TOPIC  10:  POSEIDON and HADES

     a) Know the following myths:

     Poseidon and Demeter
     Poseidon and Scylla
     Poseidon and Athena
     Galatea and Polyphemus
     Poseidon and Medusa
     Homer's conception of the underworld including the nature of the ghosts, punishments and rewards in the afterlife, the
     location of the underworld, and the religious ceremonies associated with it
     Virgil's conception of the underworld (same details as above)
     The myth of Er (not required)

     b) Learn the characteristics and family connections of:

     Poseidon, Hades, the Furies (Erinyes), the offspring of Nereus, especially: Thetis, Galatea, and Amphitrite
     The offspring of Porkys and Keto and of Thaumas, especially: Iris, Harpies, the Graeae, the Gorgons

     c) Learn how the following figure in the myths mentioned above:

     Charon, Persephone, Tityus, Tantalus, Sisyphus, Ixion, Elysium, Cerberus, Tiresias

     d) Learn the meaning of the following terms: trident, Pluto, chthonic, Neptune

     You may use Morford and Lenardon online  (summaries and aids for Chapter 5, for your review of Poseidon, and Chapter 13 for the views of the afterlife and Hades).

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TOPIC  11: DIONYSUS

     In addition to reading Euripides' Bacchae  and the assigned pages linked to the page for this topic,

     a. Know the following myths:

     Dionysus' birth and infancy
     Midas and Silenus
     Dionysus at Thebes
     Dionysus and Lycurgus
     Dionysus in Attica (Icarios)
     Dionysus and the pirates
     The rejection of Dionysus: the Minyads

     b. Learn the meaning of the following terms:

     Maenads, bacchants, thyrsus, satyr, Bacchus, Iacchus, Great Dionysia
     You may use Morford and Lenardon online (summaries and aids for Chapter 11)

10      11       12    13     Overview

     Note: The most important names in the Theogony are the following.  Use the chart with the poem, not as a single
     source.  I underscore names you should learn very well (to answer questions of the type: "Who is the son of. . .?").  As
     to the other names, you  need to be able to recognize them only.  Many of these names have been learned before, as we
     developed the previous topics of the syllabus.

    All the primeval elements
    Children of Gaia
    Children of Gaia and Uranos:  Cyclopes, Hundred-Handers, and Titans.  Prometheus, Helios (=Sun); Oceanus,  Styx.
     Of the Titans recognize only:  Iapetus, Hyperion and his children: (Eos=Dawn; Selene=Moon).
     Children of Gaia and Pontus: Nereus and the three Nereids named in the chart.
     The Twelve Olympian gods: know also their Roman names.
     Children of Cronus and Rhea: all
     Of the second generation of Olympians:  Metis and Athene; Themis, mother of the Seasons and the Fates; Mnemosyne,
     mother of the Muses (not their individual names)

     a. Learn the following myths:

     How the primeval powers emerged
     The castration of Uranus
     The birth of Aphrodite
     The deception of Cronus
     The birth and childhood of Zeus
     Battle of gods and Titans (Titanomachy)
     Zeus and Typhon
     The creation of man (Deucalion and Pyrrha)
     The five ages of man (Hesiod's version)
     The ages of man in Ovid, Metamorphoses
     Prometheus and the sacrifice dispute
     Prometheus' punishment
     Prometheus and the theft of fire
     Pandora

     b. Be able to identify the following:
    Gaia (Gaea, Ge = Earth), Uranus (= Sky, Heaven), Titans, Cronus, Rhea, Zeus, Cyclopes, Hundred-Arms  Giants,
    Aphrodite, Helius, Prometheus, the Giants, Hestia.

     c. Recognize the following:
     Pontus (sea), Hestia, Demeter, Hera, Hades, Erebus (darkness of Tartarus), Night, Aether (bright upper air), Eros
     (love), Poseidon, Oceanus and Oceanids, Chaos, Hundred-Armed Giants, Cyclopes, Atlas, Epimetheus, Deucalion,
     Pyrrha.

You may use Morford and Lenardon online (summaries and aids for Chapter 12)

10      11       12    13     Overview

    a. Learn:

     Orpheus and Eurydice in Ovid's account:  B. 10. 1-85, B.11. 1-84
     Whose son he is said to be
     What are his peculiar traits as a hero
     Understand the concept of a shaman
     The oracular head of Orpheus
     What are mystery religions and what "initiation" means in relation to them
     The worship of Orpheus
     Orphic sects and their doctrines
     The Orphic Theogony (you do not need to memorize all the names)
     Syncretism with other systems of belief
     The cultural function of Orphic beliefs
 

Overview (class screen of 4/30)