Myths

Harry Hamlin in Clash of the Titans (1981)

“We can keep from a child all knowledge of earlier myths, but we cannot take from him the need for mythology.”

~ C.G. Jung

I am regularly amazed at how much we have to learn from mythology; it is astonishing how relevant these ancient stories still are, and how much we can discover ourselves through them. As we study a series of Greek myths we will be examining whether or not Greek heroes resemble our own modern heroes, and, importantly, whether or not we even have real heroes today.

In the myth of Bellerophon we discover the cost of hubris. Like Icarus, who flew too close to the sun and died as a result, Bellerophon let his own success cloud his judgement and was struck down by Zeus. Read the story here.

Here is the Bellerophon Worksheet.

Perseus, on the other hand, did not suffer from the same affliction of hubris. Though his journey mirrors Bellerophon’s, it is different in a few interesting ways which we will be examining during the week. Read the story here.

After you read these stories, please respond to the following prompt:

In your professional opinion, are either Bellerophon or Perseus better examples of a hero? Be sure to cite at least two textual examples and reference Joseph Campbell’s steps of the Hero’s Journey to support your response.