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The Perseus Myth

The Perseus Myth. Who is Perseus?. He is a descendant of Io, Zeus’ beloved, who had been turned into a cow and then made a goddess of Egypt. He was the first Greek hero of mythology (paved the way for Heracles) Also, like many heroes, he was conceived under unusual circumstances.

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The Perseus Myth

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  1. The Perseus Myth

  2. Who is Perseus? • He is a descendant of Io, Zeus’ beloved, who had been turned into a cow and then made a goddess of Egypt. • He was the first Greek hero of mythology (paved the way for Heracles) • Also, like many heroes, he was conceived under unusual circumstances.

  3. Perseus’ Birth Story • Perseus’ grandfather, Acrisius had received word from the Delphic oracle that the child of his daughter, DANAE, would grow up to kill him. To prevent her from having a child, he imprisoned Danae in a tower of bronze with doors of oak always guarded by dogs. However, the crafty Zeus entered her prison by transforming himself into a shower of gold.

  4. Welcome to the World, Perseus! Sorry, your Grandpa hates you. -Danae tried to hide her child from her father, but eventually the baby was noticed. -Acrisius, fearful of the prophecy, locked both mother and baby in a chest and threw them into the sea.

  5. Welcome to Seriphos • The chest with mother and child, both still alive, washed up on the shore of Seriphos. King Polydectes took them in, but he wanted to make Danae his wife. Danae wanted nothing to do with the icky, evil king. Polydectes decided that if he could get rid of Perseus, he would have a better chance with his mom, so he sent him on a quest to kill MEDUSA.

  6. The Gorgons, three sisters • A little background on Medusa…..Medusa was one of three sisters called the Gorgons. They had hair of snakes, sharp teeth, claws, and scales. They were so ugly that they turned people who looked at them directly into stone. • How did these three sisters become so ugly? One word: Athena.

  7. Don’t mess with Athena • Medusa was a very beautiful woman at one time—her best feature was her HAIR. Poseidon, god of the sea, was in love with Medusa. They met in all sorts of secretive places to…ahem…discuss their love. One such place was in a temple. The temple of Athena, the virgin goddess, to be exact. Athena was NOT happy. She punished Medusa and her two sisters with hideousness and the inability to ever have a boyfriend again.

  8. The Battle with MEDUSA

  9. How will Perseus kill Medusa? • Once set on this journey to kill Medusa, Perseus suddenly wondered how on earth he could to it. He was aided by some of the gods: Hermes and Athena. • They told him to find the Graeae, sisters of the Gorgon and force the one tooth, • one eye sisters to tell him • where nymphs are that can • help him in his journey • to slay Medusa.

  10. The Graeae • In order to find out how to find the nymphs, Perseus steals the one tooth and one eye of the sisters and they tell him where the nymphs are. • From the nymphs he receives a cap of invisibility from Hades, a pair of winged sandals , and a sack in which to store Medusa’s severed head.

  11. Finally the battle begins • The Gorgons lived in the land of the Hyperboreans. Athena guided Perseus and he looked at Medusa only through his shield, thus not turning into stone. He cut off her head and put it in his sack. In order to avoid getting caught by her sisters, he put on the helmet of invisibility. Out of the blood left from Medusa’s head sprung PEGASUS—a product of her union with Poseidon.

  12. The Adventure within the Adventure • Perseus had another adventure while he was journeying back with Medusa’s head. It dealt with the princess of Ethiopia, Andromeda. Andromeda’s mother had foolishly boasted that she was more beautiful than the sea nymphs called Nereids, one of whom was Amphitrite, Poseidon’s WIFE. As punishment for Cassiopeia’s hubris, Poseidon sent the sea monster, Cetus to ravage the land.

  13. How to survive the Sea Monster • Andromeda’s father, Cepheus consulted the oracle of Zeus to find out how to be rid of the reature. He received a horrifying response—he had to sacrifice his daughter to the sea monster. • She was chained to a rock to await her death.

  14. Perseus drops in • As Perseus is flying by, he sees the beautiful princess hanging out on the rock and falls in love with her. He makes a deal with her father to kill the monster in exchange for Andromeda’s hand. • Perseus killed the monster with the help of Medusa’s head and left with Andromeda to head back to take care of his evil wannabe stepfather, King Polydectes.

  15. Bye Bye Atlas, Polydectes, and Grandpa—hello coral! • On the way home, Atlas refused Perseus hospitality and Medusa’s head turned him into a mountain range. • He showed Polydectes the head and he was turned to stone. • He went to a discus competition in Thessaly and accidently killed his grandfather with a discus, fulfilling the prophecy. • While washing his hands in water, he formed coral with Medusa’s head.

  16. Thanks, Athena and Hermes • He returned Medusa’s head and the helmet and sandals (which Hermes now wears) to Athena and Hermes. Athena placed Medusa’s head in shield and terrifies foes to this day. • Perseus founded the city of Mycenae, his sons became kings, and he and Andromeda and even the sea monster, Ceto, all became constellations!

  17. Andromeda constellation

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