Greek Heroes: The Superheroes of Antiquity
In Greek mythology, heroes are demigods, meaning they were heroes born from the union of a god and a human. They possessed superhuman abilities and accomplishments, which led to them being surrounded by the reverence of ancient Greeks. What exact role did they play in their lives? Despite the difficulty in believing this, science has been trying unsuccessfully to answer these questions for almost two centuries.
The main difficulty lies in the fact that the word “hero” meant two entirely different things for the Greeks. On one hand, a hero was a character from the grand stories of Greek mythology, and on the other hand, Greeks called any respectable deceased person a “hero.” Many Greek families during the times of Demosthenes or Alexander the Great honored their ancestors, such as fathers or grandfathers, as “heroes.” The fundamental problem is the connection between these two categories. What linked Achilles or Heracles with an ordinary “Smith” (let’s say Zenon, Dexippus, or another average Athenian)? However, let’s start from the beginning.
The Myth of Heracles
An example of a Greek hero is Heracles. Perhaps the most dramatic scene involving a Greek hero took place in Trachis. Jealous Deianira offered her husband a robe soaked in the blood of the centaur Nessus, whom she suspected of infidelity. This gift…
