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This test consists of 5 short answer questions, 10 short essay questions, and 1 (of 3) essay topics.

Short Answer Questions

1. Another story tells that Zeus was angry with early men and sent what to destroy them?

2. Hercules was the son of Zeus and whom?

3. Pyramus and Thisbe were neighbors who fell in love, but who would not allow them to marry?

4. ____________ was the other brother of Zeus and ruler of the underworld, where mortals went when they died.

5. When Alcyone's husband Ceyx was killed in ______________, the pitying gods sent her a dream to tell her the truth about what had happened to him.

Short Essay Questions

1. How were early royal Greek families able to claim lineage with the gods? How might they have benefited from this?

2. What ended when Atalanta was married? What does this reinforce in Greek culture?

3. Describe Greek heroes. What was the most common flaw? Is this a common flaw in humanity? Why or why not?

4. What led to the Trojan War? Was this war necessary? Why or why not?

5. Who won the Trojan War? How did they win? What do their successful tactics say about them?

6. What do all of these stories reveal about the gods?

7. How does the story of the Trojan War support the fact that many heroes have the same fatal flaw?

8. Describe Demeter and Dionysus. How were Demeter and Dionysus unique?

9. Choose one of the love stories in this section. Summarize this story. How does it reflect someone's jealousy?

10. Describe one of the Greek creation stories. How does this story compare to your own idea regarding the creation of the world?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

According to the Greeks, in the beginning their was only chaos.

Part 1) Describe the main stories of creation and the birth of man, according to Greek mythology. How do these stories compare to each other? What might be the reasons for differences between these stories?

Part 2) How do these stories compare to the creation stories found in world religions today? What might be the reason for any similarities? Are you surprised by these similarities? Why or why not?

Part 3) What are your beliefs regarding the creation of the universe and the birth of man? From where do your beliefs come? How has your culture influenced your beliefs regarding creation? How important is one's culture to one's beliefs? Explain.

Essay Topic 2

Several heroes faced long, arduous adventures.

Part 1) Describe two heroes who faced long, arduous adventures in the myths. What were their adventures? What led to these adventures? How did they deal with the challenges they had to face? What does this reveal about them? How did this make them heroes?

Part 2) How were these men changed by their adventures? How did these adventures change others who were involved in these adventures or were a part of the hero's life?

Part 3) What adventures and challenges have you faced in your life? How did you deal with these challenges and difficulties? What did these adventures and challenges reveal about you? In general, what do challenges reveal about humans?

Essay Topic 3

Dionysus and Demeter had two of the most important cults.

Part 1) Describe each of these gods and their roles in Greek mythology. How did they help man explain the ways in which the world works? How did this make these two gods so important?

Part 2) Why did these gods suffer more in their mythology than other gods? What does this reveal about the Greeks and their beliefs about man and the gods? How is this suffering both good and bad?

Part 3) Do the world's major religions today have gods that suffer? If so, explain this suffering. If not, why not? What does this suffering, or lack thereof, reveal about these religious believers?

(see the answer keys)

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