Mythic HeroesCommon Traits Perseus Miraculous birth early threats Disinheritance andor powerful enemy Quests impossible tasks requiring strength and courage really a search for their identity ID: 297541
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Perseus—The Medusa slayer HeroSlide2
Mythic Heroes—Common Traits
Perseus:
Miraculous birth, early threats
Disinheritance and/or powerful enemy
Quest(s) – impossible tasks requiring strength and courage, really a search for their identityHelpers – often divineWarrior mentalityInability to manage womenDifficulty controlling passionsEgocentricitySlide3
The Heroic Journey:Slide4
Why did King
Acrisius of Argos want to get rid of his daughter Danae
?
Priestess at Delphi told the King that
Danae’s son (later known as Perseus) would kill him.Acrisius built an underground chamber and imprisoned Danae in it
to avoid his fate.
While in the chamber, Zeus visits and fathers Perseus. He is a demi-God.
When discovered—sets
Danae
and Perseus off in a wooden chest into the sea.Slide5
Who Rescues
Danae and Perseus?
Dictys
(fisherman) and his wife rescue Perseus and Danae and care for them for many years—raising Perseus as his own child
Polydectes
(
Dictys
’ evil King
brother)
sets his eye on marrying
Danae
. Wants to get rid of Perseus first.Slide6
The impossible task…
King
Polydectes
gives Perseus an “impossible task” of bring a gift for the wedding
celebration to get rid of him. Perseus was poor, and could not afford a gift. King Polydectes asks for Gorgon’s head as a wedding gift. Not an easy task—Gorgons are winged, dragon-like women with snakes for hair whose gaze turns mortals to stone. Slide7
The Impossible Task…
Perseus’ promise to obtain the Gorgon’s head delights King
Polydectes
because he was
certain that Perseus would not be able to return from this quest. The god Hermes and goddess Athena helped Perseus every step of the way.Slide8
Hermes’ and Athena’s gifts: Heroes never achieve things alone…
Hermes gave Perseus a
sword
—strong enough to pierce the scales of a Gorgon
Athena gave Perseus her own shield. The shild could be used as a mirror and enable Perseus to see the Gorgon without actually looking at it and avoid being turned to stoneSlide9
Other “helpers”-- Gray Women and Nymphs of the North
Perseus went to the three Gray women and took the one eye they shared and would not give it back until they told him how to find the nymphs of the North.
Perseus found the nymphs and from them he obtained
winged sandals
to help him fly and a magic wallet that would shrink or expand to hold whatever was placed in it. Also an invisibility cap to make him invisible.Slide10
Slaying MedusaSlide11
The Quest—accomplished—
”The Underworld”:
Persus
went to the Gorgon’s home.
With Hermes and Athena’s help, he slays Medusa by beheading her.Then he uses the magical cap given to him by the dieties—becomes invisible andEscapes with Medusa’s headSlide12
The Return Home:
On the way back to Greece w/Medusa’s head,
Persus
lands in Ethiopia (Africa) and finds Princess Andromeda chained near the sea waiting to be devoured by the sea serpent.
The serpent had been eating Ethiopians to punish Andromeda’s mom (Queen Cassiopeia) for saying Andromeda was more beautiful than certain goddessesSlide13
Perseus saves the day—he rescues Andromeda and cuts off the serpent’s head with Hermes’ sword.
Takes Andromeda’s hand—to marry her.
Returns to
SeriphosSlide14
Perseus saves AndromedaSlide15
The Return Home
Perseus returns home changed.
He discovers that
Danae
and Dictys were hiding from King Polydectes who was angry because Danae refused to marry him.Perseus kills Polydectes and his men at a banquet with the head of Medusa. He turns them to stone.
Perseus frees his friends—makes
Dictys
king of
Seriphos
.Slide16
A Prophesy fulfilled:
Persus
went to Larissa in N. Greece—in some stories city of Argos.
Enters a discus-throwing contest
Unknown to him, King Acrisius—his Grandfather, was there watching the event.Entirely by “accident”, Perseus kills Acrisius with a discus that he threw off course.LESSON:You can never escape your fate!Slide17
The new movie: Clash of the Titans vs. the “real story” of Perseus: What are the key differences?
Perseus
Clash of the TitansSlide18