Final Flashcards
Apsyrtus
ID: Apsyrtus is the son of King Aities who is ambushed and killed by the Argonauts as they are fleeing Colchis
Significance: Apsyrtus’s importance comes from how the version of his murder in Apollonius differed from previous versions of the story. In prior versions, Apsyrtus was cut into pieces and thrown into the sea, distracting the pursuing Colchian army who had to stop and collect his pieces to give proper burial. Apollonius, as is the trend in his version, takes a more realistic approach, instead negotiating with the army, saying Aietes had promised them the fleece if Jason overcame his challenges, which he did.
He is the reason everyone was heavily after Jason and Medea, out of revenge.
Adam
ID: Adam is the first man created by God in Christian religion
Significance: The first woman, Eve, came from Adam’s rib. This signifies that men came first and thus are held in higher status than women. The fact Eve came from his rib shows the importance of marriage between a man and woman. Later on, Eve tempts Adam into eating off the Tree of Knowledge, showing that women tempt men into sin.
Aetes
ID: Also known as Aietes, he is the king of Colchis, father of Medea and owner of the Golden Fleece which Jason steals from him
Significance: Aietes and Medea’s family is a central source of inner turmoil in the Argonautika. Although Medea is in love with Jason from Eros, she also does not want to leave her family behind. This leads to a dilemma in book 3 of the Argonautika. Medea ultimately decides her love for Jason trumps the love of her family and leaves with Jason, showing the passage of a woman from her father to her husband.
Agave
ID: Agave is a maenad and mother of Pentheus who murders Pentheus in a frenzy, thinking he is a lion
Significance: Agave is important in Dionysus’s epiphany where he reveals himself to be Dionysus after Pentheus denied he was a god. Beforehand, she also reveals how crazy the maenads can get, as she believes Pentheus is a lion. Once she comes back to her senses and realizes what she did, Dionysus reveals himself and shows why it is important to recognize the presence of a god.
Apollonius
ID: Apollonius is the author of the Argonautika, a retelling of the mythological story of Jason and the Argonauts
Significance: Apollonius takes a different approach when recounting Jason’s story. Compared to older versions, Apollonius makes his story more realistic, with Jason, an ordinary man, as the main hero and using more realistic methods to solve conflicts (though many still involve magic or help from the gods). Apollonius also makes heavy use of humor and allusion, knowing that his Ancient Greek audience would understand the references.
Archaic Period
ID: The Archaic Period is an early period in Ancient Greece around 750-480 BCE that Hesoid lived in
Significance: During this time, Greece was mainly agricultural and undeveloped, which is reflected in the literature of the time. Hesiod notes in his works about the current race of humanity which has to deal with a lot of suffering, pointing to the hardships of the time. The story of Pandora in Hesoid’s works is another origin of suffering. Once cities developed in Greece, later works would become more sophisticated, tailoring to a more educated audience.
Argonautika
ID: The Argonautika is an epic written by Apollonius that retells the story of Jason and the Argonauts getting the Golden Fleece
Significance: Being written in a more developed period of Greece, the Argonautika could tailor itself to an educated audience. It makes use of humor and allusion that educated audiences would understand. For instance, there is foreshadowing to Euripides’s version of Medea, which takes place after this story. The Argonautika also makes references to another famous epic, The Odyssey, in book 4.
The Argonauts
ID: The Argonauts are the crew Jason assembles to help him retrieve the Golden Fleece
Significance: The scene just after the Argonauts are assembled is important in establishing Jason as a leader. Jason and other members of the Argonauts logically appoint the mighty Heracles to be the hero, but Heracles says that Jason, whom the quest is for, should be the hero. This is important as Jason has no special powers and must rule through his competent leadership.
Ariadne
ID: Ariadne is the wife of Theseus who helped Theseus slay the minotaur but was later abandoned by him and died shortly after
Significance: An allusion to Ariadne is made in the Argonautika, as the story of it parallels the story of Jason. Jason is aware of this story as he makes the allusion to it, showing he already has plans to abandon Medea eventually despite the fact Medea helped her like Ariadne helped Theseus. Unlike in Ariadne though, Medea came back with revenge to kill Jason, a story which the audience knows about, but Jason doesn’t, creating dramatic irony where the audience knows something the characters don’t.
Bacchae
ID: Bacchae is a play written by Euripides about Dionysus trying to make Pentheus recognize he is a god
Significance: The story in Bacchae aligns with the general trend of Dionysus demanding recognition from mortals, and it shows the consequences of failing to recognize a god. Dionysus is held in contrast to other gods. While other gods demand public sacrifice, Dionysus prefers that his followers worship him in private and do so through their beliefs rather than purely by actions.
Cadmus
ID: Cadmus is the founder of Thebes and grandmother of Pentheus who is punished due to his family’s failure to recognize him as a god
Significance: When founding Thebes, Cadmus perpetuated a story that Dionysus was not the son of Zeus and thus not an immortal. This story is one of the reasons why Dionysus always demands recognition from mortals, and Cadmus’s actions cause him to go to Thebes demanding that Pentheus recognizes him. Cadmus is punished at the end of the play, showing why it is important to respect gods.
Clinical Archetypes
ID: A psychological theory written by Bolen that says people have certain archetypes they can follow, using the specific example of Demeter-based archetypes, which involve women and nurturing
Significance: Clinical archetypes based on Demeter shows the universal appeal of myth, as even today, aspects of myth are still used as ways to explain the world. With the case of Demeter, Bolen argues that women are, to some degree, inherently nurturing, aligning with gender stereotypes just as it did back in Greece. This model is inspired by the works of other psychologists, some of whom were also inspired by myth, such as Freud.
Colchis
ID: Colchis is the home of the Golden Fleece and the city King Aietes rules over
Significance: Colchis is the setting of book 3 of the Argonautika and is thus central to the story. It is where Jason set off to go as it had the Golden Fleece he was after. It is also where he met Medea who helped Jason get the Fleece through magic. Medea herself went through a conflict of whether or not she should leave Colchis with Jason, abandoning her family in the process.
Corinth
ID: Corinth is the place where Euripides Medea occurred.
Significance: Where Jason left Medea. Medea felt like an outsider here so after Jason left her she was alone. This is where she killed Jason’s new wife and her children.
Creon
ID: Creon is the king of Corinth who is killed by Medea due to Jason cheating on her by having an affair with one of Creon’s daughters.
Significance: Creon’s mistake is vital in allowing Medea to carry out her revenge. Creon is aware of Medea’s danger, but when exiling her, he allows her to stay one more day so, as Medea said, she can figure out where to go next. This led to Creon’s downfall, as in this time, she slipped poison to her children which was passed on to Creon.
Daughters of Pelias
ID: The daughters of Pelias are tricked by Medea into killing Pelias in order to restore his youth
Significance: Medea having Pelias’s daughters kill their father shows a lot about her. It shows her intelligence and wit as she is able to trick them into killing their own father. It also shows her dedication to Jason as this action allows Jason to gain power after Pelias wouldn’t let him get the throne even after he got the Golden Fleece
Dionysus/Bacchus
ID: Dionysus is the 12th olympian, born from Zeus and the mortal Semele, and the god of wine
Significance: Due to constant doubts about whether he was actually born from Zeus and Dionysus being an outsider, Dionysus always demands that mortals recognize him as a god. When Pentheus’s kingdom failed to do this, he came and killed or punished those who didn’t worship him. In the Hymn to Dionysus, Dionysus also killed those who denied his existence and rewarded those who did. Dionysus’s demands can be expanded to all Greek gods, who demand human recognition, though Dionysus does so to a greater extent.
Epiphany
ID: An epiphany is the moment someone recognizes they are in the presence of a god and the god reveals themselves
Significance: Epiphany is an important part of Greek religion, as part of being polytheistic means knowing when gods are present. Recognizing a god can reap great benefits (ex. Demophoon would have become immortal had her mother recognized Demeter). Failing to recognize a god can be harshly punished (ex. Dionysus punishing Pentheus for not worshiping him).
Euripides
ID: Euripides is the playwright for Bacchae and Medea
Significance: Euripides wrote in a middle period of Greece, before the Hellenistic Period but after the Archaic. Euripides’s works adapted older myths with fresh tastes, such as Euripides changing Medea to portray Medea as more positive rather than a violent monster. Euripides’s works would later be adapted by later writers, such as Apollonius reimagining Medea again, keeping her inner conflict but making it a conflict over love for her family vs husband and having Medea help Jason rather than hurting him. Euripides, out of all Greek playwrights, was most concerned with the psychology of his characters.
Eve
ID: Eve is the first woman created by God in Christian religion
Significance: Eve was created from the rib of Adam, already establishing women as inferior as the man came first. The fact she came from Adam’s rib shows the importance of women to marry. Similarly to Pandora, Eve releases suffering upon humanity after eating off the Tree of Knowledge, causing God to cast humans out of the Garden of Eden to work hard growing food for themselves. Eve’s action is also the reason women have childbirth pains.
Freudian Reading of Demeter
ID: This is an interpretation of the hymn to Demeter that sees it as representing childhood development and specifically the role abuse can play in it.
Significance: This theory sees Persephone as a child and Hades as the abuser. Hades’s kidnapping of Persephone can be seen as sexually abusing her. Forcing her to eat the pomegranate, binding her to the underworld , can be seen as the loss of virginity, which cannot be reversed. Even if there is temporary relief from the abuse, it haunts forever, like how Persephone must return to the underworld. It also shows the maternal trauma Demeter went through from losing her daughter.
