Athena

Below is a short sample of the essay Athena. If you sign up you could be reading the rest of this essay in under two minutes. Registered users should login to view the essay.

Athena

Back in time when Greece was making its mark in history as one of the great
civilization of the Ancient World, there was a great deal of emphasis on the
Gods and Goddesses. To the Greeks the world was governed by the Gods and they
were the reason many things happened in the world, mostly thing that where
unexplainable. The goddess Athena was one of the many gods or goddesses that
played a large role in Greek mythology. Even though Athena was the patron saint
of Athens she supported other Greeks outside of Athens, such as, Achilles,
Orestes, and especially Odysseus (“Athena”-1). Athena is know to be the
goddess of war, guardian of cities, patroness of arts and crafts, and promoter
of wisdom (“Images of Women...”-1). Athena’s name actually came form the
Cretan and Mycenean name Athene which predates the Greeks by about 1,500 years
(Daly-20). The ending ‘-ene,’ was set aside for royalty and goddesses, like
Helene (Harris-4). She was also called by some Greeks as Pallas Athena. Not many
people know where the name Pallas came from. Some legends say she obtained it
from the giant Pallas that she killed in the war of the gods and giants
(Grant-Hazel 83). Another legend says that Athena accidentally killed her
childhood playmate Pallas. By taking Pallas’ in front of her own, Athena shows
the grief that she endured for the loss of her friend (Daly-20). Athena had such
an impact on the Greeks that the Romans adopted her and called her Minerva
(“Minerva”-1). The origins of Athena’s name is not the only discrepancy
that historians have had. The origin of where Athena came form is also a
discrepancy. Zeus feared that he would be overcome by a son greater than he born
from the intelligent Metis. To prevent this Zeus ate Metis. There for, Athena,
in the most common legend, was born fully grown out of Zeus’s head after
Hephaestus split it open with an ax. Another legend, this one form Crete, says
Athena was hidden in a cloud. Zeus hit his head on the cloud and caused Athena
to appear (Daly-20). Out of all the cities that Athena helped and protected
Athens claimed her as there own. The Atheans believed that the first king of
Athens, Erichthonius, was a descendant of Athena (Daly-20). Even though Poseidon
was greedy of earthy kingdoms, he challenged Athena for the city. The both of
them appeared before the court of gods and goddess to make a judgment. Poseidon
presented water to be of use to the Atheans. But the water was salty. Athena
presented the olive tree whic...

The complete article is about 1177 words and 4.71 pages long.

To continue reading the complete article, subscribe below and get free instant unlimited access.

Once you have registered for an Account, No refunds can be issued.
Please make sure you look over the site before you purchase an account!!!