Reigene Madrid

BSE-ENGLISH2

Major 5 Mythology and Folklore Researched Topic for Micro Demo

Topic: Meleager and Atalanta, Hercules, Hebe and Ganymede

References: https://www.artic.edu/artworks/40724/the-offering-of-the-boar-s-head-
from-the-story-of-meleager-and-atalanta

https://www.sacred-texts.com/cla/bulf/bulf18.htm

https://prezi.com/btt7lycystnf/the-tales-of-hercules-hebe-and-ganymede/

A. Meleager & Atalanta

Atalanta, in Greek mythology, a renowned and swift-footed huntress, probably a parallel

and less important form of the goddess Artemis. Traditionally, she was the daughter of
Schoeneus of Boeotia or of Iasus and Clymene of Arcadia.

Her complex legend includes the following incidents. On her father’s orders, she was left to
die at birth but was suckled by a she-bear. She took part in the Calydonian boar hunt;
Atalanta drew first blood and was awarded the boar’s head and hide by the boar’s slayer,
Meleager, who was in love with her. When his uncles took away the spoils from her,
Meleager killed them and was in turn killed by their sister, his own mother. In the most
famous story, one popular with ancient and modern artists, Atalanta offered to marry
anyone who could outrun her—but those whom she overtook she speared. In one race
Hippomenes (or Milanion) was given three of the golden apples of the Hesperides by the
goddess Aphrodite; when he dropped them, Atalanta stopped to pick them up and so lost
the race. Their son was Parthenopaeus, who later was one of the Seven who fought against
Thebes after the death of King Oedipus. Atalanta and her husband, overcome with passion,
made love in a shrine of the goddess Cybele (or of Zeus), for which they were turned into
lions.

Meleager, in Greek mythology, the leader of the Calydonian boar hunt. The Iliad relates how
Meleager’s father, King Oeneus of Calydon, had omitted to sacrifice to Artemis, who sent a
wild boar to ravage the country. Meleager collected a band of heroes to hunt it, and he
eventually killed it himself. The Calydonians and the Curetes (neighbouring warriors who
aided in the hunt) then quarrelled over the spoils, and war broke out between them. In this
war Meleager killed the brother of his mother, Althaea, and she cursed him. At one point
the Curetes besieged Calydon; since Meleager refused to fight, the Curetes were on the
verge of victory when Meleager finally joined the battle and repulsed them. The Iliad does
not describe Meleager’s death, though it mentions that it occurred before the Trojan War.
His mother caused his death by burning the log whose span of existence was coterminous
with his. Meleager formed the subject of the Meleager of Euripides, of which only fragments
survive.

B. Hercules, Hebe and Ganymede

Hercules is most known for being one of the most celebrated heroes in Ancient Greek
mythology. He was the son of Zeus and his mortal lover, Alcmene. As a result of his
parentage, Hera, Zeus’s wife, became jealous and seemed to have taken it out on Hercules.
Despite that, Hercules seemed to thrive. One of his most famous tales is how he completed
the Twelve Labors, but he was also associated with other stories. The tale of how he got
together with his wife, Hebe, is worth telling even if it isn’t as popular. Here’s a look at a
Greek mythological story of Hebe and Hercules.

Hebe was the Greek goddess of youth and there were several versions of the tale of how
she was born. In one version of her story, she was the legitimate child of Zeus, the king of
the gods, and Hera, the queen of the gods. In another version of her story, her mother, Hera,
simply became pregnant with her while she was eating some lettuce leaves while she was
having dinner with Apollo, a fellow Olympian. As she grew older, she became the
“Cupbearer of the Gods”, which essentially means that she was responsible for serving the
gods and goddesses of Mount Olympus their drinks, particularly the nectar that they so
loved. She also assisted Hera with various tasks, such as helping her onto her chariot.

Accounts of Hercules and Hebe show that the pair got married after he was given
immortality. This marriage further displeased Hera because it took her daughter, Hebe,
away from Mount Olympus and into the arms of a man that she detested. Not only that, but
Hebe did a lot to assist Hera and because Hebe wasn’t around, she could no longer be there
for Hera. To make matters worse for Hera, when Hercules and Hebe were married,
Hercules was given the gift of eternal youth, which further sparked Hera’s contempt.

Despite the fact that Hera wasn’t pleased when the pair got together, Hebe and Hercules
had a great marriage and the two had children together. Once Hebe left Mount Olympus,
Zeus found someone else, the beautiful youth Ganymede, to be the Cupbearer of the Gods.
Hebe went from being treated like a servant on Mount Olympus to being in a happy
marriage with one of the greatest heroes of Greek mythology.

Ganymede, or Catamitus, in Greek legend, the son of Tros (or Laomedon), king of Troy.
Because of his unusual beauty, he was carried off either by the gods or by Zeus, disguised as
an eagle, or, according to a Cretan account, by Minos, to serve as cupbearer. In
compensation, Zeus gave Ganymede’s father a stud of immortal horses (or a golden vine).
The earliest forms of the myth have no erotic content, but by the 5th century BC it was
believed that Ganymede’s kidnapper had a homosexual passion for him; Ganymede’s
kidnapping was a popular topic on 5th-century Attic vases. The English word catamite was
derived from the popular Latin form of his name. He was later identified with the
constellation Aquarius.