Storytelling 1.What is the role of storytelling in a culture? 2.What does a culture’s traditional stories tell us about them? 3.Does traditional storytelling.

Storytelling

1. What is the role of storytelling in a culture?2. What does a culture’s traditional stories tell

us about them?3. Does traditional storytelling still have a

place in our society?

Myth • Myth is a traditional story, rooted in a

particular culture, that usually explains a belief, a ritual, or a mysterious natural phenomenon.

• Myths are essentially religious because they are concerned with the relationship between humans and the unknown spiritual realm.

Greek Myths

• Revolve around the gods and goddesses

http://www.history.com/videos/greek-gods

The Olympians

Mount Olympus, Greece

The Olympians Are the 12 Main Gods

1. Zeus, Chief of the Gods

• aka Jupiter

• sky and thunder

• married to Hera

• fathered MANY children

2. Hera, Queen of the Gods• aka Juno

• marriage and family

• married to Zeus

• very jealous

3. Poseidon, God of the Sea

• aka Neptune

• sea and earthquakes

• Brother of Zeus

• violent mood swings

4. Demeter, Goddess of the Harvest

• aka Ceres

• fertility, agriculture, nature & seasons

• mother of Persephone

• very close to the people

5. Athena, Goddess of Wisdom

• aka Minerva

• wisdom & warfare

• sprang from Zeus’s head

6a. Hestia, Goddess of the Hearth

• aka Vesta

• hearth & home

• bless food

6b. Dionysus, God of Wine

• aka Bacchus

• vine, wine & theater

• drunkard

7. Apollo

• aka Apollo

• light, truth, poetry, prophecy, & music

• twin of Artemis

• ideal man

8. Artemis, Goddess of Hunting

• aka Diana

• moon, hunt, maidens, wild creatures

• twin of Apollo

9. Ares, God of War

• aka Mars

• war, violence & bloodshed

• son of Zeus & Hera

• cruel, hated

10. Aphrodite, Goddess of Love and Beauty

• aka Venus

• love, beauty & desire

• sprang from white beauty of seafoam

• married to Hephaestus

• many affairs

11. Hephaestus, God of Metalworking

• aka Vulcan

• forge & fire

• son of Zeus & Hera

• ugly, peace-loving

12. Hermes, Messenger of the Gods

• aka Mercury

• guide dead souls

• son of Zeus

• mischievous & clever

Other Gods and

Goddesses

Helios, Sun God

Hades, God of the Underworld

• aka Pluto

• Lord of dead, does not kill

• Kidnapped Persephone

Persephone, Goddess of Spring

• aka Proserpine

• springtime

• daughter of Zeus & Demeter

• forced to be queen of dead

Epic • An epic poem is a long narrative poem that

“tells of the adventures of a hero who in some way embodies the values of his civilization”– A physically impressive hero of national or

historical importance– A vast setting encompassing much of the known

physical world and sometimes the Land of the Dead

– A quest or journey undertaken in search of something of value

– The involvement of supernatural forces– Glorification of (deification) the hero at the end– A basis in a specific culture or society

How Epics Were Told

• Epics were told orally.• They followed basic story lines and incorporated formulaic

descriptions. • Most of the words were improvised to fit a particular rhythm or

meter.• Begin with an invocation to the muse

• Minstrels had to be VERY talented• “Formulas”

– Homeric epithets: compound adjective regularly used to modify a particular noun (gray-eyed goddess Athena)

– Homeric/epic similes: compare heroic/epic events to everyday things

3,000 years ago….

• in Ancient Greece, people sat around and told stories about the great Trojan war

• Later, a man named Homer gathered all these stories together into 2 great epics which became the Iliad and the Odyssey

Homer

• Later Greeks say he was a blind minstrel• Scholars say he’s a legend• Either way, he’s a model for the Rhapsodes –

the traveling minstrels/mythmakers of the time

The IliadTells the story of the ten-year battle at Troy.

According to Homer, thiswar “was fought betweenthe people of Troy and an alliance of Greek kings…caused by sexual jealousy: The world’s most beautiful woman, Helen, abandoned her husband, Menelaus, a Greek king, and ran off with Paris, a prince of Troy” (640). http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dkTXVFRBUpc

Reflect

Paris is a greedy young man, and much is made of the fatal repercussions of his greed. Is Helen equally guilty, or is she a victim? Explain your answer, and include at least one example each of an adverb and an adjective phrase.

Helen of Sparta/Troy• Zeus had relations with a mortal

woman and Helen, the “most beautiful woman on earth”, was born

• Helen married Menelaus, king of Sparta

• Paris, young Trojan prince, fell in love with her and carried her away

• Menelaus got help from brother Agamemnon and others

• Launched 1,000 ships to Troy– “the face that launched a

thousand ships”• Fought for 10 years but couldn’t

get past walls

Wooden Horse Trick• Odysseus’s idea• Built big wooden horse

with hollow belly• Left outside gates;

pretended to sail away• Trojans brought into

city• At night, Greeks

crawled out of it, opened gate, and slaughtered

The Odyssey• In brief: the Odyssey is

“the story of the attempt of one Greek soldier, Odysseus, to get home after the Trojan War” (640).

Odysseus: A Hero in Trouble

• Tried to draft-dodge by acting insane – they threw his baby in front of the plow, and he had to reveal his sanity to save his baby

• Left wife (Penelope) and 2 year old son (Telemachus) at home to fight

• Hero in Trojan War – thought of famous Wooden Horse trick

• Now, he just wants to get home