The Adventure of Theseus

1. Periphetes- famous for his iron club. He was attacked but

managed to dodge. He disarmed and killed Periphetes using his
own club.
2. Cercyon- Known for him challenging all the travelers for a fight
without a weapon. Cercyon killed all that he challenged. Theseus
eventually beat and killed Cercyon when he lifted him up and
dashed him to the ground.
3. He was attacked by a large boar.
4. Procrustes- the most feared figure in the region. He offered
travelers bed to rest in. He had 2 beds, 1 large and 1 small. When a
tall visitor appeared, he offered a small bed, since the man could
not fit into the bed, he would cut off the leg to make the bed fit
perfectly. If the visitor is small, he would offer the large bed, and
for the visitor to fill the bed, he would pull the victims hands and
legs with ropes. But he was defeated by Theseus and let him taste
his own poison.

ARRIVAL TO ATHENS

After a long journey, Theseus arrived in Athens. Even without sending

any message, his arrival didn't surprise the Old King Aegeus, who was
already waiting for him. He had been warned days before by the
Sorceress Medea, who had predicted the arrival of the king's heir.

However, Medea hadn't revealed the whole truth. She had gained much
influence in Aegeus's court and knew her power would be lost with
Theseus's arrival. So, she lied to the king, saying a visitor would be
responsible for his death and advised him to offer poisoned wine.

The king followed Medea's advice and offered Theseus a poisoned cup
of wine. As Theseus raised the cup to toast the king's health, his arm
revealed a sword, which Aegeus recognized immediately. Realizing his
mistake, Aegeus knocked the goblet over and embraced his son. He then
expelled the Sorceress Medea from his kingdom for conspiring against
his son's life.

TROJAN WAR

The Trojan War was a war between the Greeks (Achaeans) and the city
of Troy. This all happened after Paris of Troy took Helen from her
husband, the king of Sparta Menelaus. The Trojan War is one of the
most important events to have occurred in Greek mythology and has
been told in many works of Greek literature, the most notable being
Homers Illiad.

The Illiad goes through the period of four days and two nights in the
tenth year of the decade-long siege of Troy; the Odyssey tells the story
of the trip home for Odysseus. Other parts of the war are told in several
other epic poems.

Trojan War Background

1. The beginning of the Trojan war began with a prophecy regarding

the order of the Olympians and a divine love contest. Namely,
many years before the war’s beginning, both Poseidon and Zeus
had fallen in love with a sea nymph with the name Thetis. Both
wanted Thetis to be his bride; however, they both backed off after
they were told of the consequences that awaited them if they made
such an action.
2. This consequence was that if the sea-nymph were to lay with Zeus
or his brothers, a son would be born who would be stronger than
his father and possess a weapon that would be much more
powerful than the trident or the thunderbolt. To avoid this from
happening, Zeus made it so that Thetis would have to marry King
Peleus.
3. After Thetis’ marriage was figured out, Zeus held a big feast to
celebrate Peleus’ and Thetis’ marriage, to which all of the gods
were invited – except for the goddess of strife, Eris. The goddess
 was annoyed at the fact that she was turned away that before
she left the gathering, she flung her gift amongst the crowd of
guests; this gift was called the Apple of Discord, which was a
golden apple with the words, “for the fairest” inscribed on it.
4. Not too long after the apple was thrown, Aphrodite, Athena, and
Hera began to fight about who should have the apple. Zeus was
unable to decide by himself, so he sent the goddesses to Paris,
the prince of Troy, to decide.

PARIS: THE PRINCE OF TROY

5. Paris was unable to make a decision, so the goddesses started

to bribe him. First, Hera offered to grant him political power and a
throne if he were to choose her; then, Athena offered him wisdom
and skills in battle; finally, Aphrodite promised Paris the most
beautiful woman in the world, Helen of Sparta. Without batting an
eyelash, Paris chooses Aphrodite.

5.5 However, Helen was already married to Menelaus, the king of

Sparta. So, Paris, under the disguise of a diplomatic mission, went to
Sparta to abduct Helen from her home so he could bring her back to
Troy with him. Before Helen could look up to see Paris, she was shot
with an arrow by Cupid, or Eros, and fell in love with Paris the moment
she saw him.

There are other theories that Zeus started the Trojan War to kill off some
of the population – especially of demigods. This is because Zeus had
many relationships that resulted in the birth of many demigods, and he
felt that the earth was overpopulated, and he wanted to depopulate it as
much as possible. So, it’s said that he started the war to do this.

The Trojan War

1. The Trojan War can be said to have started shortly after the
abduction of Helen. This is because Helen’s husband, Menelaus,
 got his brother, Agamemnon, to lead a voyage to find her and get
her back. Agamemnon was able to get other Greek heroes, such as
Odysseus, Ajax, Nestor, and Achilles, to join him on this
adventure.
2. The Trojan War, which was punctuated by battles and skirmishes,
lasted for ten years. It finally ended when the Greeks retreated
from camp and left behind a large wooden horse outside the gates
of Troy. Inside Troy, there were many debates on whether they
should bring the wooden horse in, including unheeded warnings by
Cassandra, Priam’s daughter – ultimately, the horse was brought
into the city.

[Imagine the Trojan War like a boxing match that dragged on for ten
years. There were tons of smaller fights (skirmishes) and big brawls
(battles), but neither side could knock the other out. Finally, the Greeks
did something strange. They packed up their camp and left, but they
forgot something BIG – a giant wooden horse – right outside Troy's
front door. Back in Troy, there was a huge debate. Should they bring this
mysterious horse inside the city walls? Some people, like Cassandra (the
king's daughter who could see the future but no one believed), warned
against it. But in the end, excitement about the apparent Greek surrender
won out, and the Trojans dragged the horse inside their city. This
seemingly harmless act was actually a HUGE mistake! The horse wasn't
a gift, it was a trap. We'll find out what happens next, but trust me, you
wouldn't want to be a Trojan celebrating their victory right now.]

3. The wooden horse was a plan made by Odysseus to end the war.
The wooden horse was designed to be hollow in the middle so that
soldiers could hide inside and then was wheeled in front of the city
of Troy. After the Trojan Horse was left at the gates, the Greeks
sailed away from Troy to the island of Tenedos, leaving behind
one double agent named Sinon. He was able to convince the
Trojans that the Greeks had retreated from the war and that the
horse was a parting gift that would ultimately give the Trojans a
fortune.
 THE FALL OF TROY

1. However, once nighttime fell, the horse opened up and out came
the Greek soldiers. From the inside of the city, the Greeks were
able to destroy the city of Troy and win the war.

The Aftermath of the Trojan War

The surviving Greek heroes learned the hard way that gods never forget
and hardly forgive because even though they were victorious in the war,
most of them were punished for their transgressions. In fact, only a
handful of Greek soldiers made it back home, and that’s with several
adventures and exploits along the way. Even fewer were welcomed back
to their homes because they were killed by their loved ones or they were
exiled into oblivion – there were some cases where both incidents
happened.

[Few Greek heroes returned home unscathed or in a timely manner. The

Trojan War, despite being a victory, brought great suffering and loss.
Many warriors died at sea or on their journeys, and some faced
challenges re-establishing their rule upon arrival. The Trojan War serves
as a cautionary tale about the high cost of war and the wrath of the
gods.]

Final Thoughts
The Trojan War was a huge and important war in Greek mythology. It
was important because it’s the earliest recorded myth that we have that
was written down, and it set the stage for the Odyssey and the Illiad.

Hopefully, from this summary of the Trojan War, you were able to learn
enough about the war that you are able to understand why it happened
and how it ended. This summary might not be the entire war, but it’s
enough to help you get started on your journey of learning about Greek
mythology.
What message do you think the myth is trying to convey?
WHAT HAVE YOU LEARNED FROM THE STORY OF THESEUS?
WHAT DO YOU THINK IS THE IMPORTANCE OF STANDING UP
FOR THE PEOPLE WHO HAS BEEN VICTIM