Just godly things
An adjective or descriptive phrase given in addition to or instead of the name of a hero or a god.
What is an epithet?
What is kleos?
The scholarly debate over the authorship of the Iliad and the Odyssey, which can be roughly divided into analysts vs. unitarians.
What is the Homeric question?
An explanation in myth, often for the establishment of a cult or religious ritual, or for a natural phenomenon such as the seasons. Charter myths are a subset of this.
What is aetiology?
Literally, a fight with a god, occurring sometimes in epic poetry
What is a theomachy?
The primary focus of Hesiod's Theogony, this is the tale of the generational struggle that establishes order among the gods and in the world.
What is a succession myth?
The (often divinely-inspired) pinnacle of a hero's achievement in war, this is a rampage that often ends with a hubristic attack on gods.
What is an aristeia?
An extended analogy comparing something in a narrative to something familiar to its audience, often nature, animal behavior, weather, or common lived experience.
What is an epic simile?
A framework for analyzing myths with shared featured or themes across cultures, possibly pointing to universal truths, common origins, and/or cultural contact?
What is comparative mythology?
A battle with Titans, such as the 10 year struggle featured in Hesiod's Theogony.
What is a titanomachy?
The appearance of specific objects, images, scenes, and/or attributes that indicate the identity or circumstances of the figures within it.
What is iconography?
Literally "guest/stranger friendship," this custom and value refers to ideal treatment of visitors and may involve offering libations or exchanging gifts.
What is xenia?
Sometimes part of an epic simile or ekphrasis, this feature is a story within a story.
What is an embedded narrative?
A blending of mythological stories, gods, and practices from different sources into one.
What is syncretism?
Having the power to avert evil or bad luck.
What is apotropaic?
Like the Greek gods, having mostly human characteristics.
What is anthropomorphism?
Literally "seeing from the walls," this term refers to an epic type scene in which characters view the action from the city walls.
What is teichoscopia?
A name for the first 4 books of the Odyssey, which focus not on the eponymous hero, but on his son.
What is the Telemachy?
This site in modern Turkey, most famously "excavated" by Heinrich Schliemann, has been identified by some as the inspiration or basis for Homer's Troy.
What is Hisarlik?
The head of Medusa featured on Athena's aegis and other armor.
What is a Gorgoneion?
Not to be confused with the name of a temple in Rome, this term describes the group of Greek gods (often 12 primary deities).
What is the Greek pantheon?
An extended and detailed literary description of any object, real or imaged, which tends to pause the larger narrative.
What is ekphrasis?
The poetic meter of epic poetry which features a combination of six dactyls and/or spondees (types of poetic 'feet').
What is dactylic hexameter?
An institution for worship to specific gods with secret initiation rites and rituals, focusing on one god (not to exclusion of others) and sometimes promoting hope for the afterlife or underworld.
What is a Mystery Cult?
A place beneath the underworld for confinement and punishment, with residents such as the Titans, Sisyphus, and Tantalus.
What is Tartarus?