Greek Gods and Goddesses

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Greek Gods and Goddesses

• A brief look

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Cronus
Cronus is the King of the Titans after he
castrates his father, Uranus. Cronus is afraid of
being replaced by his children, so he eats each
one that his sister/wife Rhea gives birth to.
However, Rhea hides the sixth child
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Zeus
Rhea hid Zeus from Cronus within Gaea (the
Earth). After seventeen years, Zeus returned and
destroyed his father and freed his five brothers
and sisters from their fathers stomach. Zeus
would become King of the Gods and would
become God of the Sky and Justice. He is
known for his lightning bolts.
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Poseidon
Poseidon chose to be God of the sea. He is also
the God of Earthquakes and horses. He likes to
fight and causes many issues. He also dislikes
Odysseus and is father to Theseus.
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Hades
Zeuss other brother. The eldest and very angry
at not being King of the Gods. He is the God of
the Underworld (named after him) and the God of
Wealth. Hades kidnaps Persephone which is the
reason why we have Winter. He is NOT the God of
Death (Thanatos)
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Hera
Wife and sister of Zeus. She is the Goddess of
Marriage and Childbirth. Raped and tricked by
Zeus. She also hates Heracles and Hephaestus.
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Apollo
God of Light, Healing, Truth, Prophesy, and
Music. Drove Helios (the sun) across the sky.
He has a twin sister named Artemis (Goddess of
the Hunt and Wind). His father is Zeus.
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Hephaestus
God of fire, craftsmen, and weapons. He is
crippled when, at birth, his mother decided he
was too ugly to live (and she was angry at Zeus),
so she tossed him from Mt. Olympus to the Earth.
His legs and back were broken, but he survived.
He is married to Aphrodite, but she cheats on
him constantly.
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Aphrodite
Goddess of Love, Desire, and Beauty. She has two
stories of birth. (Zeus/Dione vs. Uranus.) She
is married to Hephaestus but carries on an affair
with
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Ares
The God of Offensive War. He is the son of
Zeus. He carries on an affair with Aphrodite,
who is his sister. The dog and vulture
represent him. Constantly has his weapons
broken by Hephaestus.
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Athena
Goddess of Wisdom, crafts, and defensive war.
She was born fully-grown out of Zeus and has
his temper. She is the reason why spiders and
Medusa exist. Athena favors Odysseus because he
is so clever.
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Hermes
He is the God of thieves and athletics. He is
also the messenger of the Gods and helps people
travel to the land of the dead. He is related
to the Goddess of Victory Nike.
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Demeter
Goddess of Harvest. Daughter is Persephone.
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Dionysus
God of wine, fertility, and theatre. He is
happiness and rage together (not unlike the two
sides of alcohol). His mother died when Zeus
revealed his true form to her, so Dionysus was
stitched into Zeus leg until birth.
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Hestia
Goddess of home, family, and hearth.
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Persephone
Wife of Hades. Daughter of Demeter She is
kidnapped by Hades and is the reason why we have
Winter. She lives in the underworld six months
a year.
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Muses
There are nine Muses, each with her own
specialty Clio (History) Urania (Astronomy)
Melpomene (Tragedy) Thalia (Comedy)
Terpsichore (Dance) Calliope (Epic Poetry)
Erato (Love Poetry) Polyhymnia (Songs to the
Gods) Euterpe (Lyric Poetry). The artists pray
to the muses for inspiration.
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The Fates
Fates Decide mans (and womans) life and
death   Clotho Spins your life Lachesis
Measures your life Atropos Cuts (or ends) your
life
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Eris
Goddess of discord (chaos). She is disliked by
the rest of the Gods and started the Trojan War.
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Mt. Olympus
Home of the Gods.
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Odysseus
Hero of the Trojan War. Clever. The Odyssey is
his story.
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Helen
The face that launched 1,000 ships. She is the
wife of.
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Menelaus
The King of Sparta once he married Helen. He
rallied all of Greece to go after his wife. It
was the first time Greece had come together as a
whole nation to defeat a common enemy.
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Paris
Son of Priam. He took Helen after Aphrodite
promised him her love. Paris may or may not have
become Alexander the Great. His brother is
Hector.
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Achilles
The greatest Greek warrior. He was made
invulnerable (except for his heel) when his
mother dipped him in the river Styx. He was
killed by Paris at the end of the Trojan War.
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Hector
Brother of Paris. He is a Trojan warrior fought
and lost to Achilles. Achilles dragged Hectors
body behind his chariot for hours to show his
anger.
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Trojan War
Fought over Helen. It lasted ten years according
to the myth. It may have actually occurred over
ten days in what is now known as Turkey. The war
ended when the Greeks snuck into Troy using the
Trojan Horse.
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Spartans
Ruthless warriors. They were constantly at odds
with Athens but joined with them for the war with
Troy.
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Trojans
The warriors from Troy. They were led by
Priam. After Troy fell, they sailed out. The
Aeneid is that story.