Transcript Mythological References in Antigone

Mythological References in
Antigone
Anushe, Tigerlilly, Westie, Olivia F,
Myranda, Cathy & Kalley
Hour: 4
Acheron
God of the “river of pain” in the underworld. One of the 5 rivers in the Greek
underworld.
Odysseus poured sacrificial blood into it to summon the ghosts of the dead.
He needed to question the shade of the blind prophet Teiresias in order
to find his way home again after the Trojan War.
Son of Helios and Gaia. He sided with the Titans against the Gods in the
battles.
As a punishment, Zeus decided to turn him into water, the river Acheron
Dircê
Dircê means “double” or “cleft” in Greek
Dircê was the Naiad nymph of a spring in the town of
Thebes
Her father was Ismenus - god of the River Ismenus and
father of many spring nymphs
She was originally married to the Libyan King Lycus but
was punished for mistreating her niece Antiope
Dircê was tied to a wild bull and was killed, Dionysus then
turned her into a spring nymph
Aphrodite
● Several accounts of her birth:
○
daughter of Zeus and Dione
○
arose from the sea on a giant scallop, Cronus castrated Uranus, tossed his genitals into the sea;
Aphrodite then walked to the shore of Cyprus
○
born near the island of Cythera, hence another one of her names, "Cytherea"
● Goddess of love, desire, and beauty; represents sex, affection, attraction
● Married to Hephaestus, had an affair with brother Ares, also with Adonis
● Children: Eros, Phobos, Deimos, Harmonia, Pothos, Anteros, Himeros,
Hermaphroditos, Rhode, Eryx, Peitho, Eunomia, Graces, Priapus, Aeneas
Hades
-King of the Underworld; God of Dead and Riches
-After defeating Cronus- draws lots with Zeus and
Poseidon- lord of underworld (abode)
-symbols: cerberus, cornucopia, sceptre
-siblings- Hera, Hestia, Demeter, Zeus, Poseidon
-consort: Persephone, goddess of underworld/spring/flowers → children:
Melinoe, Zagreus. Macaria (possibly unknown mother)
Zeus
King of the Gods (and ruler of the universe), son of Cronus and Rhea, holds
domain over the sky (can summon winds, rain, storms, etc)
Husband of Hera, goddess of marriage, but has affairs with many, many
women
Had Athena with Titan Metis, later married Themis and had the three Horai (
hours) and the fates (or moirai), third wife was Mnemosyne with whom he
had the nine muses, then had Artemis and Apollo with Leto, and finally
married Hera and had Hephaestus, Ares, and Hebes
He also had Persephone with Demeter, and Hermes with Maia
Niobê
Daughter of Tantalus, sister of Pelops and Broteas, and wife of King
Amphion
Had six sons and six daughters, and boasted to the Titan Leto, who had only
two children, Apollo and Artemis
Killed all her children as a punishment, and Amphion kills himself
The bodies laid out for nine days
She was later turned into a rock on Mount Sipylus, and she continues to
weep as the snow melts above the rock
A symbol of eternal mourning