The Greek worldview is that the gods and goddesses rule every part of people’s lives. They believe that if someone does wrong, the gods and goddesses are out to punish them. The Greek worldview influences myths and stories with the mindset that there’s more than one god and more than one goddess. I will share with you a myth that shows this.
One Greek myth that was interesting is called The Minotaur. It is a story about a young boy who lived with his mother, then went to live with his father. One day, he wanted to go and kill the Minotaur, so no one would have to be eaten again.
This young boy named Theseus lived with his mother Aethra and did not know his father. He would beg his mom to let him go and find and meet his father, but his mom would tell him no. When he was strong enough to lift a specific boulder, he could take what was under it and go and find his father, King Aegeus of Athens.
One day, he told his mother that he was able to lift the boulder, but his mom didn’t want to believe that that was true. She continued to tell him that he was still a boy and that he was not strong enough. But he kept on begging her to follow him, so she did. To her amazement, he made the boulder move, and he kept on making it move, and then he made the boulder move out of its place. He grabbed his father’s sandals and sword, and the next day he was off to Athens. While he was walking to Athens, some things were in his path.
One time when Theseus was walking along the road, he met a very evil person named Sciron. This was the third person that he had encountered along the way (the first was called Periphetes, also known as the clubber, and the second was called Sinis, also known as the bender of pines). Sciron would make travelers wash his feet, and when they were done with that, he would kick them off the edge of a cliff and into the sea. The fourth person he met with was called Cercyon, and lastly, he met with Procrustes. Procrustes had a bed in his cavern, and forced travelers to sleep on beds, and if they were too long, then he would cut off their body parts so they would fit, and if they were too short, then he would stretch them so they would also fit.
When Theseus got to the palace, he met his evil cousins (I believe). The evil cousins went into the throne room and told the king that a man was here to kill him just to get his crown.
When Theseus entered the room, the king greeted him and offered him a goblet of wine. When the king was about to give it to him, he noticed the sword that he was carrying and asked where he got that sword, and the young man said that it was his father’s, and he was there so he could meet his father and tell him that he was his son.
The next morning, Theseus woke up to the whole city crying and in despair. He went downstairs and asked his father what was happening. His father told him that today is the day when they draw seven male names and seven maiden names. The fourteen names that are drawn, those people are supposed to go and be devoured by the Minotaur, which has the head of a bull and the body of a man. His father told him that this is customary and that it happens once every year. Theseus wanted to put a stop to it once and for all. So he volunteered himself as one of the seven males. His father begged him not to go because for the first time he had met his son, and he didn’t want him to be eaten by the monster.
Theseus went anyway. When it was time, the seven males and seven maidens went on a boat with a black sail. Right before they left, the king made Theseus promise him that if he did slay the monster (that’s the whole reason he volunteered himself), then he would change the black sail to a white sail, and Theseus promised that he would. So they were off, and having a grand old time. It stopped when they reached the island where they were to be eaten. The king of the island (King Minos is his name) made sure that they were all in good health and told them that they should all get some rest because they would need it in the morning.
In the middle of the night, the king’s daughter went to their cell, and found that everyone except Theseus was sleeping. She freed him and helped him slay the monster. She guided him step by step, and when he went into the labyrinth with the beast, she healed one end of a string, and he held the other end of the string so she could guide him out of the labyrinth.
After struggling, he managed to kill the monster, and he found his way out of the labyrinth with the help of the king’s daughter. They freed the people and were on their way back home. When they were in sight, the king of Athens saw that there was still the black sail and assumed that his only son had been eaten by the Minotaur.
As you can see, Theseus forgot to change the black sail to the white sail. In despair, the king threw himself off the edge of the cliff that he was standing on, and he died from drowning in the ocean. When they got to shore, Theseus found out that he was the new king of Athens.
Everyone was so happy that that miserable day never had to come again.
As you can see, in Greek myth stories, there is almost always a god and or goddess, a demigod, monsters, heroes, and villains.
