The people of Ancient Greece, like many other ancient cultures, used mythology to explain the environment around them. Greek myths are very closely related to religion and explain the origins and lives of the gods. The stories were passed from generation to generation orally. With each retelling of the myth, the story may have been embellished by the orator. The stories have survived centuries. Although the Greek religion is no longer polytheistic, many people still tell the stories of the Twelve Olympians. Books, movies, and songs have been written about the Gods from Mount Olympus. The myths of Ancient Greece have survived the test of time.
Greek myths were very closely related to religion. The deities of the Ancient Greeks had powers that far surpassed the abilities of humans. One of the reasons these myths are so alluring is that it is believed that during the time of origin, humans interacted with the gods on a regular basis. For Westerners, Greek myths hold a special place because Greece has an enormous impact on Western society. The “products of ancient imagination...have become deeply embedded in Western literature, films, arts, and even Westerners’ ways of viewing the world” (Nardo 14). Western culture is foundationally based on Ancient Greece. Westerners hold the Greek myths to a higher reverence than other ancient stories.
The story of Epimetheus and Prometheus explains the creation of mankind and the creatures of Earth. Epimetheus and Prometheus were Titan brothers who Zeus saved from exile after the war against Tartarus. He tasked them with creating the mortals of Earth. Prometheus created mankind and Epimetheus molded the rest of the animals. Prometheus was thought of as the wisest of the gods. Prometheus took his task of creating mortals very seriously. He fashioned them after the gods because they would interact regularly with them (Nardo 47). Epimetheus, Prometheus’ brother, was not as smart as his brother. He gave animals all sorts of protection (wings, sells, fur, etc.). Without any other means of protection against the animals, Prometheus stole fire from the gods and gave it to the mortals (Taft 106).
These myths were originally told orally. The true author/creator of the myth is unknown. The creation story of Prometheus and Epimetheus was first written by the Greek poet, Hesiod, in Works and Days, which was published around 700 BCE. This myth is also the foundation of the tragedy, Prometheus Bound by playwright Aeschylus, written around 430 BCE. This myth was also portrayed in several paintings. One, Prometheus Bound, by Peter Paul Reubens, depicts the myth told by Aeschylus. In the painting, Prometheus’ liver is being eaten by an eagle. According to the myth, his liver grows back every night and every morning the eagle comes to eat it once again (Payment 43).
Mythology can be used in several ways in library curriculum. Students can research how Greek and Roman mythology influenced contemporary society. Myths also increase students’ vocabulary and reinforce comprehension skills. Many authors have used the ancient myths as foundational texts. Students can find and read novels with Greek mythology. Some that quickly come to mind are Rick Riordan’s Percy Jackson series, The Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller, and the Covenant series by Jennifer Armentrout. Students can research the mythical elements in the novels and compare and contrast with the ancient myths themselves. For example, Rick Riordan mentions several Greek gods and goddesses. Students could use the text by Riordan to compare and contrast how the Ancient Greeks described the same gods and goddesses.
For me, Greek mythology was a big part of my childhood. My grandfather was from Sikia, Greece, a town just outside of Sparta. Our bedtime stories as children were from The Iliad by Homer. We heard all of Hercules’ adventures, spent nights imagining Odysseus’ fighting Cyclops, and days reenacting the Trojan War. I was one of the few people in my freshman high school English class who could pronounce the names of the Greeks in The Odyssey. The story of Epimetheus and Prometheus was one of my grandfather’s favorites. So much so, that one of our dogs is named Epimetheus (or Epi, for short) because he was an afterthought when we “accidently” adopted him. The version I told was from Amy Friedman and Meredith Johnson. I found this version to use language that was easy for secondary students to understand. The story flows very smoothly and would be easy for listeners to follow. Greek mythology has been a huge part of my life and my grandfather was a huge influence in my storytelling.
Works Cited
Friedman, Amy and Meredith Johnson. “PROMETHEUS AND EPIMETHEUS (a Greek Myth), Tell Me a Story.” Uexpress, www.uexpress.com/tell-me-a-story/2011/3/6/prometheus-and-epimetheus-a-greek-myth.
Nardo, Don. Greek Mythology. Lucent Books, 2012.
Payment, Simone. Greek Mythology. Rosen Pub. Group, 2006.
Publishing, Britannica Educational, and Michael Taft. Greek Gods & Goddesses. Encyclopaedia Britannica, Inc., 2014.
