Fellow Demi-Gods, heed my words! If I speak falsely, may Zeus’ thunderbolt strike me down where I stand! May Poseidon thrust upon me an irrational desire to undertake coital alignment with a bovine beauty (a horny heifer/arousable angus/titillated toro, if you'd be so kind)! May I dream a most splendid dream in which my lips meet those of the blessed Aphrodite herself, only to awaken and find, in horror, that I am merely tongue-wrestling the three heads of Cerberus! Alas! None of that should be necessary, as I think you’ll find what I have to say most agreeable. How can you have any pudding, if you don’t eat your kids?” I mean, you can’t fault the logic, dessert’s delicious but not nearly as nutritious as human flesh. Cronus (Saturn), father of Zeus, learned from Gaia and Uranus that one of his own children would overthrow him as he did his own father. So, he devoured them all as soon as they were born to prevent the prophecy, as you would. Anyway, Zeus escaped the same fate as his siblings for… reasons, the prophecy was fulfilled, the kids were regurgitated etc. etc. Hamilton proves herself extremely knowledgeable, not only with regard to the Greek Myths but, about the times in which they were composed as well. More often than not she shares with us the particular poet’s version she has taken inspiration from in her retelling and any others she has borrowed from as supplementation. You actually finish the book with a pretty good idea of who all the major authors of Greek and Roman Mythology were and some of their storytelling traits. Only after retiring did she start to write books, which explains why this book was published only when she was 62! I really liked how Edith Hamilton starts her book with a detailed intro to Greek and Roman myths and talking about some of the ancient writers before telling the creation myth, which covers the breakdown of the gods, leading to the heroic and moral stories including Prometheus, Madea and the Trojan heroes. I also like how it slips in some Norse mythology at the end.

Edith Hamilton, an educator, writer and a historian, was born August 12, 1867 in Dresden, Germany, of American parents and grew up in Fort Wayne, Indiana, U.S.A. Her father began teaching her Latin when she was seven years old and soon added Greek, French and German to her curriculum. Hamilton's education continued at Miss Porter's School in Farmington, Connecticut and at Bryn Mawr College near Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, from which she graduated in 1894 with an M.A. degree. The following year, she and her sister Alice went to Germany and were the first women students at the universities of Munich and Leipzich. Mythology: Timeless Tales of Gods and Heroes is a book written by Edith Hamilton, published in 1942 by Little, Brown and Company. [1] It has been reissued since then by several publishers, including its 75th anniversary illustrated edition. [2] It retells stories of Greek, Roman, and Norse mythology drawn from a variety of sources. The introduction includes commentary on the major classical poets used as sources, and on how changing cultures have led to changing characterizations of the deities and their myths. It is frequently used in high schools and colleges as an introductory text to ancient mythology and belief. Greek and Roman myths involving love and adventure, including the tales of Eros and Psyche and Jason's quest for the Golden Fleece I have this now on Kindle, I come across this book constantly referenced in other books, so got my own copy.

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Lccn 2011381353 Ocr_converted abbyy-to-hocr 1.1.20 Ocr_module_version 0.0.17 Openlibrary OL7537575M Openlibrary_edition What I’m not sure about is if I would have found this easy to read when I knew a very tiny amount about Greek and Roman Mythology and Norse Mythology. Though the explanations are clear, I found I got more from this this time as I am more receptive now to the chapters that have more of an encyclopaedic feel. This is not the fault of the book, it’s just the way these myths are, where there are loads of them that are not connected to a myth that is part of bigger story, for example one of the families like the House of Thebes.

Vivid, decadent, and full of action, Hamilton's retellings of these timeless tales from the birth of the goddess Athena, who sprung fully formed from the head of her father Zeus, to the great adventures of Ulysses and the labors of Hercules - appeal to readers of all ages and reveal essential truths about the behavior of man. I was a history major in college, so this was fascinating to me. I get that it's not for everyone, but if you want to learn more about mythology in general, this is the book for you. Intelligence did not figure largely in anything he did and was often conspicuously absent." (about Hercules) Introduction to classical mythology -- Gods, the creation, and the earliest heroes -- Stories of love and adventure -- Great heroes before the Trojan War -- Heroes of the Trojan War -- Great families of mythology -- Less important myths -- Mythology of the Norsemen -- Genealogical tables

urn:lcp:mythology00edit:epub:f1fe395e-c16a-41d0-9205-881456cb1801 Extramarc The Indiana University Catalog Foldoutcount 0 Identifier mythology00edit Identifier-ark ark:/13960/t3tt5m180 Isbn 0446607258 Dive into the timeless tales of gods and heroes in this bestselling A-to-Z encyclopedia detailing classic myths and legends—perfect for curious readers and academics alike. Edith Hamilton's mythology succeeds like no other book in bringing to life for the modern reader the Greek, Roman and Norse myths that are the keystone of Western culture—the stories of gods and heroes that have inspired human creativity from antiquity to the present.