CSMUN XI Olympus Cabinet Topic A: Threat of the Titans Return
Historical Background Before the Olympians, the Cosmos had more horrendous rulers. These beasts were called the Titans. They originally descended from Uranus and Gaea. Mortals interpret these beings as the heavens and the Earth. They gave birth to twelve Titans, which included six females and six males. The females were named Mnemosyne, Tethys, Theia, Phoebe, Rhea, and Themis. The males Oceanus, Hyperion, Coeus, Cronus, Crius, and Iapetus. One Titan rose and took power of all the Cosmos. This unforgiving immortal was Cronus. In his fight to take power, he castrated his own father by direction of his mother. This plan was executed with his brothers and sisters.They ruled on Mount Othrys. Uranus told Cronus that their fates would be alike; he predicted that Cronus’s children would one day overthrow him too. In fear of one day losing the Cosmos, Cronus became an angered king. Always acting on impulse instead of strategy and wisdom.
Eventually Cronus and Rhea gave birth to the Olympians. Still in fear of being overthrown, he ate his own children. Rhea tricked Cronus; she managed to keep one of her children safe. This child was Zeus. He was raised in a cave in Crete. Once he became a man, he went to his father’s mountain. Along with help from Metis, he put mustard in Cronus’s wine. This caused him to throw up each Olympian one by one. This event triggered Titanomachy. Titanomachy was a ten year war fought between the Olympians and the Titans. During this the Olympians freed four giants. Three Cyclops and the Hecatonchires who had been trapped in Tartarus. They were sent there by Cronus. After being freed, they were eager to join the fight against Cronus. The Cyclops created Zeus’s lightning bolt; they also helped create Poseidon’s trident and Hades’s helm of darkness. Using these weapons the Olympians won the battle. Zeus banished the Titans who did not fight alongside him to the pits of Tartarus.
Current Situation After the war, the three strongest brothers of the Olympians decided to divide the wonders of Earth. They drew straws to decide which God earned what. Zeus drew the longest straw, making him the ruler of the Heavens and King of the Sky. Poseidon drew the second longest straw gifting him the God of the Seas. Hades drew the shortest draw making him the God of the Underworld. Tensions between these brothers rose. Hades was unhappy with his placement, though he never acted on his angered emotions. The Titans have been in Tartarus since Titanomachy was fought. Though Tartarus seems like an inescapable prison, captives of Tartarus have been freed previously. When Zeus released Cyclops and the Hecatonchires he killed the guard watching Tartarus. The three Hecatonchires was placed as the guard of Tartarus. The Olympians recently were informed that Hecatonchires was killed at his post. All captives of Tartarus have escaped. Most of the female Titans were spared from Tartarus, although with this news have vanished. The Olympians are unsure if these women joined their fight or have been killed for their betrayal. Other beasts of the godly world have gone missing as well. The Titans seem to be recruiting soldiers. The Olympians are preparing for war.
Questions to Consider Who killed Hecatonchires?
Should the Olympians ask for aid from beasts as the Titans seem to be doing?
What powers or connections does your god have to help in this war?
What advantages can the Olympians explote?
Should the Olympians attempting to make more weapons with cyclopes?
Vocab Terms
Olympians- Twelve Greek gods living on Olympus
Cyclops- A one eyed giant with special abilities in blacksmithing
The Hecatonchires- A one hundred armed creature with strength greater than most gods and titans
Tartarus- The deep pit within the underworld that is used as a prison for the unwanted creatures
Mortal- A human being subject to death, often contrasted with a divine being
Topic B: Dealing with Mortal Population
Historical Background In what humans call Ancient times, they were aware of the existence of the gods. They worshiped the Olympians for their power and strength. Human also crafted art and literature in honor of the Olympians. The gods would come down from Mount Olympus to earth and have Romantic relationships with humans. This has resulted in several demigod children. These children have been known to cause conflict between the gods. One example of many would be Aneas. He was the son of Aphrodite and a proud Trojan. Then, through not fault of his own, the Trojan War broke out. This caused the Olympians to take the side of the Trojans or the Greeks. Hera and Aphrodite were largely involved with the war. Hera did all she could to derail Aeneas from fulfilling his destiny. She did this because of her undying hate for Aphrodite which transferred onto Aeneas. Another situation that arose with god and mortal contact was Dionysus and his mother. Dionysus is the only god born from a mortal mother. His mother’s name was Semele. She was the daughter of Cadmus, the king of Thebes. During the time they were together, Zeus promised Semele he would grant her every wish. Semele was having an affair with Zeus only for a short time before Hera learned of their relationship. When Hera became aware of this she became enraged. The queen of Olympus tricked Seleme to ask Zeus to appear to him in his true state. Since he promised to grant her every whim, this promise was no different. Seleme’s mortal body could not handle Zeus’ true form. She was killed by his lightning. After Zeus realized what he had done, he knew he must save their unborn child, Dionysus. Zeus sewed him to his thigh until he became mature and strong enough.
Current Situation As time continues to race by, the gods are faced with a difficult challenges, beyond a threat to their power. The human race has continued to grow in size and knowledge. As time pressed on, their faith in the Olympians and their power is almost obsolete. They worship other Gods and items. Today these beings are more observant than ever before, which beckons the question: how long until these beings see the truth once more? The knowledge they have acquired over these many years has allowed them to create weapons that could even be deadly to gods. They create explosives, missiles and other deadly instruments. With a possible war rising with the Titans, the Olympians are struggling with the decision of showing the mortal humans their existence and power or attempting to keep this war out of the mortal eye. The Olympians must weigh their options and think of all possibilities. These would include a possible war with the humans or aid from them in the war with their fallen fathers.
Questions to Consider Based on your gods actions and views would they want humans to be aware of them?
Would the mortal population aware of the gods cause more demigod related wars and future problems?
Are the humans a threat?
Are the Olympians putting humans in danger by being unaware of the Titans?
Positions
Zeus- He is the god of the sky and thunder. He also stands as the king of the gods. Being married to Hera causes large issues, considering Zeus’ untamable eye for beauty. With a harty list of illegitimate children, Zeus’ wife becomes consumed by jealousy and envy. As King of the gods, he holds the most responsibility for protecting Olympus.
Poseidon- Serving as the god of the sea, he holds an enormous amount of power. Always outshined by his brother Zeus, he has a level head with all but Zeus. Still holding a bitter rivalry with Athena after the contest for Athens. He lost the contest to her after she created the olive tree. He holds large power over Mount Olympus.
Hades- Hades is the god of the underworld. A gloomy god with a strong grudge against his brothers Zeus and Poseidon. He rarely leaves the underworld causing him to have become even more hostile to Mount Olympus and all its inhabitants. He desires for the mortals to know the existence of the gods.
Athena- As the goddess of wisdom, Athena is not afraid to speak her mind and spread her knowledge. She is calm and collected. Aware of all possibilities, she thinks through each decision with caution. This beautiful goddess does not waste her time with petty fights and old problems as the other gods do. Athena does not want the humans to know of the gods because of more conflicts she believe will rise.
Ares- Strong and vicious are the best words to describe the god of war. He is what the humans call “trigger happy”. Ares strives for conflict in all forms of the matter. This can be useful but also deadly. A great ally to have during the potential war with the Titans, if his alliance does not waver.
Hera- Hera is the queen of the gods. She is the goddess of women, marriage, and childbirth. A beautiful goddess with a soiled reputation of being jealous and spiteful of her husband's enteral list of lovers and illegitimate children. Though she husband’s disloyalty drives her mad, Hera is still wise in the ways of the cosmos and conflicts alike. She is strongly against the humankind in fear her husband will continue his unforgiving habits.
Hermes- Hermes, commonly known for his tricks and schemes, serves as the messenger of the gods. He is also the god of travelers, thieves, trade and more. Hermes is the biggest advocate for the human race. This is because he travels between the mortal and divine world for his work and his whims.
Apollo- A kind and passionate man, Apollo is the god of art, music, poetry, medicine, knowledge and more. He loves the humans and all they create. Apollo wants to protect mankind and help them thrive. Though Apollo has a dark side, he is also known for illness. If he wanted, he could cause a plague to kill cities.
Aphrodite- Aphrodite is the goddess of love, beauty and sexuality. She is hated by Hera because of several reasons, mostly because she is the child of Zeus but not her daughter. Loved by almost all, she has a dear place in the gods’ hearts. With a large influence over Zeus and Ares, her father and past lover. Her main goal is to avoid war and protect her beloved humans.
Artemis- The twin sister of Apollo, Artemis, is the goddess of the hunt, the moon, forests, hills and archery. Though the humans have departed from her ways of hunting she still holds strong power and wisdom. Unlike her brother, she is not as fond of humans. She does not want unneeded conflict and issues.
Demeter- As the goddess of harvest, grain and growth, she does not want to see the world in demise and destruction. War will cause these awful possibilities. She believes the world world would benefit with the knowledge of the gods.
Dionysus- Dionysus is the god of wine and grapes. Like Aphrodite, he is hated by Hera for the same reason. He blames Hera for the death of his mother. With a complicated past, he adores humans and the wine they create though does not want to see harm come to them by the gods. He is unsure of his feelings toward revealing the Olympians to mortals.
References www.britannica.com/list/12-greek-gods-and-goddesses www.greek-gods.org/titans.php
Works Cited
“Explore Encyclopedia Britannica.” Encyclopædia Britannica, Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc., www.britannica.com/.
“The Titans.” Greek Gods, www.greek-gods.org/titans.php.
“CommonLit |.” CommonLit, www.commonlit.org/.
Pallardy, Richard. “12 Greek Gods and Goddesses.” Encyclopædia Britannica, Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc., www.britannica.com/list/12-greek-gods-and-goddesses.
Virgil, and Rolfe Humphries. Aenid. W. Ross Macdonald School, 1984.