希腊神话lecture11

1、希腊神话Greek MythologyLecture 10TheseusTheseus Greek HeroFounding hero of AthensSynoikistes (unifier) of AtticaParentage unclear; possibly two fathers, Aigeus & PoseidonDouble fatherhood gives Theseus legitimacy as a hero (son of a god) and also as rightful king of AthensRecovering his fathers swordRec

2、overing his fathers swordAegeus had left his sword beneath a rockHe left instructions that, when Theseus was strong enough, he should move the rock, take the sword and come meet his father in AthensThe Tasks of TheseusThe Tasks of Theseus-SinisSinis was incredibly strong, so strong he could bend tre

3、esHe amused himself by bending two pine trees, tying someones arms to their top branches, then letting the trees go so the man would be torn in twoTheseus made Sinis suffer his own punishmentThe Tasks of TheseusThe Tasks of TheseusThe Tasks of Theseus-ProcrustesProcrustes had two beds and would invi

4、te guests to sleep in oneHe demanded that his guests fit the length of the bed exactlyIf they were too short, he would painfully stretch their body until they fit. If they were too tall, he would cut off part of their legs until they fit.Theseus made Procrustes suffer his own punishmentIn English, w

5、e use procrustean to talk about rules enforced regardless of real circumstancesThe Tasks of TheseusThe Tasks of TheseusThe Tasks of Theseus- ScironSciron lived next to a cliff and often asked guests to wash his feetWhile they were washing his feet, Sciron would kick them off the cliffTheseus made Sc

6、iron suffer his own punishmentThe Plot of MedeaThe Plot of MedeaAegeus did not know Theseus was his son but his wife Medea didMedea was pregnant and wanted her child to inherit the throne of AthensSo she convinced Aegeus to give Theseus poisoned wine at dinner The Plot of MedeaThe Plot of MedeaWhen

7、Theseus drew his sword to cut his meat, Aegeus recognised itDesperately, Aegeus knocked the cup of wine from Theseus hands as he was about to drinkMedea fled AthensTheseus & the MinotaurYears before, there had been a war between Athens & Crete, which Athens lostKing Minos of Crete demanded, in retur

8、n for peace, 7 young men and 7 young women every 9 years to come to Crete and be eaten by the MinotaurThe Minotaur lived in a huge labyrinth beneath King Minos palace The MinotaurTheseus & the MinotaurTheseus volunteered to be one of the 7 young men sent to CreteHe sailed away in a boat with a black

9、 sail, promising his father that, if he was successful, he would return with a white sailTheseus & the MinotaurAt Crete, Theseus fell in love with King Minos daughter, AriadneAriadne agreed to help him and gave him a ball of thread, so he could find his way out of the labyrinthAriadneTheseus & the M

10、inotaurTheseus & AriadneAfter the Minotaur was killed, Theseus & Ariadne fled Crete togetherThey spent the night on the island of NaxosIn the morning, Theseus forgot Ariadne and sailed home without herAriadne on NaxosWhat happened to Ariadne?Ariadne was trapped on Naxos for some timeEventually, Dion

11、ysos found her and fell in love with her.Dionysos took Ariadne to Olympus, where she was made immortal, and then married herTheseus Terrible Memory Strikes Again!Theseus & Pirithous Have a PlanTheseus & his friend Pirithous challenge each other to marry daughters of ZeusTheseus wants Helen (who is s

12、till a young girl), so kidnaps her, deciding to keep her and marry her when she grows upPirithous wants Persephone, so the two friends travel to the Underworld together Theseus & Pirithous Have a PlanIn the Underworld, Hades invites the two men to sit on two stone chairsWhen they sit down, they cant get out of the chairsTheseus & Pirithous stay sitting in the stone chairs for many