1 of 13
The ferryman Charon escorted departed souls from the land of the living to the land of the dead across which river in the underworld?
ANSWER: Styx means "abhorrent." Acheron means "distress," Lethe means "oblivion," and Phlegethon means "fire flaming." All were rivers of the underworld, but Charon's charge was shipping souls across the river Styx. Styx means "abhorrent." Acheron means "distress," Lethe means "oblivion," and Phlegethon means "fire flaming." All were rivers of the underworld, but Charon's charge was shipping souls across the river Styx.
2 of 13
Which Greek hero is responsible for slaying the Minotaur?
ANSWER: Theseus successfully navigates the Labyrinth on Crete to kill the Minotaur. Daedalus, the father of Icarus and the most creative human craftsman, advises Theseus to unwind a roll of string to get in and out of the Labyrinth. Daedalus crafted Icarus' infamous wings to help them escape their imprisonment on Crete and is the inspiration behind Stephen Daedalus, the protagonist of James Joyce's A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man... which begins with an allusion to Ovid's Metamorphosis describing Daedalus: "And he sets his mind to unknown arts." Theseus successfully navigates the Labyrinth on Crete to kill the Minotaur. Daedalus, the father of Icarus and the most creative human craftsman, advises Theseus to unwind a roll of string to get in and out of the Labyrinth. Daedalus crafted Icarus' infamous wings to help them escape their imprisonment on Crete and is the inspiration behind Stephen Daedalus, the protagonist of James Joyce's A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man... which begins with an allusion to Ovid's Metamorphosis describing Daedalus: "And he sets his mind to unknown arts."
3 of 13
Zeus punished Prometheus for giving fire to humans by tying him to a rock and ordering an eagle to daily devour what part of Prometheus' body?
ANSWER: Zeus treated his cousins pretty roughly... along with everyone else. Zeus treated his cousins pretty roughly... along with everyone else.
4 of 13
What was the Latin name for Dionysus, the Greek god of wine and fertility?
5 of 13
In which epic poem is the story of the Trojan Horse recounted?
ANSWER: Ironically, Homer neglects to tell the story of the Trojan Horse in either The Iliad or The Odyssey, despite the fact that both poems focus on the Trojan War and Odysseus--the man who conceived the Trojan Horse. The account is given in the Latin poet Virgil's The Aeneid. Ironically, Homer neglects to tell the story of the Trojan Horse in either The Iliad or The Odyssey, despite the fact that both poems focus on the Trojan War and Odysseus--the man who conceived the Trojan Horse. The account is given in the Latin poet Virgil's The Aeneid.
6 of 13
When master craftsman Hephaestus constructs a magic tarp of invisible chains to humiliate his promiscuous wife Aphrodite, which god does he ensnare in flagrante delicto with her?
ANSWER: Ares, the god of War, was a frequent sexual partner of the philandering Aphrodite. Hephaestus also created the gods' house on Olympus, Zeus' thunderbolts, Achilles' golden armor, and the first woman, Pandora. Ares, the god of War, was a frequent sexual partner of the philandering Aphrodite. Hephaestus also created the gods' house on Olympus, Zeus' thunderbolts, Achilles' golden armor, and the first woman, Pandora.
7 of 13
Which playwright wrote Oedipus Rex?
ANSWER: Which interpretation do you support: fate or free will? Which interpretation do you support: fate or free will?
8 of 13
When Orpheus courageously attempts to retrieve his wife Eurydice from Hades, what temptation proves too much for him to overcome, thus relegating his wife to eternity in the underworld?
ANSWER: When Orpheus melts Hades' heart with a soulful song and earns the permission to take Eurydice back from the land of the dead, Hades has only one caveat: Orpheus can not look back at her until they've returned to the land of the living. The temptation overwhelms Orpheus and he violates the stipulation when he glances back to ensure that Eurydice is safe just before they exit the underworld. The agreement is invalidated and Eurydice is doomed to suffer an eternity in the land of shadows. The story parallels the Biblical account of Lot's Wife turning into a pillar of salt for looking back wistfully at the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah. When Orpheus melts Hades' heart with a soulful song and earns the permission to take Eurydice back from the land of the dead, Hades has only one caveat: Orpheus can not look back at her until they've returned to the land of the living. The temptation overwhelms Orpheus and he violates the stipulation when he glances back to ensure that Eurydice is safe just before they exit the underworld. The agreement is invalidated and Eurydice is doomed to suffer an eternity in the land of shadows. The story parallels the Biblical account of Lot's Wife turning into a pillar of salt for looking back wistfully at the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah.
9 of 13
Which goddess does Paris side with in "The Judgement of Paris," thus launching the Trojan War and inspiring a seemingly endless supply of myths?
ANSWER: The story: The goddess of Discord (Eris) crashes the wedding of Thetis and Peleus, and throws a golden apple reading "for the fairest" on the ground. Aphrodite, Athene and Hera cause such a clamor fighting over the apple that Zeus throws it off Mount Olympus and into the field where Paris (a prince of Troy) is herding sheep. Paris ultimately grants the apple to Aphrodite, who promised him the most beautiful woman in the world, Helen (Menelaus of Greece's wife). Helen's face launches a thousands ships and compels Homer to narrate an epic poem about the war, providing a solid foundation for Greek mythology. Another day in paradise. The story: The goddess of Discord (Eris) crashes the wedding of Thetis and Peleus, and throws a golden apple reading "for the fairest" on the ground. Aphrodite, Athene and Hera cause such a clamor fighting over the apple that Zeus throws it off Mount Olympus and into the field where Paris (a prince of Troy) is herding sheep. Paris ultimately grants the apple to Aphrodite, who promised him the most beautiful woman in the world, Helen (Menelaus of Greece's wife). Helen's face launches a thousands ships and compels Homer to narrate an epic poem about the war, providing a solid foundation for Greek mythology. Another day in paradise.
10 of 13
Which of the following mythological monsters was not involved in the twelve trials of Heracles?
ANSWER: The Charybdis was a whirlpool that sucked Odysseus' ship underwater at the Straits of Messina in Homer's Odyssey. Heracles had to kill the Hydra (a seven-headed monster) and the Nemean Lion and capture the Arcadian Boar as part of his twelve trials. The Charybdis was a whirlpool that sucked Odysseus' ship underwater at the Straits of Messina in Homer's Odyssey. Heracles had to kill the Hydra (a seven-headed monster) and the Nemean Lion and capture the Arcadian Boar as part of his twelve trials.
11 of 13
What Aristotelian term, stemming from the Greek tragedians, refers to the purging and cleansing of pity and fear?
12 of 13
What did Sisyphus do to earn his eternal "roll the rock up the hill" punishment in Hades?
Stole a thunderbolt from Zeus
ANSWER: Sisyphus overpowered Thanatos (Death) and chained him down so mortals ceased to die. Ares finally released Thanatos, who immediately dragged Sisyphus back to Hades, where he is forever doomed to roll a rock up a hill until it inevitably rolls back, forcing him to do it again. The lesson: don't defy the gods. Sisyphus overpowered Thanatos (Death) and chained him down so mortals ceased to die. Ares finally released Thanatos, who immediately dragged Sisyphus back to Hades, where he is forever doomed to roll a rock up a hill until it inevitably rolls back, forcing him to do it again. The lesson: don't defy the gods.
13 of 13
What was the name of the profoundly influential work by Hesiod that is considered the seed from which Greek mythology grew?
The word means "birth of the gods" and encompasses both a cosmogony--a statement about the universe's origins--and a cosmology--an interpretation of its nature and purpose--for Hesiod's three-tier universe of heaven, earth, and Underworld. Works and Days was Hesiod's second major work.
