Format:
YOU MUST PURCHASE AT THE BOOKSTORE AND BRING WITH YOU A SCANTRON SHEET (ROSE/PINK, NOT BLUE - 200 answers front and back, 8 1/2 X 11).
Total of 100 questions distributed as follows:
1.Slide Identification - 10 questions, shown for 1 minute each
I will show you ten (10) slides accompanied by 1 question each. The slides
will be from Carpenter or the syllabus on the web. Questions may be directed
toward identification of specific characters or objects, brief plot explication
of the myth depicted, or comparative analysis of the artistic and literary
versions of the myths. Example: What does Carpenter 100 depict (Birth of
Athena from Zeus' head)? Who is at the far left (Hermes)? far right (Ares)?
Identify the 2 versions of Athene's origins (from Zeus alone; from Zeus
and Metis, whom he swallowed). Use Carpenter numbers (e.g. C233) below as
study aids for this portion of the exam AND look at all the linked artworks
on the website, right column
2. Map Identification and Association - 10 questions
You will identify 5 major locations in the Greek world associated with a particular deity or other mythological character. In the first part of the question, you will identify by name the places marked on a map, then in the second part of the question you will associate a specific name with that location. I will distribute a map with all locations marked and associated names listed. Example: Phoenicia - located on the eastern end of the Mediterranean Sea was mentioned in association with Europa and Jove, and it was the homeland of the goddess Astarte, from whom Aphrodite seems to have picked up many worship practices through Greek and Phoenician contact on the island of Cyprus
3. Matching - 20 questions
You will match names of mythological characters to the most appropriate
associated name, symbol, place, or idea. Only one answer will be possible
for
each. Example: Pan might be associated with woods, shepherds, pipes (Syrinx),
Arcadia, Hermes (his father), goat (he is half-goat), Apollo (music
contest), Midas (devotee who sided with him in contest), etc.
4. True/False - 20 questions
Only 2 possibilities, but watch for tricky word confusions, overstatements,
understatements, or myth overlapping within the question. Example: The
Homeric Hymn to Apollo discusses the establishment of Apollo's cult at Mt.
Olympus.FALSE: It addresses his worship at Delphi, Delos, and Crete
5. General Multiple Choice - 40 questions
5 possible answers dealing with any number of names, subjects, interpretations, etc.
Topics for Study: Know something about each of these items. This is
NOT meant as a replacement for your notes or complete reading of texts. Every
subject that may be asked will not necessarily appear here. This is merely
an outline of names and concepts mentioned in class and read at home.
I STRONGLY encourage you to make an alphabetical list of all the names
of people and places on the Myth Names link and those listed here so you
can distinguish similar looking names from each other. Don't just rely on
your memory from context, since on the test, some of the context will be
lost and you will have to recognize the names themselves.
Define myth and mythology for modem society and based on the meanings
from Greek words - mythos and logos. Understand differences and similarities
between this and other terms for traditional stories - legend, fiction, fairy
tale, fable, parable
Historical Ages - Early Middle Bronze Age 3000-1600BCE (Minoan
-1450/1375 BCE) Indo-European
Late Bronze Age (Mycenaean) - 1600-1200 BCE
1184 BCE Trojan War
Dark Age - 1200-800 BCE Dorian
Ionian Aeolian
Minoan civilization = island of Crete (3000/2500 BC-1450 BC)
Mycenae(an) civilization = mainland Greece (1600-1200 BC) - these are the
two major cultures of the Greek world in the Bronze Age which roughly corresponds
with the time the Greeks regarded as the period when the major myths occurred
and when the heroes lived - see Hesiod's Age of Heroes between Bronze and
Iron Ages
Archaic Period - 800-480 BCE - Hesiod, Homeric Hymns written in this
period
Classical Period - 480-323 BCE - Aristophanes' Frogs written
405 BCE
Hellenistic Period - 323-31 BCE
Roman Period - 31 BCE to end of classical world - Ovid's Metamorphoses
written c 8 CE/AD
Recognize - ritual strong component of myth
Methods of interpretation: Euhemerism (gods are just men deified for
great deeds); allegory - Cupid & Psyche = Desire and Rational Thought
- allegory used throughout Christian period and Middle Ages to interpret objectionable
but useful pagan stories
Enlightenment - turn toward reason and away from myths as useful lessons,
beginnings of treating myth as exclusively 'false stories' though not the
beginning of myth interpretation - myths produced by ignorant, savage societies
Romantic and Anthropological - return to usefulness of myths as statements
of cultural ideals, study of their language and messages
Psychoanalysis - Freud - dreams, early childhood development
Molinowski - charter myth, establishes a set of cultural standards for a
people
Feminist theory - earth mother, goddess studies
Facts about and evidence of Oral transmission of myths: pick out some stories
that show how the purpose and structure of stories show their origins in
song and poetry and how oral traditions of passing the story on altered
or influenced the story - notice for example between Hesiod's very repetitive
style and Ovid's more polished literary style - Hesiod is much closer to
the oral tradition
Hesiod c. 700 BCE - Theogony (origin of gods) also a cosmogony (origin
of the universe)
Bumba's creation story from Bantu myth
Four original entities: Chaos, Gaia(Earth), Tartaros, Eros
Compare: Bible Creation, Ovid's creation esp, 4 ancient elements - fire,
air, earth, water; "scientific" approach - note Ovid's references to
God or Nature as creative forces, showing disputes of philosophers on the
universe
parthenogenic birth (virgin birth, birth without a sexual partner) - know
several examples and meaning/significance
Gaia and Ouranos/Uranus (Heaven), castration by Kronos(Cronus), birth of
Aphrodite C90, also other versions of Birth of Aphrodite
Major Titans - Okeanos(Oceanus) - river around earth (C86), Rhea, Kronos,
children of Iapetus - Prometheus, Atlas (C116), Epimetheus (C119)
Birth and childhood of Zeus/Jupiter,Jove (Crete) and his siblings (Hestia/Vesta,
Demeter/Ceres, Hera/Juno, Poseidon/Neptune, Hades/Pluto),
overthrow of Kronos - trick with rock C94
War with Titans, Zeus seeks and gets help of 100-armed giants imprisoned
by Ouranos
parthenogenic birth of Typhoeus/Typhaon from Gaia C96,99 (compare birth
from Hera in Homeric Hymn to Apollo)
Metis swallowed by Zeus produces Athena, Hera produces Hephaistos in response
Succession myth - Son overthrows father, 3 sets of stories, but Zeus never
overthrown - notice several attempts above (Titans, incl. Prometheus, Typhoeus,
Athena?
Hephaistos? ; Know differences between each succession story - how father
responded/tried to prevent succession
Characterize Zeus in the Theogony; Only children of Zeus&Hera - Ares,
Eileithyia (childbirth), Hebe (youth)
Homeric Hymn to Gaia, the Earth - differences from Hesiod
5 Ages of Hesiod (Works and Days) and 4 of Ovid Metamorphoses
- compare and contrast these and the Garden of Eden story
Note that Kronos (Saturn) ruled over Golden Age in a form of banishment
or prior to his banishment - also Hesiod notes he is given some authority
in the Age of Heroes
Deucalion and Pyrrha (children of Prometheus and Epimetheus, respectively),
Lycaon's involvement - evil act of sacrifice
recreation of man after flood - chthonic (earth-born) beings risen from
the earth; Flood myths like second creation myth. Why flood myths in so many
cultures? - purification, regeneration, people encounter them along riverplains,
Freudian womb interpretation
compare and contrast with biblical flood
Prometheus - 2 crimes, compare Hesiod's 2 accounts (Theogony, Works&Days)
and Prometheus Bound on the link provided
Name means "Forethought," brother Epimetheus=Afterthought, know how that
becomes a significant difference between their stories; Prometheus punished
in Caucasus with eagle eating liver C116,117
association with fire C118, crafts, man, culture, deception, sacrifice,
Pandora
Recall Goethe's poem on Prometheus, read in class and "Prometheus' Ode"
on all the learned skills he gave to man through fire.
Pandora - 2 versions in Hesiod, one in Works and Days and unnamed first
woman in Theogony) C 119, role of Prometheus/Epimetheus in story; role of
Hope in story, How is she a punishment
to all men? What does Hesiod reveal about early Greek views of women? cf.
biblical creation of Eve
Zeus(Jove, Jupiter) C54,55,60 - Olympia, Dodona - oracle, lightning, eagle,
oak Homeric Hymn to Zeus biggest and greatest
Io, Hera (Juno) - Homeric Hymn to Hera connection to Argos, motherhood
- legitimacy of children - see her hounding of Zeus' mistresses and illegitimate
children
Hermes (Mercury), Argus/Argos C77,78
Io's wandering, explain her relation to cows - horns of Isis, compare her
in Prometheus Bound to Metamorphoses, Hermes the Argus-slayer (Argeiphontes)
(Pan/Syrinx story inserted here, why?), peacock, Io winds up as Isis in
Egypt with son Epaphus
Europa C56, 57- bull cult of Crete, mother of Minos founder of the Minoan
culture
Aphrodite(Venus)-Kytherea or Cytherea (island of Cythera), Cypris (island
of Cyprus) (C67,68) ideal of female beauty, Birth from Ouranos = Aphrodite
Ourania (ethereal, sacred, sublime love), birth from
Dione(just means goddess)=Aphrodite Pandemos (all people - sexual, erotic,
common love) Love goddess from Phoenicia - Astarte, dove, swan
relationship to Ares (Mars) - sometimes treated as his wife, sometimes
as Hephaestus' wife
Adonis - connect myth to mortality/immortality, gods' warnings, his death
and worship along with Aphrodite/Astarte on Cyprus; Adonai = lord in Hebrew
Story of Atalanta and Hippomenes inserted in this - what purpose?what result?
Cybele - lion chariot - earth/fertility goddess + vegetation god (e.g.
Adonis)
Ares (Mars) - son of Zeus and Hera; fierce, negative side of War, dogs, boars, not highly regarded by Greeks, considered barbarian - Thrace; association with Aphrodite C66 - story in Ovid Homeric Hymn to Ares - different view than usual Greek idea
Hephaestus (Vulcan) -lameness, birth from Hera, thrown from Heaven by
Hera or Zeus, Lemnos - volcanic island he landed on; god of smiths and
craftsmen; association with Aphrodite, Athena, Prometheus C12,15,88,101
humor + cleverness in stories of Hephaestus, esp. capture of Mars and Venus
Apollon/Apollo - Phoebus, Pythius (Python, Pythia, located at Delphi)
- oracle, Delphinius - Cretan sailors, Delius - birthplace on Delos C71,
ideal male beauty C70, explain connection of all his
roles - literature, poetry, law, art, philosophy, prophecy, archery - far
shooter (silver bow), medicine, Sun - late association
Homeric Hymn attached to 3 cult names above - know each story - Delian Apollo,
Pythian Apollo, Apollo Delphinius
Mother Leto C102, sister Artemis, father Zeus - story of search for birthplace,
fear of and power of the god, compare Delos and Leto conversation with later
Apollo and Telphousa conversation
Establishment of oracle at Delphi - tripod, the Pythia, treasuries, omphalos(navel)
center of the world C356; Ring composition Apollo/Telphousa,
Apollo/Python C103,104 (see also Ovid at end of Deucalion and Pyrrha story),
Zeus/ Typhaon (here Typhaon born from Hera) - note the genealogical relationships
on both sides of story - Zeus father of Apollo, Hera mother of Typhaon who
is given to Python to raise
Daphne - laurel; Hyacinthus - homosexuality, athletics, medicine
Competition with Pan judged poorly by Midas - Golden touch, asses' ears,
barber
Niobe and her children - scornful treatment of Latona for having few children,
Apollo and Diana kill children; Latona's punishment of the country men turning
them into frogs
Hermes(Mercury) - Herms and boundaries, roads and all who use it - messenger
C119 - messenger objects kerykeion(caduceus), petasos (traveling hat)
outfit - know parts of it, orator, ideal youth C109, psychopomp C79,44,
explain connection of all his roles; called Cyllenius from birth on Mt Cyllene
in
Arcadia - fertility/shepherd/woodland god, passes some roles to his son
Pan
Homeric Hymn - mother Maia; note examples of inventiveness and trickiness,
how does he show most of his godly roles in the story? C105,106, close
to Apollo later C69
Athena (Minerva) Pallas, Parthenos, glaukopis (grey-eyed), aegis C73,
war goddess C82,83, snakes, Athens C85, olive, owl, wisdom, female crafts,
patron of heroes Homeric Hymn - birth (Zeus alone or+Metis), also see
Hesiod above C98,100,101 power as a virgin, explain
Arachne in Ovid, ekphrasis
Artemis (Diana) Cynthia, birth at Mt. on Delos, see Homeric Hymn to
Artemis
animals - Potnia theron (Beast mistress, protector) C75, woods C 46 archery(golden
bow) C71 fertility (Ephesus) and virginity? childbirth - assistance
with Apollo's birth Actaeon C130,133
Dionysus - Bacchus (Liber), Iacchus, Evius, Bromius, Dithyrambus - twice
bom (Semele - see Ovid, C107, Zeus' thigh C108) wine, vegetation,
theater, ecstasy, thyrsus, satyrs, Maenads (bacchae/bacchantes), Silenus
C9,10,15
Came from Asia? or Thrace? Homeric Hymn - traveling god, festival connection
with ship float, pirates, dolphins; Note the insertion of the Homeric Hymn
story of Dionysus into Ovid's version of Pentheus vs. Bacchus
Ovid on Pentheus - know all characters and important lines - Pentheus (name
means grief) C134 , reasons for his destruction
Tiresias transformed to a woman and back - see Ovid
Dionysus is a native of Thebes in story of Bacchus and Pentheus
C134
Aristophanes Frogs produced, won 1st place 405 BCE - know these characters
- Dionysus, Xanthias, Heracles, Aeacus, Charon, Chorus of Initiates
You must know the attributes (symbols) and realms of oversight for each
god and goddess studied and how to identify them in literature and art.