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MYTHOLOGICAL HEROES.
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Focuses on those at whose birth destruction was prophesized.... More...
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Paper Abstract:
Focuses on those at whose birth destruction was prophesized.
Paper Introduction:
There are similarities which can be seen in comparing the various myths of different times and cultures. Many cultures have had mythological heroes at whose birth destruction was prophesied. In some cases, these prophecies threatened the death of a parent; in others, they threatened the destruction of an entire society. For example, in Greek mythology, the birth of the hero Paris was associated with a prophecy regarding the destruction of the entire city of Troy. Paris' father was Priam, the king of Troy, whose wife Hecuba had already given birth to one son, Hector. When she was pregnant with her second child, who was to be Paris, Hecuba had a terrible dream in which she saw a burning torch set fire to the city of Troy. Priam consulted a prophet on this matter, and "the soothsayer warned that the child to be born would be the destruction of Troy" (Tripp 446). In an
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Paris' father was Priam, the kingof Troy, whose wife Hecuba had already given birth to one son, Hector.When she was pregnant with her second child, who was to be Paris, Hecubahad a terrible dream in which she saw a burning torch set fire to the cityof Troy. Hera offered Paris greatpower if he would choose her, and Athena offered him glory in warfare.However, Paris was most strongly attracted to the offer of Aphrodite, whichwas the love of the most beautiful woman in world, Helen (Tripp 447).Thus, Paris proclaimed Aphrodite the fairest of the goddesses in order thathe could win Helen despite the fact that Helen was already married to theking of Sparta, Menelaus, and that he (Paris) was already married to awater goddess named Cebren. In revenge, Eris threw a golden apple into the wedding partywhich had the words "For the fairest" inscribed upon it (Tripp 446). A. Priam consulted a prophet on this matter, and "the soothsayerwarned that the child to be born would be the destruction of Troy" (Tripp446). Works CitedEisner, Robert. Pariseasily won all of the competitions against his brothers. When Oedipus failed to make room for the King of Thebes, an argumentbroke out and Oedipus killed his unrecognized father. Thisseems to imply that nature itself was involved in preventing the humansfrom altering fate, and in making sure that the prophecies came true. Syracuse: Syracuse UP, 1987.Grimal, Pierre. When one of thebrothers, Deiphobus, was about to kill Paris in anger, his sister Cassandrasuddenly recognized him. In this regard, "his parents seemed to have forgotten thewarnings of the seer that this youth was born for the destruction of hiscity" (Tripp 446). It is interesting to note that,in the myths of both Paris and Gilgamesh, animals were involved in rescuingthe infants which were supposed to have been killed. Many cultures have had mythologicalheroes at whose birth destruction was prophesied. For example, one thing that connects all these myths fromdifferent times and places is the fact that the prophecies which precededthe births of the heroes could not be altered. In an effort to thwart this prophecy, Priam gave the newborn Paristo one of his shepherds, Agelaus, telling him to expose the child on MountIda. There are similarities which can be seen in comparing the variousmyths of different times and cultures. There was no threat thatGilgamesh would destroy the entire society; instead, Seuechorus, the kingof Babylonia, "heard how his astrologers had prophesized that his daughterwould bear a child and that this child would seize the kingdom" (Langdon234). Despite the efforts of theparents to kill their own children, the children always survive and end upfulfilling the prophecies. Oedipus' father was Laius, king ofThebes, and his mother was Jocasta. In this regard, these mythsreflect the belief that there are certain aspects of life which arepredetermined and are thus beyond the control of human beings. New York: ThomasY. The myth of Oedipus has special significance in modern times becauseof its place in psychoanalysis, where it is used to explain a phase thatyoung boys go through in which they experience deep feelings of love fortheir mothers and hatred for their fathers (Eisner 2). The Road to Daulis: Psychoanalysis, Psychology, andClassical Mythology. Laius had received an oracle which"told Laius not to father any children, predicting that if he had a son,this son would not only kill him but would also be the cause of a terriblesuccession of misfortunes which would bring ruin upon his house" (Grimal323). In some cases, theseprophecies threatened the death of a parent; in others, they threatened thedestruction of an entire society. Greek Myths: Gods, Heroes and Monsters. As a reward, the people of the city offered to make Oedipus theirking, and also offered him the hand of Laius' widow, Jocasta (Grimal 324).Following the marriage of Oedipus to his own mother, the city of Thebesbegan to experience a series of misfortunes which included plagues,diseases, and crop failures (Switzer and Costas 129). Similar mythological tales can be found in other parts of the world.For example, in the mythology of ancient Sumeria, there was a prophecysurrounding the birth of the hero Gilgamesh. This gave rise to the name "Oedipus" which actually means"swollen foot" in Greek (Grimal 323). After making this fateful decision, Paris wentto Sparta and carried Helen back to Troy with him. All of the gods and goddesses were invitedto this wedding, with the exception of Eris, the goddess of chaos anddiscord. Crowell's Handbook of ClAssical Mythology. Despite this, the daughter gave birth to a son.Seuechorus, in a rage, threw the infant out the window of the tower.However, an eagle caught the boy and carried him off to the home of agardener, where the child was raised. The Dictionary of Classical Mythology. Maxwell-Hyslop, trans. The child, Gilgamesh, grew up toeventually become the king of Babylon, thereby fulfilling the prophecydespite Seuechorus' attempt to thwart it. Paris' involvement in the destruction of Troy wasincreased a few years later when Peleus, the king of Thessaly, was beingmarried to the goddess Thetis. The Greek myth of Oedipus, like that of Gilgamesh, did not involvethe destruction of an entire society, but rather the death of a parent andthe destruction of one family lineage. Thus, the prophecy which was made prior to thebirth of Paris came true in the end. Crowell, 197 .----------------------- 7 In this way, "hefulfilled the prediction of the oracle" (Grimal 324). Ironically, Oedipus began a massive search for themurderer, unaware that he himself was the culprit. Inthis way, Paris grew up to be a shepherd, and was also the most handsomeman in Greece. NewYork: Atheneum, 1988.Tripp, Edward. Thus, the prophesy given at the birth of Gilgamesh was one whichinsured the death and destruction of a single man - this being Seuechorus,his grandfather. The Mythology of All Races, Volume V: Semitic.George Foot Moore, ed. Paris was nursed by ashe-bear before the shepherd Agelaus adopted him, and an eagle caughtGilgamesh when he was tossed out the tower window by Seuechorus. There are otherways in which the myths of Paris, Gilgamesh and Oedipus, have significancein modern times. R. In an effort to overcome this prophecy, the king orderedthat his daughter be locked in a tower where she would never come incontact with any man. When Paris reached adulthood, he unknowingly entered a contest whichwas intended to honor himself, the dead second son of King Priam. In his adulthood, Oedipus by chance came upon his real father,Laius, in a narrow valley in which there was room for only one chariot topass. Later in the myth,Oedipus saved the city of Thebes from the Sphinx by answering a series ofriddles. Thus, when Oedipus was born, Laius decided to have the infantexposed on Mount Cithaeron. This action set aseries of events in motion which eventually led to the Trojan War and thedestruction of Troy itself. Oxford: Blackwell Reference, 1986.Langdon, Stephen Herbert. The fact that Oedipus, like Paris, was left todie on a mountain is interesting in that it reflects the ancient Greekculture in which "exposure of children was a common practice" (Eisner 1 ).In the case of Oedipus, Laius also ordered that the infant's feet be boundtogether. Despite Laius' efforts to kill hisson, Oedipus lived and was raised by Polybus, the ruler of a nearbykingdom. Zeus, the kingof the gods, ordered that the handsomest man in Greece, Paris, shoulddecide which goddess was actually the fairest. Thiscaused an intense argument to occur between the goddesses Hera, Athena, andAphrodite, each of whom considered themselves the fairest. This shows that the ancient people who usedthese myths as a basis for their personal lives had great trust and beliefin the fulfillment of prophecies and oracles. New York: Cooper Square, 1964.Switzer, Ellen, and Costas. An oracle proclaimedthat the only way to stop these tragedies was for the murderer of Laius tobe brought to justice. For example, in Greek mythology, thebirth of the hero Paris was associated with a prophecy regarding thedestruction of the entire city of Troy. The shepherd did so, but when he went back later to make certain thatthe child was dead, he found the infant Paris being nursed by a she-bear.Agelaus took Paris with him to his farm and raised the boy as his own. At the end of thestory, when the truth was at last revealed, Jocasta killed herself andOedipus blinded himself. Priam and Hecuba joyously welcomed Paris backinto the family.
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