LITERATURE OF GREECE

Greek literature has influenced not only its Roman neighbors to the west but also
countless generations across the European continent. Greek writers are responsible
for the introduction of
such genres as poetry,
tragedy, comedy, and
western philosophy to
the world. These
Greeks authors were
born not only on the
soil of their native
Greece but also in Asia
Minor (Ionia), the
islands of the Aegean,
Sicily, and southern
Italy. Map of Ancient Greece

The Greeks were a passionate people, and this zeal can be seen in their literature.
They had a rich history of both war and peace, leaving an indelible imprint on the
culture and people. Author and historian Edith Hamilton believed that the spirit of life
abounds throughout Greek history.

To fully understand and appreciate Greek literature one must separate it, divide the
oral epics from the tragedies and comedies as well as the histories from the
philosophies. Greek literature can also be divided into distinct periods: Archaic,
Classical, and Hellenistic. The literature of the Archaic era mostly centered on myth;
part history and part folklore. Homer’s epics of the Iliad and the Odyssey and Hesiod’s
Theogony are significant examples of this period. Literary Greece begins with Homer.
Since writing had not yet arrived in Greece, much of what was created in this period
was communicated orally, only to be put in written form years later.

The Classical era (4th and 5th centuries BCE) centered on the tragedies of such writers
as Sophocles and his Oedipus Rex, Euripides’s Hippolytus, and the comedies of
Aristophanes. Lastly, the final period, the Hellenistic era, saw Greek poetry, prose,
and culture expand across the Mediterranean influencing such Roman writers as
Horace, Ovid, and Virgil. Unfortunately, with only a few exceptions, much of what
was created during the Archaic and Classical period remains only in fragments.
 UNIT 1: THE CREATION
(Literature of Greece)

Learning Outcomes:
1. Describe the characters through their actions,
speech and thoughts
2. Relate characters to people in real life.
3. Write a character sketch.

Greek mythology, as in other ancient cultures, was used as a means to explain

the environment in which humankind lived, the natural phenomena they witnessed
and the passing of time through the days, months, and seasons. Myths were also
intricately connected to religion in the Greek world and explained the origin and lives
of the gods, where humanity had come from and where it was going after death, and
gave advice on the best way to lead a happy life. Finally, myths were used to re-tell
historical events so that people could maintain contact with their ancestors, the wars
they fought, and the places they explored.

As you read the selection notice the different gods and goddesses and their role
in the creation. Observe the characters and take note of their traits.

 The characters are the persons we meet in the story.

 A characterization is a description of the characters.
 The protagonist is the main character, often the hero of the story.
 The antagonist is the villain or enemy in the story.

About the Author

Hesiod was a Greek poet of the eight century BC.
Little is known about him after a quarrel with his
brother Perses who was favored to have a parcel of
land inherited from their father. It was said that
Hesiod lived a difficult life and frugal life which was
depicted in his famous poem Works and Days. This
poem was admired by the Greeks and Romans for it
teaches that man must work hard. His works were
Genealogy of the Gods and Shield of Heracles.
 The Creation
Hesiod

(1)In the beginning, there were neither light nor dark, places nor things, up nor down.
There was nothing. This nothingness was called CHAOS. Even in chaos, however, lay
the possibility of order and these possibilities were like seeds from which, in time, all
things grew.

(2)The first thing to grow out of Chaos was Night, spreading its wings of darkness like
a giant bird. Next to emerge was Erebus, the bottomless place where Death lives.
Then night laid a silver egg, out of which hatched Eros, or Love. The beginning of love
was also the beginning of light, life and joy.Mother Earth or Gaia, and Father Heaven
called Uranus, and then came into this universe of light and dark, and life and death.
Rain fell from heaven and lakes, oceans, and rivers were made, and green plants
began to spring out of the earth.

(3)Uranus and Gaia had quite a large number of children. Their first three offspring
were ugly monsters; each had fifty heads and a hundred hands. Uranus was so
disappointed with them that he immediately shut them up inside the earth. The
Cyclopes were the next three children of Gaia and Uranus. Each Cyclopes had one
enormous, glassy eye in the middle of his forehead. Although they were cleverer than
the three monsters and were even skilled at making weapons from metal, Uranus
shut them away, too. He thought they were ugly and perhaps even dangerous.

(4)The Titans, six sons and six daughters, were the last of Uranus and Gaia’s children.
Compared with their ferocious older brothers, they were rather good-looking and
well-behaved. Because Gaia was upset about the fate of the monsters and the
Cyclopes, and feared the same treatment for the Titans, she called them together.
Gaia warned them that the same thing might happen to them if they didn’t do
something about Uranus first.

(5)But, big and strong as they were, the Titans were afraid of their father. Each one
said he couldn’t possibly think of anything to do; and each suggested that one of the
other Titans find a solution. Finally, Cronus, the youngest Titan, came up with a secret
plan that took his father by surprise. Uranus was so used to running things his own
way that he simply did not expect any opposition.

(6)This is what happened: Cronus got a sharp sickle from the mother and attacked
Uranus with it, badly wounding him. Uranus was in too much pain to fight back, so all
he could do was flee. But as he fled upwards, as high as he could go, he shouted down
to Uranus, “You’ll get the same treatment from one of your children someday.
Beware!”
(7) And since the exile of Uranus, the sky has never come near the earth. Some of the
blood of Uranus fell to the earth, though, and turned into the Giants and the Erinyes,
or Furies. These terrible creatures had live snakes for hair, and they chased wrong-
doers about until they were punished.

(8) If Gaia expected sympathy and cooperation from Cronus, she was greatly
disappointed. Instead of freeing his older brothers, Cronus quickly took his father’s
place as ruler of the world and made his Titan brothers his generals. To Oceanus, he
gave the rule of the River-Ocean that circled the world. He gave control of all light in
the world to his brother Hyperion. The children of Hyperion, the Sun, the Moon, and
the Dawn, rode across the sky in their chariots once a day.

(9) Although Gaia was angry at her highhanded son Cronus, she had no say in the
matter for the time being. And the Titans became known as the Elder Gods.

The War in Heaven

(10)Cronus never forgot his father’s warning that he, too, would be overthrown by
one of his own children someday. To prevent this, he swallowed his first five children
as soon as they were born. Hestia, Demeter, Hera, Hades, and Poseidon, had all been
swallowed by the time the sixth child, Zeus, was on his way.

(11)Cronus’s wife Rhea, was very upset by this. She went to her mother, Gaia, and
asked how she could put a stop to this unfatherly behavior. Gaia, having had a similar
problem with her husband Uranus, was more than happy to advise her. She told Rhea
to go to the Island of Crete and to hide her newborn child in a secret cave on Mount
Ida. She was to give Cronus a stone, wrapped in blankets, instead of the baby. Gaia
said that Cronus would never know the difference. Rhea did as Gaia had told her, and
Cronus swallowed the bundle-stone, blankets and all. He never even looked up from
what he was doing.

(12)The child was a son, Zeus, who grew up on Crete, well cared for by nymphs and
shepherds. He could not travel to the palace, however without endangering his life.
Finally, one day Rhea sent the messenger Metis to visit Zeus and to show him how to
brew a strong poison from herbs. The messenger told Zeus to go to Cronus’s palace
and hide there until he could get a chance to put the poison into Cronus’s wine cup.
Zeus did this, and one night, while he was hiding under the supper table, he got his
chance. Cronus had eaten a big meal and was sitting, drowsing, over his wine. Zeus
slipped the poison into the cup.

(13)As soon as Cronus had drunk the poisoned wine, an amazing thing happened. He
got so sick that up came his first five children as well as the big stone wrapped in
blankets.
 (14) Cronus had a strong stomach, though, and the poison only made him sick for a
while. Although Zeus and his brothers, Hades and Poseidon quickly tied their father
to his chair, he was soon shouting for his brother Titans. And thus began a battle that
lasted for years. The Elder Gods were led by the Titan Atlas, and the Younger Gods
were led by Zeus. First the Titans chased the Younger Gods up Mount Olympus, and
it looked as if the Elder Gods were winning. So, Zeus decided to see his grandmother,
Gaia.

(15)Gaia was old, and she was getting impatient and more than a little irritated with
the quarrels of her family. She was still upset that her husband Uranus had shut their
first six children in the earth. So Gaia said to Zeus, “You have freed your mother’s
firstborn children, but until you free mine, you will not be victorious.” Zeus did not
understand Gaia’s words, for he knew little of his family history. So he shrugged his
shoulders and went back to the battle.

(16)The battle between the Titans and the Younger Gods might have raged even
longer had it not been for Prometheus, a son of Iapetus, one of the Titans. For
Prometheus could see into the future, and he knew that the reign of Cronus and the
Titans was ending. He thought it would be best to settle things with the least possible
damage, so he asked the Titans to make a truce.

(17)Prometheus went to Zeus and told him about the monstrous children of Gaia and
Uranus. He said to Zeus, “If you release them, they will fight on your side.” Zeus went
to the Underworld and freed the monsters and the Cyclopes. The monsters fought
against the Titans with all their strength, and the Cyclopes made armor and weapons
for Zeus and his brother. They made a helmet for Hades which made him invisible, a
three-pronged spear for Poseidon, and thunderbolts for Zeus.

(18)The Younger Gods now quickly won the war. Some of the Titans were flung into
the underworld, some escaped and disappeared forever, and Atlas was made to stand
at the western edge of the world, holding up the heavens. Only Prometheus and one
or two of the Titan women were saved. Perhaps Prometheus was saved because of
the help he had given to Zeus and the Younger Gods.

(19)After the war was over, Zeus said that he would be the head of gods and men
because he had done the most to overthrow the Titans and lead the Younger Gods to
victory. But he divided the rule of the kingdom with Poseidon and Hades. Zeus ruled
the heavens, Poseidon controlled the ocean, and Hades took charge of the world of
the dead, or underworld. All the gods and goddesses and their children settled
themselves on Mount Olympus, their new home.
 Module 3 : Unit 1

Name:________________________________________________ Date: _________

Year/ Course/Section:___________________________________ Score: _________
Professor/Instructor: _____________________________________________________

Exercise 1. Vocabulary Test. Choose from the word pool the correct meaning of the
italicized terms. Write your answer on the space provided.

Word Pool
huge worried
arrogant contaminated
slight fierce
boundless unhappy
unwilling to wait fulfilled
intelligent prompt

1. the bottomless place (Paragraph 2) ____________

2. Uranus was so disappointed (Paragraph 3) ____________
3. had one enormous, glassy eye (Paragraph 3) ____________
4. they were cleverer than (Paragraph 3) ___________
5. with their ferocious older brother (Paragraph 4) ___________
6. at her highhanded son (Paragraph 9) ___________
7. Rhea was very upset (Paragraph 11) ___________
8. Drunk the poisoned wine (Paragraph 13) _____________
9. Was getting impatient (Paragraph 15) ___________
10. “you will not be victorious” (Paragraph 15) ___________

Exercise 2. Choose the correct answer for each of the items. Write your answer
before the number.

_____ 1. Greek myths were created to:

a. Explain the physical world

b. Justify and explain the origin of values
c. Explain the ways of humans alone.
d. To provide role models of good and evil

_____ 2. “Because Gaia was upset about the fate of the monsters and the Cyclopes, and
feared the same treatment for the Titans, she called them together.” What can
you infer from the passage?
 a. Gaia was happy and celebrated.
b. Gaia was disappointed and sad
c. Gaia was insane.
d. Gaia did not care too much

_____ 3. As a father, how did Uranus treat his children Cyclopes and hundred- handed
giants?

a. He treated them with love and kindness.

b. He gave them the control of the heavens.
c. He imprisoned them in the underworld.
d. He fought them to the death.

_____ 4. This character has the power of creation and is able to see the future. She
encouraged the Titans, her other children, to overthrow her husband and
take away his power.
a. Hestia
b. Gaea
c. Rhea
d. Demeter

_____ 5. This character was not a great father. He imprisoned his first children in
Tartarus, was betrayed by his wife, and then was overthrown by one of his
sons.
a. Zeus
b. Cronus
c. Uranus
d. Prometheus

_____ 6. This character was raised in a cave and when he grew up, he poisoned his
father so that he could free his siblings. Eventually he would win a war
against the titans by getting help from his siblings and uncles.
a. Poseidon
b. Zeus
c. Prometheus
d. Atlas

_____ 7. Which group of characters are the titans?

a. Hestia, Demeter, Hera, Poseidon, Hades, and Zeus
b. The Hundred Handed Ones and The Cyclopes
c. The mountains, the sea, the stars, the seasons, Uranus (the sky)
d. Helios, Selene, Atlas, Cronus, Rhea, Oceanus, Prometheus
_____ 8. What happens to Cronus by the end of the myth?
a. He defeats Zeus and eats him
b. He defeats Uranus and becomes supreme ruler
c. He loses to Zeus and is chained in Tartarus
d. He loses to Zeus and has to hold up the sky forever

_____ 9. What happens to Atlas at the end of the myth?

a. He is chained in Tarturus
b. He is allowed his freedom
c. He guards the titans
d. He has to hold up the sky forever
_____ 10. What did Uranus and Cronus both do to their children?
a. Took good care of them
b. Gave them powers
c. Blessed them with immortality
d. Imprisoned them (either in Tartarus or in his own stomach)

Exercise 3. Answer the following questions.

1. How would you describe Uranus or Cronus as a father?

________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________

2. How are they similar or different from what you perceive a father should be?
________________________________________________________________
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3. Gaia and Rhea played important roles in the creation. What were they?
________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________

4. What characteristics or attributes which Gaia and Rhea possessed that

women can relate to or learn from?
________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________
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Identifying Character Traits

Characters do things. They feel things. They hear things. They say things.
They think things. They go places. They can walk, run, leap, and jump. They
may sit and rock in a rocking chair. They may just lie in bed, sleep, and dream.
But the important thing is that characters act.

And these actions show us what kind of people these characters are: friendly,
sad, nosey, happy, lovestruck, confused, angry, or inventive. When we talk
about a character, we often describe that character in terms of character
traits, descriptive adjectives like happy or sad that tell us the specific
qualities of the character. They are the same kinds of words that we might
use to describe ourselves or others, but we're using them to describe fictional
characters in something we've read.

The author may tell us these traits directly, but more often the author will
show us these traits in action. Our job as readers is to draw a conclusion
about the character's traits (to infer them) from what the character says,
thinks, and does. We might infer a character trait from something a
character does only once, or we might draw our conclusions from a series of
things the character says and does.
Exercise 4. Character Map. Choose a character from the box. Identify its traits and
find evidence for these traits from the text.

Cronus Rhea Gaia Zeus

Trait Evidence

Evidence
CHARACTER Trait

Trait Evidence
Exercise 5. Write a character sketch.

A character sketch informs you about the character in a book. When you write a
character sketch, you want the reader to have a strong mental image of the
person including how the person talks, acts and thinks.

Directions: Using your character map from the previous activity, introduce the
character in one-paragraph character sketch. The paragraph should
not exceed five sentences. Write your output in the space provided
below.

Consider the following when writing character sketch: appearance,

physical and personal strengths and weaknesses, likes and dislikes,
feelings and behaviors towards other characters, feelings of other
characters towards the character, feelings of character towards
him/her, personality at the beginning, and changes in personality as
story progresses.