In the following essay, Meagher examines the depiction of women as both goddesses and humans in Greek mythology, specifically in Hesiod's Theogony and Works and Days. Meagher notes the ways in which Hesiod subverts earlier oral traditions, in which women were birth goddesses and creators rather than (as in Olympian myths) created by male gods to bring misery and death to human men.

In the following essay, Lyons argues that archaic texts, including the works of Homer and Hesiod, include a feminine form of the idea of the "hero." Lyons reviews the traditional criteria used to identify heroes in texts, applies the same criteria to heroines, and identifies several heroines that satisfy those qualifications.

In the following excerpt, from an essay originally published in 1949, Kerényi analyzes the nature of "maiden goddesses" and their role and function in Greek mythology. Kerényi describes the Kore, or maiden goddess, as a paradox, in that she represents both mother and maiden, both "begetter and begotten."

In the following essay, Kirk identifies three categories of myths about Greek divinities: those dealing with the origins of the universe; those that concern the development of the Olympian gods; and those that deal with the creation of men, their place in the world, and their relationship with the gods. Kirk reviews the content, themes, and folktale-type motifs found in these types of myths.

In the following essay, Kirk asserts that the narrative complexity of hero myths is much greater than that of the divine myths. He then classifies hero myths as those related to older heroes (in myths set in a "timeless past long before the Trojan War"), those related to younger heroes (in myths set at a time close to or during the Trojan War), and those concerned with "definitely historical figures."

In the following essay, Nilsson argues that Greek epics and the heroic myth cycles they include (rather than elements or motifs found in individual myths) can be dated to the Mycenaean age (1950 to 1100 B.C.).

In the following essay, Caldwell reviews early Greek history to Hesiod and examines similarities between Greek and Near Eastern creation myths.

In the following essay, Buxton examines the characteristics of Greek divinity and discusses such prevailing themes of the divine myths as violence, deception, negotiation, power, and honor.

In the following essay, Rose reviews the various approaches that have been taken to interpret Greek mythology. He also distinguishes between several types of myth, including "myth proper," saga, and märchen (folktales).

In the following essay, Hansen examines Rose's inclusion of märchen in his study of Greek mythology and argues that Rose fails to adequately treat the category of folktales. Hansen suggests that the idea that mythology encompasses "all Greek traditional stories" has not been fully explored.

In the following essay, Spretnak discusses the early, pre-Hellenic Greek goddesses and argues that following Greece's invasions by the Ionians, Achaeans, and Dorians, the native oral tradition which embraced matriarchal mythology was incorporated into the patriarchal, Olympic tradition of mythology. Under this system, the once-powerful and compassionate pre-Hellenic goddesses were transformed into jealous, disagreeable, troublesome beings.

In the following essay, Edinger offers a psychological reading of the Greek creation myths, noting the prevalence of the idea that when a being is brought into consciousness, a split into opposites results, followed by conflict between those opposites.