (c. 650 BCE)Sappho (c. 620–c.570 BCE)Simonides (c. 556 -468 BCE)Homeric Hymn to Demeter (c. 525 BCE)Xenophanes (c.570 – c.475 BCE)Pindar (c. 522–443 BCE)Herodotus (c. 484–c. 425 BCE)Thucydides (c. 460 BC – c. 395 BCE)

Notice that Notice that the the pre-pre-historical historical authors authors and texts and texts include include both both epicepic and and lyriclyric poets.poets.


Historical

Pre-historical

So what happens to mythology after the Greeks invent

history?

So what happens to mythology after the Greeks invent

history?

Mythology takes refuge in Greek tragedy!

Greek Tragedy

• Plays that combine dramatic action with song and dance

• For the Greeks, playwriting was a competitive activity

• Plays were performed at the Dionysia, an annual festival in honor of Dionysus, the god of wine

• The actors’ salaries were paid for by the public treasury

• The singers, dancers, musicians, and costumes were paid for by a wealthy citizen called a choregos

We have complete plays by three Greek tragic

playwrights• Aeschylus (c. 525–456 BCE)• Sophocles (c. 496–406 BCE)• Euripides (c. 480–406 BCE)

Semonides (c. 650 BCE)Homeric Hymn to Aphrodite (c. 650 BCE)

Sappho (c. 620–c.570 BCE)Simonides (c. 556 -468 BCE)Homeric Hymn to Demeter (c. 525 BCE)Xenophanes (c.570 – c.475 BCE)Pindar (c. 522–443 BCE)Aeschylus (c. 525–456 BCE)Sophocles (c. 496–406 BCE) Herodotus (c. 484–c. 425 BCE) Euripides (c. 480–406 BCE)Thucydides (c. 460 BC – c. 395 BCE)

Notice Notice where the where the Greek Greek tragic tragic playwrights playwrights fall on the fall on the pre-pre-historical / historical / historical historical timeline!timeline!


Historical

Pre-historical

Herakles: Identification

• Author = Euripides– Greek– (c. 480–406 BCE)

• Title = Herakles• Genre = Tragedy, tragic play,

tragic drama

Upcoming Assigments

• 3/13—Euripides, Herakles (in Grief Lessons)

• 3/15—Overview of underworld myths– No assigned reading

• 3/20—Euripides, Alkestis (in Grief Lessons)

Introduction to Classical Mythology

Dr. Michael Broder

University of South Carolina

March 15, 2012

CLAS220 - Lecture Notes for March 15, 2012

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