DOCSLIB.ORG

Peter Sawyer Living History History Is Best When Experienced Home Schooling Pack Ancient Sparta

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
Peter Sawyer Living History History Is Best When Experienced Home Schooling Pack Ancient Sparta Peter Sawyer Living History History is best when experienced Home schooling pack Ancient Sparta I’m not a teacher, but I am a history graduate and I’ve been doing Living History for 2 years. Covid-19 has hit my business hard, it’s unlikely that I’ll be working again before September but I’m fortunate that I don’t have any children to look after. For anyone who’s having to try their hand at home-schooling, I’ve put together this education pack based on my Living History workshops. Feel free to print, copy and distribute this pack as far and wide as you want. I’ll also be doing packs on: • Vikings and Saxons • World War One • Ancient Roman society • World War Two • Ancient Roman army • Creative writing exercises • Ancient Greece- Athens • Favourite books • Medieval Britain • More to follow Keep an eye on www.peter-sawyer.com or “Peter Sawyer, author” on Facebook or Twitter Sparta Ancient Sparta was a very different place to anywhere else. Everything in Sparta was geared towards its exceptionally strong and powerful army. The only purpose of almost every boy in Sparta was to grow up as a warrior. Girls only purpose was to grow up and make babies. Babies were not named until they were 8 days old. If they were too weak, small or ill, they might be thrown off a cliff! When boys were 7 years old, they were taken away from their families to something like a Spartan boarding school. Circle the subjects you think they were taught. GYMNASTICS HUNTING FISHING MATHS FIGHTING WITH A SWORD COOKING DANCING NAVIGATION HORSE RIDING MAKING CLOTHES BUILDING FIRES BUILDING HOUSES Have another look. Circle them all. Boys were taught all of these things. Gymnastics and dancing help with your balance, memory and agility. Horse riding (without a saddle) gives you very strong legs. Hunting and cooking are important skills when you’re away from home. Circle what you think girls were taught. DANCING HUNTING MAKING CLOTHES JAVELIN-THROWING COOKING BOXING MATHS BUILDING FIRES GYMNASTICS RUNNING PAINTING ROCK CLIMBING Again, Spartan girls were taught all these things. Lots of other Greeks in cities thought that Spartan girls were very badly-behaved because they often wore shorts while they did sports, which made them very strong and very fit compared to girls from Corinth or Athens, who weren’t allowed to do sports in the same way. If Sparta had ever been invaded, girls would have been expected to grab a spear and fight with the boys. Athenian girls would have just run away. At 17, boys were thrown out of Sparta and had to live in the wilderness for a year, hunting or stealing to survive. If they did, they were allowed back and allowed to join one of the warrior clubs. Girls were expected to marry and have lots of children. If they had lots of babies, they might have to have more than one husband! Sparta was a very small town compared to Athens, Argos, Corinth, Boeotia or the other Greek cities, so the two kings (Sparta always had two so one couldn’t run everything) were always worried about running out of soldiers and people in general! Greek myths Greece has some of the oldest and fantastic myths in the world. Some, like Theseus and the Minotaur, were specific to a certain city. Theseus was an Athenian hero, so he wouldn’t have been very popular in Sparta. Others, like Hercules, were popular all over Greece. Read this to yourself or to someone else. Heracles is one of many sons of Zeus but his mother isn’t Zeus’s wife Hera, she’s a human princess. After being driven mad by Hera, his very jealous and very angry stepmother, Heracles kills his wife and children. When he recovers from his madness, he goes to the Oracle of Delphi to find out how to make things right. The priestess sends him to serve Eurystheus, King of Tiryns. He sends Heracles to perform ten tasks: First- kill the Nemean Lion. The Nemean Lion is cursed by the gods. It was once a woman but now, whenever a man approaches, it turns into a lion and eats them. Hercules sharpens his sword and goes into battle. He attacks the lion outside its cave, but its hide cannot be pierced. Heracles forces the lion back into its cave, blocks the main entrance and sneaks in through a small hole. He stuns the beast with its club and using his great strength, he strangles the lion. He tries to skin it, but the hide is too tough. Eventually, the goddess Athena, his aunt and the goddess of hunting, shows him how to use one of the lion’s claws to cut through the skin. When Heracles returns to Tiryns, wearing the impenetrable lionskin as armour, King Eurystheus is terrified, commanding Heracles to never enter the city again, only to display his trophies outside. He even has a giant bronze pot made, so he can hide from Heracles. He warns the hero that the labours will get more and more difficult. Second- the Lernaean Hydra. This animal has been raised by Hera to kill her stepson: a poisonous monster with many heads. Wearing a cloth over his mouth to protect against the fumes, Heracles tried to kill the monster but every time he cut off a head, a new one grew. One night, after trying and failing, Heracles goes to his nephew’s house. His nephew, a very clever man called Iolaus suggests burning the necks shut. So, next day, as Heracles cuts off a head, Iolaus burns the neck so that the head cannot regrow. Third- the Ceryneian Hind. This white deer was Artemis’s sacred animal and Eurystheus knew that it was faster than an arrow. He forbade Heracles from killing it, saying it must be returned alive. Heracles chased it for an entire year all across Greece until he managed to trap it with a net. As he carried the hind back, he was confronted by Artemis, who forgave him for capturing her deer. After showing it to the King, Heracles released it back to its mistress. Fourth- the Erymanthian Boar. Larger than a horse, this great boar was said to be unstoppable. Heracles chased it through thick snow until the animal became exhausted and then he was able to catch it. Eurystheus was so terrified of it, that he hit in his bronze jar until Heracles released the animal. Fifth- Augean Stables. Cleaning the great stables of King Augeas was supposed to humiliate Heracles as the cows in the stable were enchanted and there were over a thousand, so their dung formed huge piles, filling the massive stables. Heracles knew that he couldn’t shovel the dung fast enough, so he diverted the river to wash the stables clean but Eurystheus claimed this was cheating and that there were still seven labours to do. Sixth- Stymphalian birds. These birds had bronze beaks and sharp feathers as well as poisonous dung and breath. They ate anything, including people. Heracles used a great metal rattle to scare the birds into the air and killed them one by one as they landed. Most then flew away but Heracles kept two to prove his success. Seventh- The Cretan Bull. A giant bull large enough to knock down houses was terrorising the people of Crete. Heracles surprised the sleeping bull, choked it until it was senseless, tied it up and took it back to Tiryns. Eurystheus wanted to sacrifice it to Hera but she refused to accept something that Heracles had caught, so he released it into Marathon. The Bull of Marathon is attached to another series of Greek legends, the story of Theseus. Eighth- Mares of Diomedes. The four man-eating horses of King Diomedes were mad and savage, but Heracles chased them onto a spit of land, quickly digging a trench to make an island. He then killed the evil king Diomedes and fed him to his own horses. This calmed the horses; Heracles tied their mouths shut and led them back to Tiryns. Once their master was gone, they became permanently calm and Heracles kept one, Deinos, as his own horse. Ninth- Belt of Hippolyta. King Eurystheus wanted the belt of the Queen of the Amazons as a gift for his daughter, Admete. Hippolyta had heard of the great hero and was willing to give him her belt if he stayed and told his story, but while he did, Hera disguised herself as an Amazon and started a rumour that Heracles was going to kidnap Hippolyta. The Amazons attacked Heracles, who accidentally killed Hippolyta in the battle and fled with her belt. Tenth- Geryon’s Cattle. Geryon was a monster with three heads, six arms and three legs but Heracles was too strong and killed him. Hera sent flies to drive the cattle mad and it took Heracles a year to round them all up. She then flooded a river to stop him getting back to Tiryns, but Heracles piled stones in the water until it was shallow enough to cross. Eleventh- The Golden Apples of the Hesperides. After doing ten labours, Eurystheus insisted that the Hydra and the Stables did not count, as Heracles had help from his nephew and from the river. The Eleventh Labour was to steal the Golden Apples of the Hesperides. When he found the Garden of the Hesperides, he found Atlas, the Titan punished by Zeus to hold up the heavens. Atlas offered to get the apples from the Hesperides, his daughters, if Heracles held up the heavens.
Load more

Recommended publications
  • A Guide to Post-Classical Works of Art, Literature, and Music Based on Myths of the Greeks and Romans
    DOCUMENT RESUME ED 112 438 CS 202 298 AUTHOR Smith, Ron TITLE A Guide to Post-Classical Works of Art, Literature, and Music Based on Myths of the Greeks and Romans. PUB DATE 75 NOTE 40p.; Prepared at Utah State University; Not available in hard copy due to marginal legibility of original document !DRS PRICE MF-$0.76 Plus Postage. HC Not Available from EDRS. DESCRIPTORS *Art; *Bibliographies; Greek Literature; Higher Education; Latin Literature; *Literature; Literature Guides; *Music; *Mythology ABSTRACT The approximately 650 works listed in this guide have as their focus the myths cf the Greeks and Romans. Titles were chosen as being (1)interesting treatments of the subject matter, (2) representative of a variety of types, styles, and time periods, and (3) available in some way. Entries are listed in one of four categories - -art, literature, music, and bibliography of secondary sources--and an introduction to the guide provides information on the use and organization of the guide.(JM) *********************************************************************** Documents acquired by ERIC include many informal unpublished * materials not available from other sources. ERIC makes every effort * * to obtain the best copy available. Nevertheless, items of marginal * * reproducibility are often encountered and this affects the quality * * of the microfiche and hardcopy reproductions ERIC makes available * * via the ERIC Document Reproduction Service (EDRS). EDRS is not * responsible for the quality of the original document. Reproductions * * supplied
    [Show full text]
  • The Hercules Story Pdf, Epub, Ebook
    THE HERCULES STORY PDF, EPUB, EBOOK Martin W. Bowman | 128 pages | 01 Aug 2009 | The History Press Ltd | 9780752450810 | English | Stroud, United Kingdom The Hercules Story PDF Book More From the Los Angeles Times. The god Apollo. Then she tried to kill the baby by sending snakes into his crib. Hercules was incredibly strong, even as a baby! When the tasks were completed, Apollo said, Hercules would become immortal. Deianira had a magic balm which a centaur had given to her. July 23, Hercules was able to drive the fearful boar into snow where he captured the boar in a net and brought the boar to Eurystheus. Greek Nyx: The Goddess of the Night. Eurystheus ordered Hercules to bring him the wild boar from the mountain of Erymanthos. Like many Greek gods, Poseidon was worshiped under many names that give insight into his importance Be on the lookout for your Britannica newsletter to get trusted stories delivered right to your inbox. Athena observed Heracles shrewdness and bravery and thus became an ally for life. The name Herakles means "glorious gift of Hera" in Greek, and that got Hera angrier still. Feb 14, Alexandra Dantzer. History at Home. Hercules was born a demi-god. On Wednesday afternoon, Sorbo retweeted a photo of some of the people who swarmed the U. Hercules could barely hear her, her whisper was that soft, yet somehow, and just as the Oracle had predicted to herself, Hera's spies discovered what the Oracle had told him. As he grew and his strength increased, Hera was evermore furious.
    [Show full text]
  • Hesiod Theogony.Pdf
    Hesiod (8th or 7th c. BC, composed in Greek) The Homeric epics, the Iliad and the Odyssey, are probably slightly earlier than Hesiod’s two surviving poems, the Works and Days and the Theogony. Yet in many ways Hesiod is the more important author for the study of Greek mythology. While Homer treats cer- tain aspects of the saga of the Trojan War, he makes no attempt at treating myth more generally. He often includes short digressions and tantalizes us with hints of a broader tra- dition, but much of this remains obscure. Hesiod, by contrast, sought in his Theogony to give a connected account of the creation of the universe. For the study of myth he is im- portant precisely because his is the oldest surviving attempt to treat systematically the mythical tradition from the first gods down to the great heroes. Also unlike the legendary Homer, Hesiod is for us an historical figure and a real per- sonality. His Works and Days contains a great deal of autobiographical information, in- cluding his birthplace (Ascra in Boiotia), where his father had come from (Cyme in Asia Minor), and the name of his brother (Perses), with whom he had a dispute that was the inspiration for composing the Works and Days. His exact date cannot be determined with precision, but there is general agreement that he lived in the 8th century or perhaps the early 7th century BC. His life, therefore, was approximately contemporaneous with the beginning of alphabetic writing in the Greek world. Although we do not know whether Hesiod himself employed this new invention in composing his poems, we can be certain that it was soon used to record and pass them on.
    [Show full text]
  • MYTHOLOGY – ALL LEVELS Ohio Junior Classical League – 2012 1
    MYTHOLOGY – ALL LEVELS Ohio Junior Classical League – 2012 1. This son of Zeus was the builder of the palaces on Mt. Olympus and the maker of Achilles’ armor. a. Apollo b. Dionysus c. Hephaestus d. Hermes 2. She was the first wife of Heracles; unfortunately, she was killed by Heracles in a fit of madness. a. Aethra b. Evadne c. Megara d. Penelope 3. He grew up as a fisherman and won fame for himself by slaying Medusa. a. Amphitryon b. Electryon c. Heracles d. Perseus 4. This girl was transformed into a sunflower after she was rejected by the Sun god. a. Arachne b. Clytie c. Leucothoe d. Myrrha 5. According to Hesiod, he was NOT a son of Cronus and Rhea. a. Brontes b. Hades c. Poseidon d. Zeus 6. He chose to die young but with great glory as opposed to dying in old age with no glory. a. Achilles b. Heracles c. Jason d. Perseus 7. This queen of the gods is often depicted as a jealous wife. a. Demeter b. Hera c. Hestia d. Thetis 8. This ruler of the Underworld had the least extra-marital affairs among the three brothers. a. Aeacus b. Hades c. Minos d. Rhadamanthys 9. He imprisoned his daughter because a prophesy said that her son would become his killer. a. Acrisius b. Heracles c. Perseus d. Theseus 10. He fled burning Troy on the shoulder of his son. a. Anchises b. Dardanus c. Laomedon d. Priam 11. He poked his eyes out after learning that he had married his own mother.
    [Show full text]
  • The Twelve Labors of Herakles
    The Getty Teacher Resource Villa The Twelve Labors of Herakles Herakles was a universal hero, celebrated by the Greeks, the Etruscans (who called him Hercle), and the Romans (who knew him as 1. The Lion Hercules). He was the son of Zeus (king of the of Nemea gods) and a mortal woman, Alkmene. Ironically, his name means “the glory” (kleos) of Hera (queen of the gods), his jealous stepmother, who drove him mad and caused him to kill his wife and children. As penance, the hero was bound to serve King Eurystheus of Mycenae and Tiryns. The king sent him on a series of The Lion of Nemea had an impervious hide difficult tasks, or labors, twelve of which and could not be killed with traditional weapons. Herakles strangled it and then became standardized in art and literature. used its own claw to skin it. Afterward he wore its pelt as a talisman. 2. The Hydra of Lerna 3. The Hind of Keryneia The Hydra of Lerna was a serpentlike, multiheaded monster. Every time a head was cut off, two more grew in its place. With the aid of his nephew Education Iolaos,Educ Heraklesation killed the beast by cauterizing each wounded neck with a torch. 6/8 point The J. Paul Getty Museum The J. Paul Getty Museum at the Getty Center The Hind of Keryneia was sacred to Artemis ducation (goddess of the hunt and wild animals). Herakles E was ordered to bring the deer, or its golden The J. Paul Getty Museum horn, back to Eurystheus without harming it.
    [Show full text]
  • Sacred Mushrooms of the Goddess and the Secrets of Eleusis
    In memory of Blaise Daniel Staples, my companion and soul mate. He is dearly missed. PREFACE by Huston Smith WHEN I WAS ABOUT TO PUBLISH Cleansing the Doors of Perception: The Religious Significance of Entheogenic Plants and Chemicals, there were those who advised me not to do so, saying that it would destroy my reputation. Time has proved them wrong. As the religious significance of these substances comes to be increasingly accepted—the glaring exception being the Food and Drug Administration—the sales of that book (favorably reviewed from the beginning) continue to rise. As does my conviction of the importance of the issue, and I will say why. The great achievement of the linguist Noam Chomsky, who was my colleague during the fifteen years I taught at MIT, was to discover the universal grammar that every spoken language–– English, Chinese, French, whatever––must conform to, for it seems to be imprinted into the human brain. I, for my part, have worked out the universal grammar of religion to which authentic religions conform. Reduced to a single sentence, that grammar concludes that Reality is Perfect, and that human beings should do their best to conform their lives to that perfection. Reality’s perfection seems to be contradicted by perception of the world, but this is not surprising, for Reality is Infinite and our minds are not. Out minds must expand if they are to receive even glimpses of the Infinite Perfection. Thus the question is: how can they do this? Perfect Reality has provided a way. Through the entheogens, to be sure, but here we come to a point that has been under-noticed in the discussion of this important subject.
    [Show full text]
  • The Amazon Myth in Western Literature. Bruce Robert Magee Louisiana State University and Agricultural & Mechanical College
    Louisiana State University LSU Digital Commons LSU Historical Dissertations and Theses Graduate School 1996 The Amazon Myth in Western Literature. Bruce Robert Magee Louisiana State University and Agricultural & Mechanical College Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.lsu.edu/gradschool_disstheses Recommended Citation Magee, Bruce Robert, "The Amazon Myth in Western Literature." (1996). LSU Historical Dissertations and Theses. 6262. https://digitalcommons.lsu.edu/gradschool_disstheses/6262 This Dissertation is brought to you for free and open access by the Graduate School at LSU Digital Commons. It has been accepted for inclusion in LSU Historical Dissertations and Theses by an authorized administrator of LSU Digital Commons. For more information, please contact [email protected]. INFORMATION TO USERS This manuscript has been reproduced from the microfilm master. UMI films the tmct directly from the original or copy submitted. Thus, some thesis and dissertation copies are in typewriter 6ce, while others may be from any type of computer printer. The quality of this reproduction is dependent upon the quality of the copy submitted. Broken or indistinct print, colored or poor quality illustrations and photographs, print bleedthrough, substandard margins, and improper alignment can adversely afreet reproduction. In the unlikely event that the author did not send UMI a complete manuscript and there are missing pages, these will be noted. Also, if unauthorized copyright material had to be removed, a note will indicate the deletion. Oversize materials (e.g., maps, drawings, charts) are reproduced by sectioning the original, beginning at the upper left-hand comer and continuing from left to right in equal sections with small overlaps.
    [Show full text]
  • The Myth of the Amazons Maria Balla
    The myth of the Amazons Maria Balla SCHOOL OF HUMANITIES A thesis submitted for the degree of Master of Arts (MA) in Black Sea cultural Studies February 2017 Thessaloniki – Greece Student Name: Maria Balla SID: 2201140004 Supervisor: Prof. Manolis Manoledakis I hereby declare that the work submitted is mine and that where I have made use of another’s work, I have attributed the source(s) according to the Regulations set in the Student’s Handbook. 02/2017 Thessaloniki - Greece ABSTRACT This dissertation was written as part of the MA in Black Sea cultural Studies at the In- ternational Hellenic University. The aim of this paper is to analyze the different varia- tions and the most predominant versions of the myth of the Amazons and to present the basic mythological references of these wild warriors. Additionally, the individual mythological facts are described and the most famous figures of the Amazons are high- lighted. The individual characteristics that are presented bring into negotiation the dif- ferent aspects concerning the social, cultural and historical dimensions of the myth. This paper searches the reasons why this myth was created and why it became part of the Greek mythology and determines the value of the myth in general. It also presents clearly both the mythological status of the Amazons based on literary sources and the particular features of their existence in a wider context. On a second level, the figure of the Amazons is approached as a social and political phenomenon of the classical pe- riod and especially of the Athenian society. It examines the contribution of the social stereotypes of the era to the formation of the myth and the relationship with the xen- ophobic climate against the Persians.
    [Show full text]
  • Greek Mythology / Apollodorus; Translated by Robin Hard
    Great Clarendon Street, Oxford 0X2 6DP Oxford University Press is a department of the University of Oxford. It furthers the University’s objective of excellence in research, scholarship, and education by publishing worldwide in Oxford New York Athens Auckland Bangkok Bogotá Buenos Aires Calcutta Cape Town Chennai Dar es Salaam Delhi Florence Hong Kong Istanbul Karachi Kuala Lumpur Madrid Melbourne Mexico City Mumbai Nairobi Paris São Paulo Shanghai Singapore Taipei Tokyo Toronto Warsaw with associated companies in Berlin Ibadan Oxford is a registered trade mark of Oxford University Press in the UK and in certain other countries Published in the United States by Oxford University Press Inc., New York © Robin Hard 1997 The moral rights of the author have been asserted Database right Oxford University Press (maker) First published as a World’s Classics paperback 1997 Reissued as an Oxford World’s Classics paperback 1998 All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, without the prior permission in writing of Oxford University Press, or as expressly permitted by law, or under terms agreed with the appropriate reprographics rights organizations. Enquiries concerning reproduction outside the scope of the above should be sent to the Rights Department, Oxford University Press, at the address above You must not circulate this book in any other binding or cover and you must impose this same condition on any acquirer British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data Data available Library of Congress Cataloging in Publication Data Apollodorus. [Bibliotheca. English] The library of Greek mythology / Apollodorus; translated by Robin Hard.
    [Show full text]
  • The Labours of Heracles
    The Fi~t Labour: The Nemean Lion . The First Labour which Eurfstheus imposed on Heracles, when he The Thl~d !;a?our: The Ceryneian Hind .. came to reside at Tiryns, was to kill and flay the Nemean, or Cleonaen H~racles s ~ hlrd Labour was to capture t?e C~rynelan Hmd, and lion, an enormous beast with a pelt proof agail,st iron, bronze, and bring her ahve from Oenoe to Mycenae. This swIft, dappled creature stone. had brazen hooves and golden horns like a stag, so that some call her . Arriving at Cleonae, between Corinth and Argos, Heracles lodged a .stag. She was sacred to Art~mis \vho, when only a child, saw five m the house o~ a day-l~bourer, or shepherd, named Molorchus, hInds, l.arge!than bulls, grazIng on the banks o~ the dark-pebbled whose son the hon had killed. When Molorchus was about to offer a Thessahan nver Anaurus at the foot of the Parrhaslan Mountains; the ram in propitiation of Hera, Heracles restrained him. 'Wait thirty sun twinkled on their horns. Running in pursuit, she caught four of day~: he said. 'If I return safely, sacrifice to Saviour Zeus; if I do not, them, one after the other, with her own hands, and harnessed them sacrifice to me as a hero!' . .. to.her chariot; .the fifth fled across the river Celadon to the Ceryneian Heraclesreache~ Nemea at midday, but SIncethe hon had HiIl- asHera Intended, already having Heracles's Labours in mind. depopulated the nelghbourhoo~, he found no one to direct him; nor Loth either to kill or wound the hind, Heracles performed this were any tracks to be seen.
    [Show full text]
  • Greek Mythology Link (Complete Collection)
    Document belonging to the Greek Mythology Link, a web site created by Carlos Parada, author of Genealogical Guide to Greek Mythology Characters • Places • Topics • Images • Bibliography • Español • PDF Editions About • Copyright © 1997 Carlos Parada and Maicar Förlag. This PDF contains portions of the Greek Mythology Link COMPLETE COLLECTION, version 0906. In this sample most links will not work. THE COMPLETE GREEK MYTHOLOGY LINK COLLECTION (digital edition) includes: 1. Two fully linked, bookmarked, and easy to print PDF files (1809 A4 pages), including: a. The full version of the Genealogical Guide (not on line) and every page-numbered docu- ment detailed in the Contents. b. 119 Charts (genealogical and contextual) and 5 Maps. 2. Thousands of images organized in albums are included in this package. The contents of this sample is copyright © 1997 Carlos Parada and Maicar Förlag. To buy this collection, visit Editions. Greek Mythology Link Contents The Greek Mythology Link is a collection of myths retold by Carlos Parada, author of Genealogical Guide to Greek Mythology, published in 1993 (available at Amazon). The mythical accounts are based exclusively on ancient sources. Address: www.maicar.com About, Email. Copyright © 1997 Carlos Parada and Maicar Förlag. ISBN 978-91-976473-9-7 Contents VIII Divinities 1476 Major Divinities 1477 Page Immortals 1480 I Abbreviations 2 Other deities 1486 II Dictionaries 4 IX Miscellanea Genealogical Guide (6520 entries) 5 Three Main Ancestors 1489 Geographical Reference (1184) 500 Robe & Necklace of
    [Show full text]
  • Heracles and the Foundings of Sparta and Rome
    Heracles and the Foundings of Sparta and Rome A Thesis by Nicholas Granitz Advised by Dr. Edith Foster Assisted by Drs. Burkett and Levithan In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Bachelor of Arts and the Ashbrook Statesmanship Thesis and Honors Capstone Project Ashland University, Ashland, Ohio 2011 Submitted November 29th, 2011 Nicholas Granitz Abstract This thesis finds that both the Spartans and the Romans consciously adopted Heracles as a model for their societies. This adoption is seen both through their historical actions and, especially, in their founding myths, which identify the city’s founders with Heracles. Although the argument relies on previous scholarly work interpreting the character of Heracles, several connections, especially those in the Sparta chapter, are original arguments for Heracles’ relevance in founding mythology. A close analysis of the Twelve Labors of Heracles is the foundation for my arguments. The analysis of Sparta relies on the works of Tyrtaeus, Herodotus, Thucydides, Xenophon, and Plutarch. The analysis of Rome relies on the works of Fabius Pictor, Virgil, Livy, and Plutarch. Secondary sources were also important, especially the writings of G. Karl Galinsky, whose work is influential throughout the thesis. 2 Nicholas Granitz Table of Contents Introduction 04 Chapter One: Heracles 07 Chapter Two: Sparta and Heracles 37 Chapter Three: Rome and Hercules 55 Conclusion 71 Works Cited 77 I am indebted to Dr. Edith Foster, Dr. Chris Burkett, and my family and friends for making the completion of this thesis possible. Thank you. 3 Nicholas Granitz Introduction Heracles and the Foundings of Sparta and Rome Greek and Roman polytheism was an influential cultural force in the ancient world, ingrained in every facet of ancient life.
    [Show full text]