Fri Jan 13: The structure of mortal experience: work, reproduction and relating to gods Chapter 5 pp. 108-33: Prometheus, Pandora, the Five Races, the Flood 1. The creation of mortal men pp.108-9 myth and science in Ovid's account of Prometheus, son of Iapetus 'able to govern' 'a few seeds of heaven' 'fashioned earth and water commingled into the image of gods" 'walking erect and lifting his sight to the stars in their courses" A sarcophagus (carved stone coffin) depicting Prometheus bringing his created men to life (Louvre Museum. 200s CE). 2. The establishment of sacrifice -- communal feast of humans and gods an etiological myth = a myth which explain the cause or reason of some human practice or element of human experience. From the Greek word 'aition' cause, or reason. 'the white bones he slyly concealed in shining fat and to Zeus he presented the neatly wrapped bundle' 'ever since then men burn the white bones on the altar' an etiological myth = a myth which explain the cause or reason of some human practice or element of human experience. From the Greek word 'aition' cause, or reason.
FIRE: Zeus takes away from mankind, Prometheus restores Punishment of Prometheus: Prometheus Bound 'he sent a long-winged eagle to gnaw his incorruptible liver... each night as much was replenished as was lost on the day before.' (Hesiod) "He did it for us" (Powell p. 111) Prometheus as civilizer: 'I was the one who found all this for men" "all human arts came from Prometheus" knowledge that Thetis' son would be stronger than/overthrow his father rescue by Heracles 3. Pandora: the first woman to be created pp.113-21 "you ought to be able to earn enough by a single day's labor as now you could in a year" Pandora = All-Gifts Pandora's Jar ( Pandora s Box ) Prometheus Trickster (the good Titan) (= fore-thinker forelearner 0 vs. Epimetheus, 'he who learns too late'); "he, in his folly, ignored Prometheus' warning" " Til then men had lived on the face of the earth far from all ills" "Hope could not fly out" etiological account of women, marriage, suffering " no partners in grim poverty, but only useless excesses" "his trouble is mixed with his joy" Pandora as a smaller version of Rhea or Gaia 4. Five races (or ages) of Mortals FIVE RACES (AGES) OF MORTALS GOLD SILVER from Hesiod, Works & Days BRONZE... another story p.121 [line 106] HEROES IRON MYTH OF DECLINE
From long easy life [lines 112-16] to short hard life race of iron (pessimistic view of Hesiod s present time) [lines 165-70] Race of Heroes' [lines 146-50] 'will the day never come for ceasing unending labor and warfare?' Contrast narratives of progress from primitive life to civilization The Universal Flood pp.125-131 Punishment of Lycaon (Wolf-man) a false welcome for the gods in disguise "god though I am I examined the earth in the guise of a human" "he planned to put me to death" "though now a wolf, he retains some truth of his human appearance" "he promised to raise a new race" Deucalion and Pyrrha: a true welcome for the gods in disguise "we are the whole population of the world" 'The earth is our mighty mother" " This is the reason our race is tough and enduring" people (re)created from stones: Greek LAOS / LAAS p.131-2 HELLEN the first Greek (Greece = Hellas; Hellenic) Sample questions 1. Which god determined the specific ritual for animal sacrifice to the gods? a) Hephaestus b) Hermes c) Prometheus d) Odysseus 2. "For once, when the gods and mortals were gathered to feast at Mekone,, trying to hoodwink great Zeus's wits and attention, had cheerfully butchered and served up the succulent flesh of an ox. To the others, gods and men, he handed the meat in due portions,..., wrapped in the outermost layer of the ox's stomach... But the white bones he slyly concealed in shining fat, and to Zeus he presented the neatly wrapped bundle." Whose name belongs in the blank? a) Tantalus b) Lycaon c) Typhoeus d) Cronus e) Prometheus
3. How was Prometheus punished for helping humankind? a) bound to a pillar and pecked by an eagle b) forced to support the sky on his shoulders c) turned into a wolf d) transformed into a cicada e) turned to stone 4. [Zeus] bound the schemer in inescapable fetters, a torment to bear, and through them he drove a mighty stone pylon, and sent a long-winged eagle to gnaw his incorruptible liver. By day the bird fed upon it, but each night as much was replenished as was lost on the day before Whose name belongs in the blank? a) Pentheus b) Typhoeus c) Lycaon d) Epimetheus e) Prometheus 5. The creation of Pandora was ordered by Zeus : a) as punishment b) as a gift c) out of confusion d) to fulfill a wish 6. According to Hesiod, what remained in Pandora s jar after she let all the troubles escape? a) Fear b) Piety c) Hope d) Justice e)confusion 7. Pandora s name comes from Greek words meaning a) Fore-thinker b) All-troubles c) All-gifts d) Jar-opener 8. 'With a nasty smile, the father of men and gods told famous Hephaestus to hurry, to knead the water and clay to add human speech and strength, to give it a goddess's form and the lovely face of a maiden. What 'maiden' is being described? a) Galatea b) Myrrha c) Pyrrha d) Persephone e) Pandora 9. The punishment of Prometheus was: a) insatiable hunger b) to fill leaky jars c) to push boulders uphill d) to have his liver eaten out by an eagle 10. In order to avoid a prophecy of the birth of a son stronger than him who would overthrow him, Zeus refuses to marry which figure? a) Thetis b) Leto c) Helen d) Hestia 11. They neither plow nor sow by hand, nor till the ground, though grain grows untended, and wine-grapes, in clusters, ripen in heaven s rain. This description of a more innocent and peaceful kind of primitivism is characteristic of myths of: a) the Iron Age b) the Golden Age c) the Mycenaean Age d) the Flood 12. Which one of the following is not a goddess with whom Zeus united in an allegorically suggestive sexual union? a) Themis b) Xenia c) Mnemosyne d) Metis
13 Deucalion and Pyrrha bring to life a new race of men out of: a) oak trees b) stones c) clay d) water S. Deucalion and Pyrrha repopulated the earth by a) turning animals into people b) throwing stones over their shoulders c) turning trees into people d) bringing the dead back to life 14. Which answer did the oracle give Deucalion? a) Leave my temple, veil your heads, loosen your robes, and cast behind you your great mother's bones' b) Let all the people erect in my honor a temple... I myself will establish your rites, so that forever thereafter my blessing will rest on you if you carry them out.' c) 'You shall father a son, to be rule over the Trojans and generations from him shal be born, one suceeding another... d) If you make war on the Persians you shall destroy a mighty empire. e) 'This future I tell you is certain, I swear by my cornel-wood staff, I will make you a glorious leader among the immortal gods, and a fortunate leader as well. 15. The prophetic advice received by Deucalion and Pyrrha was a) "call no man happy until he is dead" b) "know thyself" c) "toss the bones of your mighty mother over your shoulders" d) "if you go to war you will destroy a great empire" e) "a cow will meet you in a lonely land" 16. List the Five Races of Mortals in order of time, from the earliest to the most recent or current, as described by Hesiod: a) silver, gold, bronze, iron, heroes b) gold, heroes, silver, bronze, iron c) gold, silver, bronze, heroes, iron d) gold, silver, heroes, bronze, iron 17. Which one of these individuals or groups was not involved in a struggle against Zeus? a) the Giants b) the Titans c) the Python d) Typhoeus 18. Who stole fire from heaven to make it permanently available to humans? a) Zeus b) Prometheus c) The Cyclopes d) Lycaon