Preview

Mythology the Past and Present

Good Essays
Open Document
Open Document
947 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
Mythology the Past and Present
Mythology the Past and Present
Nike is the winged goddess of victory according to Greek mythology. She sat at the side of Zeus, the ruler of the Olympic pantheon, in Olympus. A mystical presence, symbolizing victorious encounters, Nike presided over history's earliest battlefields. A Greek would say, "When we go to battle and win, we say it is Nike." Synonymous with honored conquest, Nike is the twentieth century footwear that lifts the world's greatest athletes to new levels of mastery and achievement. The Nike 'swoosh' embodies the spirit of the winged goddess who inspired the most courageous and chivalrous warriors at the dawn of civilization.
In Greek mythology, Nike was a goddess who personified victory, also known as the Winged Goddess of Victory. The Roman equivalent was Victoria. Depending upon the time of various myths, she was described as the daughter of Pallas (Titan) and Styx (Water), and the sister of Kratos (Strength), Bia (Force), and Zelus (Zeal). Nike and her siblings were close companions of Zeus, the dominant deity of the Greek pantheon. According to classical (later) myth, Styx brought them to Zeus when the god was assembling allies for the Titan War against the older deities. Nike assumed the role of the divine charioteer, a role in which she often is portrayed in Classical Greek art. Nike flew around battlefields rewarding the victors with glory and fame. Nike is seen with wings in most statues and paintings. Most other winged deities in the Greek pantheon had shed their wings by Classical times. Nike is the goddess of strength, speed, and victory. Nike was a very close acquaintance of Athena, and is thought to have stood in Athena's outstretched hand in the statue of Athena located in the Parthenon. Nike is one of the most commonly portrayed figures on Greek coins.
Nike has a legacy that lives on today, not through the field of battle but through clothing, shoes, and apparel. Nike paints the perfect portrait of what the goddess set out

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Good Essays

    The Winged Victory of Samothrace is also known as Nike (of Samothrace). Nike was the Greek goddess of Victory who would bring messages of victory and success to others. The sculpture was often used to stand on the prow of a ship…

    • 292 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Mythology Short Answers

    • 668 Words
    • 3 Pages

    1). How is the word myth used popularly? For example, what does the statement, “It’s a myth” mean? In contrast, how is the word myth used in the academic context? After considering the definition in your textbooks and course materials, write a definition in your own words.…

    • 668 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Foundations of Mythology

    • 1367 Words
    • 6 Pages

    I think that most cultures have the same beliefs about morality and that we believe a higher power exists and that beyond that the similarities end. Differences between social and cultural details are what divide’s us on virtually all…

    • 1367 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Good Essays

    Greek Myth and Legends

    • 665 Words
    • 3 Pages

    In appearance, the gods were supposed to resemble mortals, whom, however, they far surpassed in beauty, grandeur, and strength; they were also more commanding in stature, height being considered by the Greeks an attribute of beauty in man or woman. They resembled human beings in their feelings and habits, intermarrying and having children, and requiring daily nourishment to recruit their strength, and refreshing sleep to restore their energies. Their blood, a bright ethereal fluid called Ichor, never engendered disease, and, when shed, had the power of producing new life.…

    • 665 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    A famous Greek goddess is the goddess Nike. People also used to call her Victoria, but she is most known by Nike. Nike is the goddess of victory. She is believed to be the daughter of Pallas and Styx. Sometimes on trophies the goddess will be on there, since she represents victory.…

    • 662 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Ancient Greek Mythology

    • 755 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Religion and Mythology in Ancient Greece were looked upon with the utmost importance, the Greek myths and tales of religion explained the unexplainable, gave reason to live and a sense of stability to a community.…

    • 755 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Nike Inc., the global leader in the production and marketing of sports and athletic merchandise including shoes,…

    • 768 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Mythology

    • 3646 Words
    • 15 Pages

    Jason is the Greek legendary hero best known for his leadership ofthe Argonauts in the quest for the Golden Fleece and for his wifeMedea (of Colchis).…

    • 3646 Words
    • 15 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Good Essays

    World Mythology

    • 732 Words
    • 3 Pages

    How is the word myth used popularly? The word myth is used popularly is something that is made up that some one believes. One myth from my childhood that most people believe or have tried is bloody marry. Some believe that if you stare in the mirror with the light off and call her name three times that she will appear in the mirror. There are different versions of this but to me this is what a myth is. According to dictionary.reference.com “a traditional story, usually concerning some being or hero or event, with or without a determinable basis of fact or a natural explanation, especially one that is concerned with deities or demigods and explains some practice, rite, or phenomenon of nature.”(para.1). A myth is someone or something that is made up to scare or excite one’s imagination. It is also to give someone hope there is something else there for the unexplained.…

    • 732 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Mythology

    • 5077 Words
    • 21 Pages

    by Rose Williams The following discussions are samples from an overall study which is used in my book ‘Gods and Other Odd Creatures.’ Drawings “Gate of Janus Geminus” and “Aedes Vestae”are from the book and may be copied, as may all other drawings in the book. Since the Romans were both polytheistic and tidy, they tended to organize the deities they encountered and to equate them to Roman gods if possible. Thus when they conquered, and were in turn influenced by, the Greeks, they called Greek gods by the names of their Roman counterparts. This process was helped by the fact that fourteen major gods who made up the Twelve Great Olympians of the Greeks and the twelve Di Consentes of the Romans (plus a couple of major extras in each case) were similar in function. But they differed in many ways.…

    • 5077 Words
    • 21 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Good Essays

    mythology

    • 464 Words
    • 2 Pages

    The role of women in ancient Greek life was insignificant compared to that of Greek men. A woman's job was to take care of the children and to cook and clean unless she had servants or slaves that would do it for her. Yet, in Greek mythology, women were often written as major characters. Well-known Greek plays contain many well-written, complex, female characters. Female individuals in Greek mythology were often seen as very powerful and fierce Greek mythology is the body of myths and teachings that belong to the ancient Greeks, concerning their gods and heroes, the nature of the world, and the origins and significance of their own cult and ritual practices. It was a part of the religion in ancient Greece. Modern scholars refer to and study the myths in an attempt to throw light on the religious and political institutions of Ancient Greece and its civilization, and to gain understanding of the nature of myth-making itself.[1]…

    • 464 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Mythology

    • 642 Words
    • 2 Pages

    “We aren’t in an information age, we are in an entertainment age.”-Tony Robbins. The EGUSD school board wants to get rid of “Mythology” By Edith Hamilton claiming that the myths are “pointless” because no one believes them anymore; however mythology is very important to our English 9 Honors curriculum! The myths provide entertainment to us, students. Three myths that show entertainment are: Odysseus’ adventure to Circe’s realm, The Trojan Horse, and Twelve Labors of Hercules. It is clear that Mythology in fact is not pointless, yet it’s purpose is to entertain us.…

    • 642 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    How is the word myth used popularly? For example, what does the statement, “It’s a myth” mean? In contrast, how is the word myth used in the academic context? After considering the definition in your textbooks and course materials, write a definition in your own words.…

    • 762 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Greek mythology in itself was of a whole new type of mythology. Other mythologies from other parts of the world before it were drastically different. Aside from the fact that the Gods mirrored humans in semblance, their actions were quite humanlike as well. In addition to that, people who did not like to make up many things originally wrote Greek mythology. The mythology also commonly came to explain things in nature, which is reasonable for people like the Greeks to have, because of their intimacy with nature. If a poet wrote about the birthplace of a God or Goddess being on Earth, the place would actually exist. They based their mythology on things relative to them, things they could understand. The Greeks based their mythology on reality.…

    • 612 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Essay On Nike Swoosh

    • 1063 Words
    • 5 Pages

    In “Nike,” by Encyclopædia Britannica, it states that “Nike, in Greek religion, [is] the goddess of victory... for her functions referred to success not only in war but in all other undertakings.” It proved a relevant source for the logo’s creation, in purpose for the American Feminist Movement, because it was a direct representation of feminine strength. The winged goddess, Nike, inspired the Nike Swoosh to be designed in the shape of her wing showing the ability to fly, and rising above, embodying victory, power, and freedom. Overall, the Greek culture and their belief of the Goddess of Victory stimulated the creation of the Nike Swoosh because they already had a strong feminine symbol and it provided a desire for one in the United States especially during the harsh times of the American Feminist…

    • 1063 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays