Greek Mythology Introduction

The Greek word “mythos” means story and Greek mythology is a group a fictional stories that were created thousands of years ago by the people of ancient Greece. Despite these Greek stories being created so long ago, they are still being told today.

Greek Myths were created to explain what couldn’t be understood thousands of years ago, specifically the mysteries of nature. The ancient Greeks didn’t have science to tell them that the sky is bright during the day and dark at night because of Earth’s rotation, or that electrical fields in clouds created lightning. In order to make sense of things, the Greek people relied on myths to help create order in their world.

What separates Greek mythology from other types of stories, like legends or folktales is that myths try to explain human relationships with the divine. Greek myths are stories about Gods. Goddesses, and other supernatural entities and the relationships that humans have with them.

Greek Myths aren’t just about humans and Gods, they are also about religion. The people of ancient Greece were polytheistic in their religious beliefs, which means they believed in and worshiped many different Gods. In Greek mythology, the gods often represented different forms of nature. Their religion/ mythology had no formal structure with the exception of various festivals held in honor of the Gods. There was no sacred book to live by.

The Greeks believed that they shared their world with the Gods and Goddesses who had superhuman powers. These Gods and Goddesses were all around the humans, living in oceans, the air, the forests and under the ground. They were a part of everything. Like humans, these Gods and Goddesses had individual personalities that made them unique. Gods and Goddesses could be friendly or they could be evil. They could be helpful or they play tricks on humans or one another.

Storytelling was a primary form of entertainment in ancient Greece Storytelling was a primary form of entertainment in ancient Greece. Greek myths were told by the word of mouth, which is how Greek mythology evolved over the years. Greek myths were told by bards, or traveling storyteller. These bards told myths to audiences of people through song or poetry.

Of course, each bard put his own spin on the myths based on their own personal preference. Depending on their mood, they could make the story scarier, sadder, more romantic, etc. Bards told these stories for generations through the spoken word and through art and with every telling, the myth changed.

Because myths were always being revised throughout history, there are many versions of the myths that can be found. Since these stories began as fictional, there is no way to say which is myth is the correct one.