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Ancient Mythology
CLT 3378- Exam 2
53
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Undergraduate 1
03/22/2012

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Term
Anansi
Definition
West African trickster, liminal figure, friends with gods
Term
Liminal
Definition
Between two worlds, threshold between categories, in between gods and humans
Term
Akan
Definition
people who were enslaved, brought stories to the New World
Term
Kweku/Kwaku Anansi
Definition
African name for Anansi
Term
Onyame/Nyame
Definition
ruler of gods, keeper of the stories
Term
Trickster
Definition
Shape-shifters, closely associated with language, amoral, same rules do not apply to them, often liminal
Term
Amoral
Definition
Not necessarily bad or evil, but not good either.
Term
Mmoboro
Definition
Hornets that Anansi must bring back to Nyame to get all the stories, uses trickery to trap them in a gourd.
Term
Onini
Definition
The python Anansi must bring to Nyame, is talked into stretching out and being tied to a tree.
Term
Osebo
Definition
Panther Anansi must bring to Nyame, falls into a deep hole and is captured by Anansi's web
Term
anansesem
Definition
"stories", folk tales
Term
okyeami
Definition
symbol or linguist, Akan royal spokesman
Term
Baduasemanpensa
Definition
name of Nyame's daughter. it is a secret and must be found out to win her hand in marriage
Term
Lizard
Definition
character from Akan (or West African) myth. Anansi tells him the name of Nyame's daughter, and when Anansi refuses to say the name, Lizard says it and wins Baduasemanpensa as his wife.
Term
Atumpan drum
Definition
used as a talking drum. formulaic "talking", associated with gods, kingship and linguistic skill
Term
Owoh
Definition
name of a snake from Akan myth who is a friend of Anansi. Anansi borrows money from him but can't repay it, so he frames Owoh for the theft of some yams and finally kills him. When Owoh, dying, rolls over, it establishes the rule that snakes will roll on their backs when they die.
Term
Iapetos
Definition
god from Greek myth who is one of the Titans. In the Theogony, he is the father of Prometheus, Epimetheus, and Atlas.
Term
Clymene
Definition
goddess from Greek myth who is one of the Titans. In the Theogony, she is the mother of Prometheus, Epimetheus, and Atlas.
Term
Atlas
Definition
Holds up the sky, son of Iapetos and Clymene
Term
Prometheus
Definition
brother to Atlas, stole fire from Zeus and gave it to the mortals, trickster
Term
Epimetheus
Definition
god from Greek myth who is the brother of Prometheus. Zeus gives Pandora to him as his wife.
Term
Zeus
Definition
king of the gods in Greek mythology. Hesiod praises him and characterizes him as the epitome of justice in the Theogony and the Works and Days, but in the Prometheus Bound, Aeschylus says that Zeus is a cruel and unjust tyrant.
Term
Hephaistos
Definition
Son of Zeus and Hera, creates Zeus's master bolt
Term
Fennel stalk
Definition
used by Prometheus to steal fire from the gods. After Prometheus tricked Zeus with the sacrifice at Mecone, Zeus refused to give fire to humans, so Prometheus stole it in a fennel stalk and gave it to humans.
Term
Athena
Definition
Greek goddess associated with wisdom, crafts, and warfare. In the story of Pandora, she weaves the clothing for Pandora and teaches her all of the crafts traditionally practiced by ancient Greek women. In the story of the Judgement of Paris, Athena is one of the goddesses contending for the golden apple, and she offers to give Paris victory in war if he chooses her.
Term
Hesiod
Definition
Greek author, "Works and Days" and "Theogony"
Term
Works and Days
Definition
Written by Hesiod, story of Pandora and Prometheus and the 5 mythic ages
Term
Theogony
Definition
Written by Hesiod, tells the story of the creation of the Greek gods
Term
Golden Age
Definition
concept in the mythologies of many cultures. It is the idea of an early time when humans had a perfect life with no troubles and no need to work. One example of a Golden Age myth is the story of Adam and Eve, who had a life without pain and toil before their expulsion from the Garden of Eden. Hesiod tells two different Golden Age myths: the story of Pandora, in which Pandora ends a Golden Age by introducing sickness and worry, and the Myth of the Races, in which the Golden Age is the time when the Golden Race lived.
Term
Pandora
Definition
Created to punish mankind for Prometheus' tricks, made by Hephaistos, Athena, Aphrodite, and Hermes
Term
Hermes
Definition
God of travel, crossing boundaries. Gives Pandora trickiness/evil
Term
pithos
Definition
Greek word for large ceramic jar, made from clay like Pandora. Contains toil, sickness and ills that ends the Golden Age
Term
pyxis
Definition
small ceramic box for makeup, sometimes called Pandora's box
Term
Myth of the Races
Definition
5 ages of men: gold, silver, bronze, heroes, and iron.
Term
Golden Race
Definition
Live like gods, die by falling asleep
Term
Silver Race
Definition
never grow up. irritate the gods and are killed by them
Term
Bronze Race
Definition
violent and primal. kill eachother off
Term
Race of Heroes
Definition
die naturally and go to Elsyium. have descendants.
Term
Iron Race
Definition
humans exist in toil and misery, gods forsake them
Term
Aeschylus
Definition
great Athenian tragedian, "Prometheus Bound" was written to him
Term
Prometheus Bound
Definition
Story of Prometheus bound by Hephaistos, probably written to Aeschylus
Term
Caucasus Mountains
Definition
Where Prometheus is bound, located between Black Sea and Caspian Sea
Term
Might
Definition
one of the mountains imprisoning Prometheus
Term
Violence
Definition
one of the mountains imprisoning Prometheus
Term
Narthex
Definition
another name for the type of fennel that Prometheus used to steal fire from the gods. (You can use the same definition for this as for "fennel stalk;" just explain that "narthex" means "fennel.")
Term
Okeanos
Definition
ocean, binatural god. tells Prometheus to stop fighting Zeus and to be more cautious
Term
Moirai
Definition
3 goddesses that control the Fates. control gods and humans
Term
Clotho
Definition
"Spinner". thread depicting human life
Term
Lachesis
Definition
"Apportioner of lots". measures human life
Term
Atropas
Definition
"not turning away". Snipping the thread
Term
Io
Definition
priestess of Hera, tormented by Zeus and Hera. guarded by Argos and haunted by his ghost.
Term
Hera
Definition
Queen of the Gods, wife to Zeus, turns Io into a cow to protect her from Zeus.
Term
Argos
Definition
His ghost haunts Io. 10,000 eyes all over his body. Sent by Hera to guard Io.
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