Jason and the Argonauts

What does the Delphic Oracle tell Pelias?

"Beware of the man wearing one sandal"

How does Medea try to help Jason win the kingdom back?

1. She makes Aeson young again, putting his cut up aged body into a pot with magical herbs and he climbs out youthful again 2. She tricks Pelias' daughters into doing the same thing to their father but not being sorceress they have killed him

King Aeetes' 3 tasks for the golden fleece

1. Yoke two bronze-hoofed, fire-breathing bulls 2. plow a field with these bulls and plant/sow dragon's teeth there 3. Defeat the Spartoi ("sown men") who grow out of the dragon' teeth

Characteristics of epics

1. opens in media res (middle of the story) 2. vast setting: covers many nations, world, universe 3. Usually begins with an invocation to the muse 4. Starts with a statement of the theme 5. Uses epithets (descriptive names for characters) 6. Includes long lists 7. features long and formal speeches 8. Includes divine intervention in human affairs 9. Heroes embody the values of civilization

Medea

Aeetes' daughter who falls in love with Jason An enchantress who worships Hecate

Harpies

An evil mythical monster with the head and body of a woman and the tail, wings, and talons of a bird harpazo, meaning to snatch, grab

Why were there no men on Lemnos island?

Aphrodite had decided to curse the women of Lemnos for neglecting her shrines. In punishment, the ladies were made to smell particularly foul. As a result, the men of Lemnos decided to repudiate their wives in favor of pretty and relatively odor-free slave-girls imported from Thrace. In revenge, the Lemnian women wrought havoc, killing every man they could get their hands on—not only those who'd broken their vows, but any and every male, presumably children too.

The name given to the sailors of the Argo

Argonauts

What constellation did the golden sheep become?

Aries

Why do modern and ancient story tellers often add and subtract Heracles from the Argo mission?

As a demigod (son of Zeus and a mortal) he elevates the prestige of any quest just by being there but it creates a weird power issue coz Heracles would by definition be the leader

Who helps Jason build his ship?

Athena

Stymphalian birds

Bronze quill-throwing, man-eating birds with poisonous dung Heracles shot most birds as his 6th labor for Eurystheus, King of Tiryns/Argos (depending on author) Surviving birds made a new home on an island in the Black Sea where the Argonauts ran into them These pets of Ares with brass claws and sharp metallic feathers they were able to launch at their victims, were eradicated by Hercules in his sixth labor.

What generation did the Argonauts preside in?

Came from the heroic generation BEFORE THE TROJAN WAR

Who does Aeson and his wife send Jason to?

Chiron the centaur

Where is Jason exiled to?

Corinth

How did the Argo make it through the symplaglades?

Expert timing and help from the magic oak navigator, which locks the cliffs in position and making the seaway safe for all sailors

How does Jason get the fleece eventually?

He gives Medea's sleeping potion to the fleece's guardian dragon

How does Jason defeat the Spartoi?

He throws a rock at them, so the Spartoi, not knowing who did it, turn on each other until all die

Who does Medea leave Colchis with (other than Jason)?

Her brother Absyrtus/Apsyrtus

Who does Jason carry across the river and what does this person do?

Hera She reveals her divinity and promises to watch over Jason as he has proven he is a brave young man

What does the golden fleece do?

It is a defense talisman that protects the owner's kingdom and bring healing and prosperity

Argo

Jason's ship

Pelias

Jason's uncle; stole Jason's throne; sent Jason on quest for Golden Fleece; killed by Medea

What happens when Jason asks for the fleece?

King Aeetes agrees only if he accomplishes impossible tasks

What does Medea give to Jason to help him?

Magic ointment to protect from bulls' fiery blasts so he can yoke them

How is Talos defeated?

Medea makes a rock fall on his vulnerable spot, the vein in the back of his ankle, so he bleeds to death

Hypsipyle

Queen of Lemnos where the women killed all the men on the island. Has an affair with Jason. A distraction from his journey. His first conquest as a hero.

Why does Medea have to leave Colchis?

She betrayed her father, King Aeetes She is no longer morally pure

Apollonius of Rhodes

Third century B.C. author of the Argonautica; his poetry reflects the Hellenistic aesthetic of minute descriptions and complicated characters Virgil greatly respected him, since he was very influential to other thinkers of the ancient world

Epithet

an adjective or descriptive phrase expressing a quality characteristic of the person or thing mentioned.

Talos

bronze robot who protects Crete

Chthonic

concerning, belonging to, or inhabiting the underworld

Aeson

father of Jason, king of Iolcus.

Hecate

goddess of magic, witchcraft, necromancy, has great herbal knowledge A chthonic associated with the Underworld, death, decay, and is very powerful often shown having 3 female faces (young, middle-aged, and old)

King Aeetes

king of Colchis; son of Helios and Perseis (an Oceanid), brother to Circe and Pasiphae, father of Medea

Hylas

lover and companion to Heracles, is sent to get water is so handsome that the river nymphs drag him down into the water to be their pet but he drowns kidnapped by nymphs, Hercules goes to find him and does not go back to the Argo

Symplagades

rock cliffs that opened and crashed closed and most ships got crushed

Phineus

ruler of Trace and a great seer who revealed too much to humans Zeus punished him by blinding him and leaving him on an island and tables of delicious food that harpies always grabbed before he could ever eat Jason and the Argonauts chase the harpies away and Phineus gives them hints to safely reach Colchis

Spartoi

sown men

Origin of the golden fleece

the gods gave a prince and princess a GOLDEN SHEEP the sheep was sacrificed to Zeus The sheep underwent catasterism The sheep turned into the constellation Aries

Argonautica

the most popular of several versions of the Golden Fleece myth 400 years after Homer (~300 BC)

Necromancy

the supposed practice of communicating with the dead, especially in order to predict the future

Catasterism

transformation into a heavenly body / a star or constellation