The Epic Story of Perseus

 Characters
• Acrisius – king of Argos, father of Danae, grandfather of Perseus.
• Danae- Daughter of Acrisius, mother of Perseus.
• Priestess- Apollo’s oracle at Delphi
• Zeus- king of gods
• Perseus- son of Danae and Zeus
• Dictys- fisherman who saves Danae and Perseus
• Polydectes- king of small island, brother of Dictys
• Medusa- vicious gorgon
• Hermes- guide and giver of good
Athena- goddess of wisdom, skills, and warfare
• Gray Women- three women who share one eye
• Nymphs of the North- holders of winged sandals, magic wallet, and cap
• Andromeda- daughter of silly vain woman
• Nereus- sea god
• Cassiopeia- Andromeda’s mother; queen of Ethiopia
• Cepheus- Andromeda’s father; king
• Electryon- Son of Perseus and Andromeda, Hercules grandfather
 SETTING
The Island of Seriphus and an Adventure Far from Home.

 The story of Perseus and Medusa is a widely known tale of adventure. Perseus
embarks on a quest to acquire the head of Medusa and returns home upon
completing it, following the classic structure of a hero’s journey. Beginning on his
home island of Seriphus, located in the Aegean Sea between Greece and Turkey,
Perseus travels to various distant and mythical locations, including the Graeae’s
abode, the Nymphai’s dwelling, and the Gorgons’ cavern. Even while airborne,
 he encounters Princess Andromeda while flying over Africa. With his travels
spanning such vast distances, his exploits take on an epic quality.

 PLOTS
 Once upon a time, Greece was ruled by a monarch who had committed a
heinous crime. He would die, according to a prophecy, at the hands of his own
grandson. Because he was afraid of the prophecy, he tried to trick the gods by
putting his lovely daughter and her young son in a chest and throwing it into the
water. He thought he would never see them again and he would never have to
worry about his grandson. The princess and her child’s fate, however, was
different. The chest effortlessly floated on the water thanks to the gentle waves,
eventually washing up on an island’s sandy shores. The chest was found by a
fisherman, and the island’s ruler was inside.
 The King approaches Danae about getting married after she has been on the
island for a while, but she declines because Perseus is still in her life. King
Polydectes challenges Perseus to kill Medusa in the hopes that he will fail and
perish in an effort to get rid of him so that he can wed Danae.
 Perseus crossed the ocean in search of the grandfather who had terrified him so
much as a young boy. Following him and finding him, Perseus proved to him that
his only motivation for coming was to honor him. When he arrived, his
grandfather welcomed him, lost all fear of him, and ordered celebrations to
honor the arrival of his able and honorable grandson who had come to him in his
advanced age. Oh, but alas! A terrible accident occurred in the middle of the
games. One of the games involved throwing quoits, and as Perseus was doing so,
the round, flat piece of iron slipped from his grasp and hit his grandfather, killing
him instantly. The oracle was thus realized.

 CONFLICT
 Perseus frequently found himself in disputes. He was terrified of his grandfather,
so he spent his early years hiding out in a room with his mother. He and his
mother were then placed in a chest at the
 Sea. He had to fight the avaricious Polydectes when he got to the island because
he wanted to marry his mother and get rid of him. According to Polydectes,
Danae didn’t want to get married because it would be difficult for her to live with
Perseus around. The main conflict of the story began when he decided to come
up with a plan to get rid of this unpleasant kid. He persuaded Perseus to
undertake the treacherous task of slaying the terrifying Gorgon Medusa and
returning her head.

 RESOLUTION
  He received assistance from the god Hermes and the goddess Athena, who also
gave him courage for his terrifying task. When Perseus finally arrived at the cave
of the nymphs, he quickly acquired the sandals and the helmet. They had
instructed him that he needed to have a pair of winged sandals to aid him in his
travels as well as a helmet that would make him invisible. After donning these,
he quickly arrived at Medusa’s cave and discovered her dozing off on the floor.
But he dared not confront her out of fear that she would turn him to stone. The
goddess Athena then intervened on his behalf and gave him her brilliant shield
to use as a mirror. Perseus went backward while holding this in front of him,
excluding his gaze from Medusa in favor of the shield’s reflection instead. When
he was close enough, he used the curved sickle that Hermes had given him to cut
off her head. He did so without even looking at it before hurriedly packing the
head into a bag. He encountered numerous adventures on his return trip from
the edge of the planet to his house, and he discovered that the Gorgon’s head
made an excellent weapon. It was more effective than a sword or a spear
because all he had to do to damage his foes was to remove Medusa’s head from
its bag and hold it in front of their eyes, and they instantly turned to stone.

 THEMES
 The tale of Perseus and Medusa is one of adoration for one’s parents, valor, and
dignity, as well as of strength, courage, and wisdom.
 The poem also explores the destructive nature of jealously and fury by using the
story of Medusa, a terrifying snake-haired figure from Greek mythology who had
the power to turn people to stone with just her gaze.
 Your life’s route is paved with dangers. Many will underestimate you, but those
who work hard and with zeal will succeed and show that you are more capable
than people believe.
 Perseus is a symbol of how far one will go to protect the people they care about.
Perseus demonstrates the reality of his character when he saves the defenseless
Andromeda from the Cetus and the attachment to the rock. Imagine his
adventure was just to keep her mother away.
 No man is an island, in fact. If the gods Hermes and Athena hadn’t helped
Perseus, he wouldn’t have been able to accomplish all of those things. It advises
us to fulfill our word, act fearlessly, and obey the gods in order to succeed and
accomplish great things.

 LESSON/S

 As a result of Perseus' bravery, strength, and cunning, Andromeda was

saved by the Cetus, and he later returned home with her after killing
 Phineus and Polydectes by turning them into stone using the head of
Medusa.
 The story of Perseus and Medusa is a story of perseverance, bravery,
and dignity.