Ares

In Greek mythology, Ares was the Greek god of War. The Roman parallel to Ares is named Mars. Ares was born to the king of the gods, Zeus, and the queen of the gods, Hera, although both of his parents disliked him. He had many children. Some mortal and some divine. The most notable of his children include Eros, Phobos, Deimos, Nike, and the Amazons. Ares was almost never mentioned in Greek mythology, but when he was, it was rarely pleasant for him. Since Ares represented the brutal and ugly side of war, and

Athena represented the strategic and honorary side of war, no one really liked Ares, mortal or immortal. The most infamous story of Ares is the story of Ares and Aphrodite. Ares was the lover of Aphrodite behind her husband, Hephaestus’s back. When Hephaestus found out about this, he created a device which trapped them both in bed allowing the other gods and goddesses to mock and punish them. Another popular story about Ares has to do with him and two giants. The giants tired of Ares constant wars

destroying their crops, so they scheme to capture Ares in a big brass jar. Eventually, after 13 months, the gods take notice of Ares absence and send Hermes, the messenger god, to go rescue him. Ares is not frequently depicted in modern-day entertainment (outside of Greek mythology documentaries) but two mainstream instances of him appearing are in the Classic Disney movie, Hercules, and in the DC universe Ares appears as the main antagonist in multiple Wonder Woman films. Ares was probably

the most hated of the twelve gods, but he still played an important role in Greek Mythology.

Sources Cited:

Revolvy, LLC. “‘Ares in Popular Culture’ on Revolvy.com.” Revolvy, www.revolvy.com/page/Ares-in-popular-culture. Accessed 7 Nov. 2018.

“Ares • Facts and Information on Greek God of War Ares.” Greek Gods & Goddesses, greekgodsandgoddesses.net/gods/ares/. Accessed 7 Nov. 2018.

Cox, William. “Ares Family History.” Prezi.com, 19 May 2015, prezi.com/jwttu4-jmln5/ares-family-history/. Accessed 7 Nov. 2018.