The stories and traditions used by the Greeks to describe nature and everyday occurrences have come to be referred to ask Greek Mythology. It is believed that the oldest record of these myths is found in the epic poems Iliad and Oddessy which focus on the era of the Trojan War. Many archaeological finds have added depth and understanding to the cults, rituals, and beliefs that are included in this mythology. Many literary classics are based on stories of Gods, Goddesses, and Heroes from the different regions of Greece. Stories written by Homer, Hesiod, Pindar, Theocritus, Sophocles, Euripides, Aristophanes, and Arnobius are just a few of the poets and playwrights that have passed these stories on to us. These writers also show us that the mythology and beliefs were ever changing and developing while sticking to the main stories and traditions. We see in the Greek Myth of creation the battle between father and son for the ability to rule. This is a parallel to many stories in Greek History. We are also shown that while the Greeks celebrated and worshipped the Olympian Gods they also recognized many local spirits that were found in trees, rivers, and the sea. Within Greek Mythology there are many different eras of thought these include the age of the gods, the age of gods and humans, and the age of heroes. Each age shows different aspects and stories. The age of the gods deals with the events that effect the gods and not man, such as the creation story. The age of gods and humans shows times in which the gods interacted with man either for punishment or for love. The Heroic age is the stories of the mortal men who are extraordinary in talent and their exploits. The main themes are of military nature including the Trojan war and the Argonauts. With the rise of philosophy the fate of Greek mythology can be seen in many different lights. Some feel that the beliefs just vanished while there is much evidence of local cults staying very popular. Many modern philosophers and have studied the mythology of the Greeks to find explanations for the behavior of man. These men included Freud, Jung, Segal, and Kerenyi. We know little of the origins of these stories but they have fascinated modern man enough to be depicted in some the greatest works of heart in our history.
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- This page was has a revision listed for 15 February 2002 and a current revision listed for 5 September 2008 with two hundred and ninety two edits listed during this time frame.
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This article is full of wonderful information however to a reader that may not be familiar with the subject matter their is too much information provided and not enough support for each area. It is a very daunting article and while it provides information that even I was not familiar with it is very hard to follow and extremely difficult to understand. I can see why this article has under gone so many revisions over the last few years. It would be much better to have a basic article that explains the premis of Greek Mythology and provide links to other sources for people who are interested in more information or support. I think that seperate pages are needed to discuss the different eras of mythology as well as the modern effects of these stories. The article does a great job in providing a full picture of Greek Mythology but it is missing key elements and references that even young children in school learn regarding Greek Mythology. I think this article can be laid out in a better format and much of the deatils turned into seperate pages. I would recommend this page only to individuals who have extensive knowledge of the stories of this mythology for historical information as opposed to an individual who may have no contact with these stories.
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