The Life and Labors
of Hercules
Who Are Some Greek Heroes?
Theseus
His father was Aegeus, king of Athens, and his mother was Aethra.
Before Theseus was born, Aegeus took Aethra to a place where
there was a huge boulder. He lifted it and placed beneath it
his sword and sandals. When their child was strong enough, he
instructed Aethra to being him to that place to see if he could
lift the boulder. If the child came to Athens with the sword
and sandals, Aegeus would accept him as his son. This child was
Theseus. On his way to Athens, he faced many challenges and obstacles
and had to perform labors similar to those of Hercules. Theseus
is well known for his adventure in the Labyrinth on the island
of Crete. According to one legend, the people of Athens had to
send a sacrifice of 7 young men and 7 young women to the Minotaur
who lived in the Labyrinth. Theseus went to kill the monster,
and succeeded with the help of king Minos' daughter, Ariadne.
Perseus
His father was Zeus and his mother was a mortal named Danae.
Danae's father and king of Argos, Acrisius, received an oracle
saying that a descendant of Danae would kill him. To prevent
this from happening, he imprisoned his daughter in a tower. When
Zeus saw Danae for the first time, he was so taken with her beauty
that he turned himself into a shower of golden rain and entered
the tower through the small window openings. After Perseus was
born, both Danae and Perseus were locked in a trunk and thrown
into the ocean at the order of Acrisius. A fisherman, whose brother
was King Polydectes, rescued them from the trunk. The fell in
love with Danae and demanded that they get married.
In order to defend his mother from this
demand, Perseus promised the king that he would give him any
gift. The king asked for the head of the gorgon, Medusa. Perseus
first had to find the Graiae, the three sisters who shared one
eye. They reluctantly told him where to find Medusa. To assist
him in the task, some nymphs gave Perseus a cap of invisibility,
winged shoes, and a bag into which he would place Medusa's head.
He was successful in his quest. When he returned to the king,
he found that he had forced his mother to marry him anyway. Perseus
showed him the gorgon's head and he immediately turned to stone.
Jason
His father was Aeson, king of Iolcus, and his mother' name is
not known. Before Jason was born, his uncle, Pelias, usurped
the throne of Iolcus and exiled Aeson. His mother was suspicious
of Pelias, and when he was an infant, she sent him to Mt. Pelion
to be raised by the centaur Chiron. When he had grown, Jason
left the mountain to claim the thrown of Iolcus. On the journey,
he helped an elderly woman cross a flooded river. While he was
helping her cross the river, he lost one sandal in the current.
Long ago, Pelias received an oracle warning him to beware of
a man descended from Aeson wearing one sandal. When Jason entered
the city wearing one sandal, Pelias was terrified. Pelias knew
that he had to rid himself of Jason and sent him on the impossible
task of bringing him the Golden Fleece from the city of Colchis.
Jason assembled a force of Greece's greatest heroes to help him,
one of which was Hercules. When they finally reached Colchis,
Jason met and fell in love Medea, the daughter of the king of
Colchis and a witch. She helps Jason steal the Fleece.
Hercules
He is Greece's most famous hero. Some of his personality traits
and characteristics include valor, endurance, an adventurous
spirit, of somewhat limited intelligence, and an uncontrollable
temper. He is the son of Zeus and Alcmene, and he was always
the object of Hera's anger. When Hercules was grown and married
with a family, Hera sent a madness to him which caused him to
murder his own wife and children. In order to atone for his sins,
Hercules received an oracle from Delphi saying that he had to
go to his cousin, Eurystheus, king of Tiryns. Eurystheus ordered
him to perform labors that would be impossible for a mortal to
complete.
Questions (for review or homework)
- List some features of the stories that
are similar.
- What are the extraordinary feats that
these heroes performed?
- List the heroes that have immortal parents.
- Select on of the heroes mentioned above
and research the events surrounding their death.
