essay about myth

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Write an essay of between 1500 and 2000 words arguing for a position on one of the topics listed below. You should be able to discuss the topics using only the texts and your class notes, without using secondary material, but secondary research using scholarly material is certainly welcome. GENERAL INSTRUCTIONS Plan your argument around a central thesis that is supported by evidence from the relevant texts. Note that your thesis should not be merely a rephrasing of the question as a statement; the thesis should be a specific and detailed answer to the question. Give your essay a title that indicates something about its content. Note that the questions below are NOT themselves titles, and they should not be used as if they were titles. Observe these conventions when citing sources: for Hesiod’s Theogony, use the parenthetical system and refer to line numbers (for example, Hes. Theog. 34-48); for the Homeric Hymns, use the parenthetical system and refer to page numbers within Anthology of Classical Myth (for example, Hom. Hymn. Herm 191); for the tragedies, use the parenthetical system and refer to line numbers (for examples, Aesch. Ag. 5-77; Aesch. Lib. 577, Aesch. Fur. 5-77, Soph. OT 133-190, Eur. Bacch. 431-500). Treat the content of lectures as common knowledge in the discipline, unless the professor specifically cites another scholar as the source of a particular idea. Include a bibliography or list of works cited, following either the APA, MLA or CMS styles of citation as detailed in the Checkmate Pocket Guide. On your Works Cited or Bibliography page, please indicate which style you are using. Proofread carefully. Remember to use the comments your markers have given you on your previous essays. Read the Index of Forbidden Errors included below. Technical issues of these kinds will cause your paper to be returned to you, assessed but the grade unreleased; the grade will not be released until you have fixed the problems (usually within two days or receiving the paper back). POSSIBLE TOPICS Choose one. Your answer to most of the following questions should take into account the full works, not just a specific episode or subsection. All of the questions will require you to consider tragedy in the Athenian polis and the nature of tragic heroism. 1. The Homeric Hymn to Demeter shows us what life must be like for human beings in Zeus’ cosmos. Why does Zeus allow the rape of Persephone? How does the myth of Demeter’s wandering and recovery of her daughter explain human worship? Refer to Hesiod’s Theogony in your response to this question. 2. In the Homeric Hymn to Apollo, Apollo triumphs over nature to become the “most Olympian of the Olympians,” whose very essence is the truth of his oracles. Why then, is it possible for Hermes to trick him in the Homeric Hymn to Hermes? What does Hermes teach Apollo? What does the Hymn to Hermes teach to human worshippers? (Your case might be strengthened by reference to Hesiod’s Theogony.) 3. Discuss: the resolution of Orestes’ trial is the triumph of Zeus’ Olympian regime over the older chthonic gods, the triumph of male over female, and the triumph of the polis over the oikos. How does Hesiod’s Theogony, in which humans are largely absent, help to explain the human drama of the Oresteia? 4. Apollo’s unerring oracles in the Oresteia and Oedipus Tyrannus both expose human weakness and reveal human excellence. How do they do so, and to what effect? 5. How can it possibly be argued that Oedipus’ freedom at the end of the Oedipus Tyrannus is greater than his freedom at the beginning of the play? (Note: anyone arguing that Oedipus has been freed from administrative responsibilities can expect a very low mark.) 6. Is Clytemnestra a hero or a monster in the Oresteia? You should take care to consider the characters of Orestes and Agamemnon, and possibly others, in considering this topic. 7. Discuss the following statement: “By her appearance in the Eumenides, Athena brings forgiveness, harmony, and peace. The appearance of Dionysos at the end of the Bacchae has the opposite effect.” What is Euripides saying about the relationship of the gods to human beings in his play? 8. Oedipus’ tragedy is revealed by Apollo, Pentheus’ by Dionysius. In what ways are these two tragedies similar, and in what ways different? 9. The role of the chorus in ancient Greek tragedy is difficult to assess because their voice is twofold. Sometimes they converse with other actors on the stage, speaking from a limited human perspective. At other times, in their odes, their perspective is freed from the ordinary boundaries of space and time imposed on the other characters. Choose one of the plays we have studied this term and consider the following question: what is the role of the chorus in this play? How does their particular persona relate to the themes of the play? Do the choral odes do anything to advance the action, and, if not, why are they there? INDEX OF FORBIDDEN AND DAMNABLE ERRORS Papers with issues in the following areas will be evaluated, but no grade will be assigned until you have corrected the mistakes (within two days of receiving the evaluation): •sentence fragments •errors with apostrophes (especially when indicating possession or plurals). •comma splices (or other offenses with commas) •run-on or fused sentences •misuse of the semicolon •“dropped” quotations (i.e., quotations not introduced with a signal phrase or punctuation and thus not integrated them into your own text) •papers not properly formatted in all parts (e.g., line spacing, text, page numbers, footnotes/citations, bibliography/works cited) according to APA, MLA, or Chicago style. •titles of books and plays not in italics •poetic quotations improperly formatted. (When quoting a short poetic passage in your prose paragraph, separate the poetic lines with a slash /. For quotations of more than four lines, use block style without quotation marks or slashes.)
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Running head: MYTHS AND HUMAN WORSHIP

Myths and Human Worship
Name
Institutional Affiliation

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MYTHS AND HUMAN WORSHIP

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Myths and Human Worship
Myths are stories created to teach people about something important and meaningful.
Most myths are often created to provide answers to questions or aspects of nature that were
beyond human comprehension. However, whereas some scholars argue that myths are universal
truths, others disregard them as baseless fallacies and mere products of human imagination. It is
through these myths that the basis for religion was laid and later on took root in different
societies worldwide. The ancient Greeks also had a belief system based on numerous gods and
goddesses. Several myths were constructed in order to legitimize the idea of these gods and
goddesses. And whether they were hollow tales or altered history, they definitely had an impact
on people’s life. In this essay, I will explore the aspect of human worship in Hesiod’s Homeric
Hymn to Demeter. (Parker, 1991)
The Greeks in ancient times revered their gods to the extent that they made special places
in their homes where they could worship them and give different types of presents. Greeks also
made magnificent temples for the appeasement of the gods. For example, the temple of Zeus in
Athens or the temple of Hera in Olympia (Mazarakēs-Ainian, 1988). This was meant to appease
them so that they could not be faced by afflictions such as diseases or famine in their land. They
believed that their welfare depended on the gods. Therefore, they dreaded making them angry or
doing anything that could trigger their wrath. For example, triggering the wrath of Zeus the god
of the skies could attract a spate of bad weather patterns.
Needless to say, in Zeus’ cosmos, life is marred with lots of unfathomable twists and
irregularities although according to the myth, it appears normal. The total disregard of family
relations where a brother marries a sister or an uncle marries his niece as is the case with Hades
and Persephone appears a normal issue in Greek mythology. The myths also portray gods who

MYTHS AND HUMAN WORSHIP

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embodied a dualistic nature whereby they appear very powerful and they embody natural forces
like cloud gathering or hurling thunder by the sky god Zeus. On the other end of the spectrum,
these gods personify ideals of civilization and moral order as portrayed by the Demeter whose
maternal instincts towards her daughter make her go into a state of melancholy when Persephone
is kidnapped by Hades. On the flipside however, she still exhibits a dualistic personality when
she decides to render the earth barren whenever her daughter goes back to the underworld.
The inconsistency of character in Greek gods implies an attribute of human nature
amongst the deities. The tendency to occasionally behave in a way that is unlike your usual
character is a natural attribute of human beings. This attribute amongst the Greek gods inherently
proves that Greeks practiced a subtle form of human worship. Their method of classification of
the deities also proves this assertion. The Greeks had a system of gods who existed as a family.
For example, Zeus was the married to Demeter. They had a daughter named Persephone.
Similarly, Zeus and Hades were brothers and Demeter was their sister. They also had parents
named Cronus and Rheia. Greeks also believed their gods lived on Mount Olympus and this is
probably the reason why the magnificent temple of Zeus was built there for the propose
worshiping him. This essentially proves that Greeks obliviously embraced the practice of human
worship with illusion polytheism. They religiously gave their offerings and rendered prayers to
the perceived gods just because the myths said so. This practice also explains the nature of
human beings and their attitude towards having something to trust in.
The inquisitive nature of the human mind has often driven people to ask the questions
such as who created the earth. Why do seasons come and go in regular patterns throughout the
year? Why do things exist in the form they appear? Or why do people die? Or what if they don’t
die and they just transition into another life form instead? Why does rain form in the sky during

MYTHS AND HUMAN WORSHIP

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some seasons and not others? In an attempt to seek the answers to these questions, myths arise.
Sometimes the distant historical events can be altered to become myths. These eventually turn
into legends. Sometimes, the creative mind can come up stories to explain these mysteries.
In most cases, mankind finds itself lacking in some aspects of their life. They find
themselves unable to control natural calamities such as death. Similarly, when afflicted by
natural calamities such as famine or unpleasant weather conditions in winter seasons, mankind
finds itself unable to control such occurrences but still they have a yearning to know why it
happens or where it originated. The ancient Greeks faced with such predicaments, had a longing
to attribute it to someone or something. Consequently, this resulted into a comprehensive system
of myths to explain life events such as life after death, why seasons change in a particular pattern
and why they worship gods who they believe because certain weather patterns to occur such as
what is demonstrated in the Homeric hymn of Demeter. Persephone’s presence back on Earth
made her mother, the goddess of agriculture and plant life happy. As a result, this aspect of the
myth was used to explain the period of the year when crops and vegetation blossomed and the
land was fertile, beautiful and comfortably warm. On the other hand, when Persephone
descended back into the underworld to live with Hades, Demeter became aggrieved and had no
time to nurture the land. This caused plants and vegetation to wither and die out as a result of
unpleasant cold weather. This explanation typically explains away the reason for winter and
autumn. As a follow up to this myth, the ancient Greeks marked the period of Persephone’s stay
on the earth’s surface with numerous festivals symbolized with jubilant songs and dances.
Another aspect that implies human worship in Greek mythology is the nature in which
they perceived their gods. The gods are portrayed as jealous, with human desires such as sexual
attraction, they could argue or even make mistakes. For example, Zeus makes a mistake when he

MYTHS AND HUMAN WORSHIP

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lets Hades take Persephone as queen without first consulting his wife Demeter. This eventually
causes the barrenness on the land because the goddess of agriculture is angry. Demeter also
portrays jealousy when she feels very possessive of her daughter to the extent that she is willing
to cripple agricultural productivity whenever Persephone descends to live with Hades in the
underworld. On the other hand, Hades also uses treachery in order to retain Persephone for
himself in the underworld by giving her pomegranate seeds to while clearly aware of the
consequence of such a gesture.
The nature of human worship is also exhibited when myths only identify the gods based
on their needs. When human beings need to have children, they need someone to invoke for their
needs to be fulfilled. Therefore, this calls for the need to have a fertility god as demonstrated by
Greek mythology. Therefore, it goes without saying that if human beings had a satisfactory and
fulfilling life without any challenges, then perhaps the need for worship could have been
irrelevant taking religion completely out of the picture of mankind’s life. In addition, if people
had answers to all their questions or if the human mind lacked curiosity, then mythology would
have remained non-existent.
Human worship is also explorative and can shift from one form of worship to another if
the prayers are not answered. During the search, for her daughter, the grief-stricken Demeter
ends up seeking answers on the whereabouts of her daughter from Hekate, a witch (Boden,
2004). This is pattern is also evidenced among human beings. When one prays fervently with
nothing that resembles an answer to their prayers, they turn into atheists or adopt a different form
of religion such as Islam, Hinduism, Christianity, Buddhism or any other religion they find
suitable.

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In conclusion, myths have often been considered a source of answers to some of nature’s
most intriguing questions. It’s arguably one of nature’s most comprehensive singular sources of
answers when it comes to questions that even scientific advancements have failed to unravel.
Myths have been part and parcel of the human beings’ hi...


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