Greek Mythology and Zeus
Exploring the nature of Zeus/Jupiter lord of the gods
CLA 310F: Greek and Roman Mythology
April, 27 2012
Fulvia De Maio
By: Alec Prostok
Zeus and Jupiter are two of the most powerful Gods in Greek and Roman mythology. Their influence on other gods is very influential to all of mythology. They have powerful political roles and many symbols that are connected with ideas in mythology. Zeus and Jupiter are very similar in many ways and can also be considered very different based on their features depicted by the Greeks and the Romans.
According to Greek mythology Zeus was born from Rhea who was known as mother of the Gods and Cronus who was known as the leader of the Titans. Zeus’s brothers and sisters were Hestia, Demeter, Hera, Hades, and Poseidon. Cronus swallowed all of them except Zeus when they were born in order to prevent the prophecy, which happened to his own father Uranus. In order to save Zeus, Rhea gave birth to him in Crete, and in order to save her son she gave Cronus a rock wrapped in cloth and he swallowed the rock thinking it was Zeus. (Michael Peppard) In contrast, according to Romany Mythology Jupiter was born as a twin of Juno. There is little information depicting Jupiter as a child especially since the Greeks have such an elaborate story of Zeus’s birth and helped the creation of society. (Alexander Murray) In the Roman culture there is no stories like this showing how different Zeus and Jupiter are. In Greek society Zeus is a main focus of their creation. In Roman society there is no trace of Jupiter as a kid just during manhood. This idea that the Greeks have compared to the Romans show how they have different theologies when it comes to creation. Zeus is such a main focus of their religion as well as many other symbols, but Jupiter does not have the initial story that Zeus does. He is still thought of as the father for the Romans, but he has on creation story explaining where he came from. These birth stories have a great
CLA 310F: Greek and Roman Mythology
April, 27 2012
Fulvia De Maio
By: Alec Prostok
Zeus and Jupiter are two of the most powerful Gods in Greek and Roman mythology. Their influence on other gods is very influential to all of mythology. They have powerful political roles and many symbols that are connected with ideas in mythology. Zeus and Jupiter are very similar in many ways and can also be considered very different based on their features depicted by the Greeks and the Romans.
According to Greek mythology Zeus was born from Rhea who was known as mother of the Gods and Cronus who was known as the leader of the Titans. Zeus’s brothers and sisters were Hestia, Demeter, Hera, Hades, and Poseidon. Cronus swallowed all of them except Zeus when they were born in order to prevent the prophecy, which happened to his own father Uranus. In order to save Zeus, Rhea gave birth to him in Crete, and in order to save her son she gave Cronus a rock wrapped in cloth and he swallowed the rock thinking it was Zeus. (Michael Peppard) In contrast, according to Romany Mythology Jupiter was born as a twin of Juno. There is little information depicting Jupiter as a child especially since the Greeks have such an elaborate story of Zeus’s birth and helped the creation of society. (Alexander Murray) In the Roman culture there is no stories like this showing how different Zeus and Jupiter are. In Greek society Zeus is a main focus of their creation. In Roman society there is no trace of Jupiter as a kid just during manhood. This idea that the Greeks have compared to the Romans show how they have different theologies when it comes to creation. Zeus is such a main focus of their religion as well as many other symbols, but Jupiter does not have the initial story that Zeus does. He is still thought of as the father for the Romans, but he has on creation story explaining where he came from. These birth stories have a great