Transcript Presentation

You will create a mini poster today with a picture of the god or goddess of your
choice and information about them as well. You can choose from: Zeus, Hera,
Aphrodite, Ares, Athena, Hades, Demeter and Poseidon.
ROMAN NAME: VENUS
GODDESS OF LOVE AND BEAUTY
Aphrodite was so lovely that the Greeks
couldn't imagine her being born in the usual
way. Instead she sprang from the white beauty
of the sea foam. In an odd arrangement, this
most beautiful goddess was married to the only
ugly Olympian, HEPHAESTUS, the deformed
forge god. Some said that ZEUS forced her into
the marriage; others, that she chose him
herself. Either way, her vows did not stop her
from having many affairs. Gods and mortal
men found her charms simply irresistible.
Whenever on business abroad, Aphrodite was
pulled through the sky by a swan-drawn cart.
The swan and the dove were both symbols of
her grace. In Greece her worship was popular,
although the temple priestesses were rumored
to be prostitutes. Our word aphrodisiac, a
passion-inducing substance, is derived from
her name.
ARES
ROMAN NAME: MARS
GOD OF WAR
Ares is the cruelest member of the Olympians, hated by
all (even his mother, HERA). This god is known for his
ruthlessness when he has the upper-hand and his
cowardice when the tides turn against him. Even the
Greeks disliked this terrible god. There were no temples
to Ares in ancient Greece. APHRODITE, in one of her
many infidelities, started an affair with Ares, which was
his motivation to fight for the Trojans in the great
war. Martial (having to do with war) and March are
coined from his Latin name.
ROMAN NAME: MINERVA, PALLAS ATHENA
GODDESS OF WISDOM AND BATTLE
ATHENA
According to one tale, Athena was not actually born, but
sprang fully-grown from ZEUS' head. This is symbolic of
her distinction as Goddess of Wisdom. Athena's animal
was the wisest of birds, the owl. As the leader of the
Virgin Goddesses, those who will never marry, Athena
refuses to let any man to be her master. When a new citystate was founded, there was a contest between Athena
and her uncle POSEIDON over who should be its patron
god. The competition was fierce. To win the people over
to his side, Poseidon formed the first horse from the
crest of a wave. In order to one-up his gift, Athena
created the bridle, a tool man could use to subdue
Poseidon's creation. Since her gift was the wiser, the city
chose Athena as their patron goddess. From this point on
the city-state was called Athens.
ROMAN NAME: PLUTO, DIS
RULER OF THE DEAD, LORD OF THE UNDERWORLD
HADES
Although he has been presented as one before, Hades is no
villain. He is cold and calculating. He keeps to himself, only
showing up in myth when he is sought out. Hades is more a
recluse than anything else. He has little to do with mortals'
lives. Their deaths are a different story. Hades is not Death
himself; in other words he is not responsible for deciding when
mortals die. A mortal's death is an assembly line: The Fates
snip the threads of life, Thanatos (or death) causes the mortal
to die, HERMES leads the soul to the banks of the Styx. After
the gods defeated their forebearers, the Titans, Hades was
presented with a helmet of invisibility and given the
Underworld to rule. Hades' Roman name Pluto came from the
Greek word for wealth. The god was considered rich because of
all the precious metals that are found beneath the earth
HERA
ROMAN NAME: JUNO
GODDESS OF MARRIAGE, QUEEN OF OLYMPUS
Hera is usually shown as a crafty schemer and
jealous wife. She is the mother of a few of the second
generation gods: ARES, HEPHAESTUS, and HEBE.
ZEUS and his frequent affairs are enough to keep her
busy, punishing his many lovers and cursing his
illegitimate children. Even though she cannot protect
her own marriage, Hera is labeled as the protector of
the institution. Wives with unfaithful husbands could
definitely sympathize with her. Hera has a fiery
temper and enough venom for her anger to last
centuries. Her animal is the cow, and her bird is the
peacock. The Romans named June, the season for
marriage, after Hera (Juno).
ROMAN NAME: NEPTUNE
BLUE-MANED GOD OF THE SEAS AND
OCEANS
Next to his brother ZEUS, Poseidon is the
god the Greeks most feared. As a seafaring people, they knew the hazards of a
stormy sea. The god was known for his
mood swings, violent rage one minute,
calm the next--just like the waters he
controlled. In the Trojan War he favored
the Greeks because of their love of shipbuilding, yet legend had it that generations
before, he and APOLLO had helped build
the walls of Ilium (Troy). When an
earthquake, the Greeks recognized it as
the work of Poseidon Earthshaker. Poseidon was married to the
Daughter of Ocean and commanded the
waves with his mighty trident.
POSEIDON
ROMAN NAME: JOVE, JUPITER
LORD OF THE SKY, RAIN-BRINGER,
CLOUD-GATHERER
After leading his brother and sister gods in
a revolt against their parents, the Titans,
Zeus became the unquestioned ruler of the
Heavens. His feared weapon is the
Thunderbolt, and his palace on Mount
Olympus is a place of peace, where all
gods are welcome. Zeus is the husband of
the goddess HERA, but it's not in his
nature to be faithful. Time and time again,
he enters into disastrous affairs with other
goddesses, nymphs, and mortal women.
Zeus is the all-father. Almost all the second
generation of gods claim Zeus as their
father. Many of the mortal heroes are
children of the god as well. Zeus' bird is the
eagle.
ZEUS
ROMAN NAME: CERES
GODDESS OF AGRICULTURE
The Greeks and Romans felt an extremely
strong connection with Demeter. The
goddess was responsible for providing
them with their sustenance and livelihood.
In addition to this, Demeter was one of the
few gods who did not reside on Olympus.
She lived on earth, where she could be
close to those who needed her most. Also
unlike the other gods, Demeter's existence
was bittersweet. In the fall and winter, she
mourned her daughter, PERSEPHONE.
Only during the spring and summer was
she truly happy. All of these qualities
endeared her to her worshipers. Her
sacred cult at Eleusis was one of the most
popular, and the secrets kept so well that
to this day researchers have no clue what
their rites consisted of. From Ceres comes
our word for grain-based food, cereal.
DEMETER
 Mythology Poster:
 Include your god/goddesses Greek and Roman names.
 List 5 facts or interesting stories included in the
information on the slide.
 Draw a representation of your god/goddess. You will
not be judged on how well you can draw, but on how
much effort you put into your poster.
 Greek Name: PERSEPHONE
Roman Name: PROSERPINE
1. GODDESS OF SPRINGTIME
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2. Persephone was the daughter of ZEUS and his sister DEMETER
3. Hades stole her
4. Persephone had to marry Hades
5. She liked to gather flowers