Greek Mythology Essay Sample

Greek Mythology is known for its epic tales of heroes and gods and their conquests for power and glory above all else. Many forms of modern media are influenced by these tropes and heroic characters, however, one of the most important arcs throughout the entire history of Greek mythology is that of the predecessor of the gods of Olympus, the Titans. The Titans were the immortals who ruled before the Olympians, though their role within Greek mythology is relatively low. They were simply the sires of the Olympian race not having much effect on Greek mythology after their war against the gods of which they lost. Though they had a brief role, their role was important for the rise of the Olympians, in this essay I will depict the rise of the Titans rule and what led to their downfall and if they had left a significant impact.

It all began near the beginning, when there was nothing, from that nothing according to the myths of Homer and Hesiod, the earth, Gaea, was formed out of the void also known as Chaos. Gaea created the sky, Uranus, in Hesiod’s Theogony, Eros was the fourth God to come into existence first being Chaos, then Gaea, then Tartarus, and then Eros himself, other myths describe him as the son of Aphrodite and Ares. Eros does not play an important role in the birth of the Titans, that role mainly being between the Earth and the Sky. Gaea, after creating, Uranus, had six children first, the Cyclopes, the Hecatoncheires (Hundred Handed Ones), Uranus was disgusted by his children and threw them deep inside of their mother and locked them within Tartarus which laid below the earth, sometimes referred to as Hades but that name was noticeably interchangeable throughout the myths. After the two primordial gods, sired twelve more children, the Titans.

The Titans were beautiful beings, whom Uranus was pleased with but according to myths paid no attention to. Gaea grew tired of Uranus’s cruelty and wished to save her trapped children; she enlisted her children the Titans to aid her to overthrow their father. Their brother Oceanus, retreated into the waters of the earth and encircled his mother not wanting to partake in the coup. The youngest of the siblings, Kronos, stepped up to the task and his mother fashioned him a sickle made of adamantine to cut down his father as his siblings held him down. Kronos slashed off his father’s genitals, and from the blood of his father formed the Erinyes, the Furies, the earth-born giants, and the nymphs of the woods, as well as the goddess Aphrodite. After his father fell at his hands, Kronos became the king of the Titans which began a cycle of violence of son killing his father. Kronos ruled over his siblings and over the Earth itself becoming the very thing he sought to destroy, his own father. He kept his siblings that were trapped beneath the earth where they were not wanting any threats to his rule just like his father had done, the Titans then ruled over the cosmos with Kronos as their king.

When Kronos had his children, he received a prophecy and a threat from his mother Gaea, that one of his children would overthrow him like he did his father. After he married his sister, Rhea, the Queen of the Titans and the mother of the gods, he one by one devoured his children in order to keep his power. All but one, Rhea tricked Kronos with the help of her mother and hid her youngest son Zeus in the care of nymphs and the immortal goat, Amalthea, of whom he suckled on as an infant. When Zeus was old enough, he rescued his siblings from their father’s stomach by sickening him and making him throw them up, with his siblings they began a war known as the Titanomachy and overthrew their parents. After the war was over most of the Titans were imprisoned in Tartarus for their crimes in the war against the gods, most of them being the males. Though many of the other female titans only had the role of producing the next generation of Gods, playing supplementary roles as the object of Zeus’s lust and desire. Oceanus having not participated in the coup, was given the waters of the earth and in some myths shielded Hera from the war, and Helios was allowed to maintain his position as charioteer of the sun, with Selene riding upon the moon, and their sister Eos, the dawn, were allowed to maintain their roles in the world. The Titans roles after the war weren’t that important, especially for the male Titans, most of them being imprisoned in Tartarus, their roles were mainly taken up by the new generation of gods. In later myths, Romans associated Selene with Artemis and Helios with Apollo although they governed more than the sun and moon, Helios and Selene and along with many of the other titans were overlooked. Hecate was hailed as the goddess of witchcraft and crossways which was a major aspect in Roman times and was said to side with Zeus during the war, Prometheus was remembered as the immortal who gave man fire at the expense of his freedom. These two Titans had a large impact on ancient society, but most prayers went to the gods who were associated with justice, wealth, and fortune those being the Olympians who were believed to be the personification of these morals after they usurped the Titans. Which spelt the end of the rule of the Titans, dethroned and kept as prisoners it is not known what the Titans did for the world.

Throughout all Greek Mythology they were nothing more but seen as an obstacle for Zeus and his siblings to overcome in order to triumph and take control of the cosmos as the next immortal rulers. Zeus compared to Kronos also ruled with paranoia and fear of his siblings overthrowing him for rule as King of the Gods. He devoured his first wife Metis, daughter of Oceanus, after Gaea predicted the son, she would birth to him would overthrow him, in turn Metis fashioned Athena who sprang out of Zeus’s head. The Titans played a minimalistic role within Greek mythology, after the war they were seen as sometimes wise figures of which certain heroes would go to for help in their quests. Hercules had freed Atlas form his punishment of holding the skies for him to steal a golden apple from the gardens of Hesperides for Hera during his twelve labours. Leto’s only role was the birth of the twin archers Artemis and Apollo by Zeus, the female Titans were given the honour of birthing the next generation of the gods but was limited to only that. They were simply given honorary positions for their allegiance to Zeus in the Titanomachy, the Titans were momentary obstacles for Zeus and his siblings to overcome, their downfall coming with the paranoia and cruelty of Kronos. They were not given much thought afterwards and were only seen as the villains the mighty Zeus overcame, beings of stories that were not forgotten but remembered as the objects of Zeus’s successful conquest and rule.