Content

• Steps
• Method 1 of 3: Learning the Basics
• Method 2 of 3: Find Training Materials
• Method 3 of 3: Finding Books

Greek stories of gods and men dating back thousands of years can still be found in our lives today, from expressions such as the Oedipus Complex or Pandora's Box to the Hollywood films Clash of the Titans, Hercules or Troy. Knowing Greek mythology will make you more culturally savvy.Plus it's very exciting! Hollywood continues to seek inspiration from Greek myths for a reason - these are truly amazing stories. To learn Greek mythology, you first need to learn the basics. Then you can already sign up for specialized individual or group classes devoted to this topic, or read and study myths on your own.

Steps

Method 1 of 3: Learning the Basics

1. 1 Learn the gods. There is a dizzying number of characters in Greek mythology. You do not need to know all of them, however, in order to understand Greek mythology, the first step is to remember the main gods of Olympus.
   • Zeus - the lord of the gods and heavens, the thunderer, throwing lightning.
   • Hera - the goddess of the family and the wife of Zeus. She is also his sister. The Greek gods were incestuous.
   • Poseidon - brother of Zeus and patron of the seas.
   • Hades - brother of Zeus and god of the underworld.
   • Demeter - the sister of Zeus and the goddess of the harvest.
   • Athena - the daughter of Zeus and the titanides Metis. Goddess of wisdom, war and crafts.
   • Apollo - the son of Zeus and the Titanide Leto. God of music, prophecy and the sun.
   • Aremida - the daughter of Zeus and the Titanides Leto. Goddess of the hunt and the moon.
   • Ares - the son of Zeus and Hera. God of War.
   • Hephaestus - the son of Zeus and Hera. Lame. The blacksmith of the gods, created weapons for them.
   • Hermes - the son of Zeus and the younger goddess Maya. Messenger of the gods, patron of trade and travelers.
   • Aphrodite - depending on the myth, either she is the daughter of Zeus and the titanide Dione, or she appeared from the foam of the sea after the titan of Uranus was emasculated and his reproductive organs were thrown into the sea. Goddess of love and beauty.
   • Dionysus - the son of Zeus and the mortal princess Semele. God of winemaking.
2. 2 Learn the main characters in Greek myths. Despite the fact that the same gods are found from myth to myth, they rarely play the role of the main characters. Usually they are humans or demigods (quite a few have a deity as one of their parents). These heroes are famous for a variety of reasons: fighting monsters, achieving glory on the battlefield, or experiencing family tragedies. The most famous characters:
   • Hercules (Hercules) - the strongest of mortals, has a tough disposition. He performed 12 deeds to atone for the sin of killing his own family in a fit of madness.
   • Perseus - if you watched the movie "Clash of the Titans", you know the main plot of its story: as a child, he was thrown into the sea in a wooden box with his mother Danae, defeated Medusa Gorgon and married the rescued Andromeda.
   • Theseus - Hercules' cousin, was as wise as Hercules was strong. He defeated the Minotaur monster, was able to get out of the labyrinth in Crete with the help of a thread donated by Princess Ariadne, and became the ruler of Athens.
   • Achilles (Achilles) - the hero of Homer's poem "Iliad", which tells about the Trojan War. When he was a child, his mother, the sea nymph Thetis, dipped him into the River Styx to make him immortal. However, since she was holding his heel, this part of the body remained vulnerable. After killing Hector, the greatest warrior in Troy, he was struck by a poisoned arrow in the heel and died.
   • Odysseus - the hero of Homer's poem "The Odyssey". He had the idea of ​​the Trojan horse (a huge wooden horse, empty inside, in which the Greek wars were hidden), which was used to defeat Troy. After the war, he wandered for 10 years, until he returned home to his faithful wife Penelope, and fought monsters, gods and sorceresses along the way.
   • Jason - went sailing with the Argonauts, fought with monsters and sirens and found the golden fleece with the help of the sorceress Medea, who fell in love with him.
3. 3 Learn basic myths. Despite the fact that each hero has its own story, there are many myths that glorified the minor heroes. For example, the story of Narcissus, who was so narcissistic that he was nailed to a place to look at his reflection in a pond until his death. A few more important myths:
   • The myth of Sisyphus - a cunning man who deceived the gods several times.He is famous for his punishment after death: in the underworld of Hades, he was sentenced to forever roll a huge stone to the top of a steep slope. As soon as the stone reached the top, it rolled far down, and Sisyphus was forced to start all over again.
   • The myth of Tantalus - the favorite of the gods, who invited them to a home dinner, having cooked and served his own son as a dish. This was not a good idea. Tantalus also became famous for his punishment: for eternity he stood in a pool of clear water, where delicious fruits hung from the trees above his head. However, as soon as he reached for the fruit, the wind blew the branch to the side. And as soon as Tantalus wanted to drink, the water dried up.
   • The myth of Pygmalion and Galatea - Pygmalion was a sculptor who created such a beautiful and realistic statue that he fell in love with it. Aphrodite took pity on him and revived the statue, which became a woman Galatea (an interesting fact: in the Greek myth, the beauty was nameless, and only in the 18th century the tradition of calling her Galatea appeared).
   • The world about Persephone - the beautiful daughter of Demeter, the goddess of the harvest. She was kidnapped by Hades, who dragged her into the underworld to make her his wife. She was forced to remain in the kingdom of the dead for 4 months a year, and the rest of the time she could spend on earth. This myth explains the changing seasons: it was the winter months that Persephone spent in the kingdom of Hades.
   • Midas and the golden touch - the king of Phrygia Midas won the favor of the god Dionysus, who offered to give him whatever he wanted. Midas asked for a power that would turn everything he touched into gold. But the king quickly realized his mistake, when everything he wanted to eat or drink began to turn into gold.
   • Prometheus and the abduction of fire - Prometheus stole fire from Zeus and taught people to use it. As punishment, he was chained to a rock, and every day an eagle flew in and pecked at his liver, which was magically restored every night.
   • Abduction of Europa - Europe was the name of a girl who was so beautiful that Zeus himself fell in love with her. He appeared to her in the guise of a handsome white bull and bowed his head before her. When he climbed onto his back, he carried her to the cave, where he revealed his true face. The continent of Europe is named after this girl.
   • The myth of Daedalus and Icarus - Daedalus created a labyrinth in Crete, where King Minos later imprisoned him with his son. Daedalus made wings of wax and feathers for himself and his son to fly to freedom. But Icarus flew too high, and the wax that held his wings together melted from the sun's rays. He fell and drowned in the Ikarian Sea, which is named after him.
   • The myth of Orpheus and Eurydice - Orpheus was a great musician. When his beloved Eurydice died, he descended into the underworld and played his lyre so beautifully that Hades agreed to let Eurydice go on condition that Orpheus would not look back until they were on the surface. But Orpheus was afraid that he was deceived. He looked back just a few meters from the surface, only to see Eurydice being dragged back to the realm of the dead because he looked back too early.

Method 2 of 3: Find Training Materials

1. 1 Sign up for classes at your local university or college. If you are not yet part of a mythology study group, you can look for courses at local schools. Greek mythology is quite popular, and perhaps it is taught somewhere in the history department or optional. Look online for more information on venues and prices.
2. 2 Sign up for an online course. If you are unable to enroll in university courses, you can take them online. Many universities, especially Western ones, offer courses online. Plus, you can find offers from nonprofits or even a free course.
   • University courses - If you are fluent in English, you may want to consider offers from Oxford, Duke, Brown, Harvard or Yale Universities, which offer an online course in Greek mythology and its heroes.Some of them are free, for example, the course “Concepts of the Hero in Greek Civilization” (read by Professor Naigi from Harvard). You can find it by following the link: http://kleos.chs.harvard.edu/?p=220.
   • Paid courses online - again, if you are fluent in English, you can go to www.thegreatcourses.com, which offers the most famous paid courses.
   • Free online courses - there are many sites that combine free mythology courses from all over the internet. If you have knowledge of English, you can consider the following options: www.mooc-list.com (courses in the framework of the Massive Open Online Course) and oedb.org (open training base). There is an open education platform in Russian, openedu.ru, where you can listen to courses from leading Russian universities; the choice is not yet as great as on English-language platforms, but perhaps you will find a topic that interests you.
3. 3 Use a mobile app. There seem to be applications for everything in the world now, and Greek mythology is no exception. Download one of them and learn the basics of mythology right from your phone. Here are some useful applications in English:
   • Learn Mythology Basics - iPhone / iPad
   • GreekMythology.com - Android
   • Greek Mythology by Anduin - Google / Android
   • Greek Mythology by Socratica - Google / Android
   • Greek Mythological - iPhone / iPad - offers more detailed information about the mythology and world of Ancient Greece.
4. 4 Explore a website dedicated to Greek mythology. There are some very good English sites that provide free information on gods, heroes, myths and places from Greek mythology. They are useful as references or introductory information on mythology. Here are some examples (note, sites in English):
   • http://www.theoi.com
   • http://www.greekmythology.com
   • http://www.pantheon.org/areas/mythology/europe/greek/
   • http://www.greekmyths-greekmythology.com

Method 3 of 3: Finding Books

1. 1 Start with an introductory text. If you are fluent in English, you can read books by several authors who synthesized the works of some Greek writers to create a concise guide to mythology. The list of such books includes:
   • Jenny March, The Penguin Book of Classical Myths (2009) - Professor March's work retells the main myths in an easy and accessible way, providing also the latest knowledge about their origin, development and meaning.
   • Richard Buxton, The Complete World of Greek Mythology (2004) -Buxton offers an overview of mythologists in a social and cultural context. His book also contains additions in the form of family trees, beautiful illustrations and more.
   • Edith Hamilton, Mythology: Timeless Tales of Gods and Heroes (1942) - Hamilton draws on the works of all the major Greek writers, as well as some Roman writers, from where information about all the key gods and myths was selected.
   • Timothy Gantz, Early Greek Myth: A Guide to Literary and Artistic Sources (1993) - Gantz's book is the most scientific, with a very difficult introduction to Greek mythology. He cites both early Greek writers and artists to recreate the myths as they were in the days of Homer and Aeschylus.
   • Robert Graves, The greek myths (1956) - Graves is a kind of antipode of Gantz. He is an excellent writer, whose myths make it possible to get acquainted with Greek mythology in an easy and pleasant way. However, the scientific character of his work is definitely not at a high level, and all his theories about the origin of Greek mythology and the relationship between characters have not been confirmed to a greater or lesser extent. Published in Russian.
2. 2 Read the translation of Appolodor's Mythological Library. If you are seriously interested in Greek mythology, you should check out the original sources in addition to modern retellings. Although the authorship is attributed to Appolodorus, it has recently been concluded that this collection of 2nd century AD myths was not actually written by Appolodorus of Athens. Authorship aside, this short guide contains the most important Greek myths, which are arranged in the order that modern authors of similar works adhere to.
3. 3 Refer to the work of the poet Hesiod to learn more about the origins of the gods. This is a Greek poet who lived in the 8th century BC.His work "Theogony" examines in detail the origin of the gods and their genealogy, while the poem "Works and Days" provides an inner look at everyday life in Ancient Greece.
4. 4 Read Homer's epic poems. Two of the greatest ancient Greek poems, The Iliad and The Odyssey, were written in the 8th or 7th century BC. The authorship of both works is attributed to the poet Homer. And although the action in them is concentrated on the Trojan War and Odysseus's journey, respectively, they contain references to many other classical myths.
   • The Iliad has been beautifully translated into Russian by NI Gnedich, and The Odyssey by VA Zhukovsky. These publications can be found in any library or on the Internet.
   • If you are fluent in English, you can read Robert Fagles' reliable translations of The Iliad and The Odyssey. You can find the English translation of the Iliad at http://www.theoi.com/Text/HomerIliad1.html and the Odyssey at http://www.theoi.com/Text/HomerOdyssey1.html.
   • Also, in addition to translations, you can find the original in Greek at http://homer.library.northwestern.edu/.
5. 5 Learn more about Jason and the Argonauts by reading the work of Apollonius of Rhodes, an Alexandrian born in 295 BC. His work "Argonautica" is the most famous version of Jason's adventures.
6. 6 Read the works of three great tragedian playwrights. Aeschylus, Euripides and Sophocles were contemporaries who created tragic plays with deep psychological portraits of heroes. Their creations to this day have an impact on writers and are staged on stage.
   • Aeschylus was born in about 525 BC. Of the seven plays that have survived to this day, the most famous are Prometheus Chained and the Oresteia trilogy: Agamemnon, Mourners and Eumenides.
   • Euripides born around 486 BC, of ​​humble descent. His works are unique in that in them the hero often asks questions to the gods and fights against his fate. 19 of his plays have survived to this day. The most famous are "Bacchae", "Troyanka", "Medea", "Electra" and "Orestes". You can find his works in English at http://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/collection?collection=Perseus%3Acollection%3AGreco-Roman.
   • Sophocles also born around 486 BC. He was a priest in the temple of Asclepius. Seven pieces have survived, including Oedipus the King, Oedipus at Colon, Antigone and Electra.
7. 7 Cheer up with the work of comedy playwright Aristophanes. Greek drama is not only about dark themes, where heroes marry their own mothers or sacrifice their children to the gods. Born around 450 BC, Aristophanes is the only comedy writer of that time whose work has come down to us. 11 plays have been completely preserved, including "Clouds", "Birds" and "Wasps".