(the guy who kills Medusa)

1. He was the husband of Andromeda, and he

was always faithful to her.
2. He is the son of Zeus, which makes #1 even
more incredible.
3. Homer calls him the “most renowned of all
men.”
 Full length stories: Apollodorus and Ovid
 Pausinaius and Herodotus mention him.
 Aeschylus, Sophocles, and Euripides wrote

plays about him.

Perseus is one of the (many) sons of Zeus. His
mother, Danae, is the daughter (and only
child) of King Acrisius of Argos.

King Acrisius was worried about what would

happen to his kingdom once he died since he
had no male heir.
 With the wisdom of a fortune cookie, the
Oracle foretold that although Acrisius would
never have a son of his own, his daughter
would further the bloodline.

 Acrisius was thrilled until he heard the

second part of the prophesy.
 Yes, Acrisius’ daughter would have a son.

 That son was destined to kill Acrisius.

 To keep her from fulfilling her part of the
prophesy, Acrisius shuts Danae in a
subterranean house which opened directly to
the sky.
 He kept her guarded day and night.
 One night Zeus transformed himself into a
shower of gold. As he rained into Danae’s
prison he somehow managed to impregnate
her.

 No, I don’t know how this

shower+Danae=Perseus thing works.
 Somehow, Danae managed to give birth
secretly. She also managed to hide her son
from Acrisius for a while.

 When he eventually discovered them he

refused to believe Zeus was the father. He
also began looking for ways to get rid of
Perseus.
 Acrisius eventually decided that the best way
to get his daughter and his future murderer
safely away from him was to lock them in a
trunk and toss them into the ocean. This way
they could die, but it wouldn’t technically be
his fault.
 Zeus made sure his son and Danae did not
die. They washed up on a beach where a
fisherman named Dictys found them.

 Perseus and Danae lived with Dictys and his

wife for many years and grew to be like
family.
Around the time Perseus was grown, Dictys’s
brother, Polydectes (ruler of the island)
noticed Danae.
Danae was still a beautiful woman, and
Polydectes decided she should be his wife.
(Whether she wanted to be or not!)
 Danae had absolutely no desire to be married
to Polydectes. He was a jerk. Because she
had a son she did have someone to keep her
from being taken. Perseus had the right to
refuse the marriage offer on her behalf.

 Polydectes came up with a plan: Get rid of

Perseus.
 Danae realized that her refusal of Polydectes
could really hurt Perseus’s chances of staying
alive. She agreed to marry Polydectes.

 Polydectes announced his wedding and

required everyone to bring lavish gifts. He
knew Perseus could not comply since he was
poor.
 Perseus announces he will go get the greatest
gift of all: the head of Medusa.
 Medusa was the daughter of Phorcys and
Cieto.
 Medusa was a beautiful maiden and servant

in the temple of Athena. ( The temple is the

Parthenon, in case you’ve forgotten.)
 One day, Poseidon took a “liking” to her and

decided to “have his way” with her whether

she agreed to it or not.
 All this against her will way taking occurred
within the walls of Athena’s temple (the
Parthenon).
 Obviously, Athena was furious!
 How dare Poseidon deflower her virgin

priestess within the holy sanctuary of the

Parthenon?
 Athena was so furious..with MEDUSA..she
turned her into the hideous, snake haired
creature we know as the Gorgon, Medusa.
 Medusa was one of three sisters. Her sisters,

Euryale and Stheno, were immortal. Medusa

was not. They were all cursed.
 Polydectes expected Perseus to die.

 No one knew where the Gorgons lived.

 Perseus consulted the Oracles at Delphi and

Dodona; neither were any help.
 Hermes and Athena show up to give Perseus
some assistance. They tell him to go to the
nymphs of the North to get some special
equipment.
 To get to the nymphs, Perseus needed to visit

the Gray women.

 Hermes led him on this first part of the

journey.
 Hermes and Athena give Perseus a few tools
as well.
 Hermes give him a magical sword that won’t

break.
 Athena lends Perseus a shiny bronze shield.
 Three sisters of the Gorgons who looked like
swans with human heads and hands and they
had arms under their wings.
 They shared one eye.
 Perseus used it to get the information he

needed.
 Perseus goes to the farthest North to the land
of the Hyperboreans. The Hyperboreans gave
him three gifts:
Winged sandals
A cap to make him invisible
A bag which would hold anything. No matter what size.

Hermes knew where the Gorgons lived, so he flew

Perseus to their island.
 Perseus arrives while the Gorgons are asleep.
 Perseus used his shield to watch the

reflection of the Gorgons to aim.

 He chopped off Medusa’s head, stuffed it in

his bag, and flew away.

 Perseus flew home via Ethiopia, and he found
a beautiful maiden about to be eaten by a sea
monster.
 Her name was Andromeda.

 Andromeda’s mother, Casseiopeia, had

bragged that her daughter was more
beautiful than the daughters than the sea
god.
 Because of this bragging, an angry sea
monster was terrorizing the Ethiopians.

 An Oracle was consulted, and the prophesy

was given: Sacrifice Andromeda and the
monster will leave.
 Andromeda’s father chained her to a rock and
waited for the sea monster to eat her.

 Perseus saw her and fell instantly in love.

 Perseus killed the sea monster and asked

permission for Andromeda to marry him.

 (Perseus had to kill her ex-boyfriend with

Medusa’s head.)
 Perseus and Andromeda returned to
Perseus’s home.

 Danae had decided not to marry Polydectes

and was in hiding with Dictys and his wife.

 Polydectes was having a party when Perseus

walked in and showed him his “gift.”
 Danae wanted the family to return home to
Argos. When they got there Acrisius wasn’t
there.

Perseus entered a sporting event.

 He threw the discus into the stands.
 He hit Acrisius and killed him.