G10CC Ancient Greek & Chinese Poetry

Ancient Greeks loved stories. But what makes a myth different from folktales and legends? Select the correct definition of a myth.

• It originates in local culture and was passed on by word of mouth.

• It concerns the early history of a people, and involves supernatural beings or events.

• It is regarded as historical, though many of the details may have been invented/exaggerated.

Hesiod's Theogony explores many themes. Match the key terms to their definition.

• a story of the various offspring

• theogony

• when younger gods overthrow the elder

• chaos monster

• a story of the origins of the gods

• succession myth

• a creature  symbolising nature

• cosmogony

• an account of the origin of the universe

• genealogy

In Greek mythology, the cosmos and the gods emerged in a specific sequence. Below are some of the primordial entities and deities. Can you arrange them in the correct order of their origin, starting from the very beginning?

• Ouranos

• Zeus

• Kronos

• Chaos

• Gaia

Why would rhapsodes begin their poems with an invocation to the Muses?

Select all answers that apply.

• To show respect to the gods.

• To create a supernatural and suspenseful atmosphere.

• To give time to think about where they are going to start.

• To provide a signal to the audience that he is about to start.

Below are the names of five of the nine Muses and their respective domains of inspiration.

Match each Muse to her correct discipline.

• Euterpe

• Love Poetry

• Polyhymnia

• Dance and Choral Song

• Terpsichore

• Epic Poetry

• Calliope

• Music and Lyric Poetry

• Erato

• Sacred Hymns

In the opening lines of Theogony, Hesiod invokes the Muses, calling them the daughters of Mnemosyne (Memory). What is the significance of memory in the context of the poem’s introduction?

• It emphasizes the importance of remembering the achievements of mortal heroes

• It suggests that memory is only relevant for recounting past events, with no bearing on the future

• It highlights the Muses’ role in assisting mortals with agricultural and practical knowledge

• It connects poetic tradition to the preservation and transmission of divine and cosmic knowledge

In the opening line of the Theogony, Hesiod describes the Muses dancing around springs and altars, bathing in sacred waters, and veiled in mist. What do these actions symbolize?

• Their dominance over the Olympian gods.

• Their connection to the purity, renewal, and mystery of divine inspiration.

• Their role as protectors of mortals during times of war.

• Their duty to bring justice and fairness to mortals.

What is the Homeric question? It concerns the doubts and debate over ...

Select all answers that apply.

• the identity of Homer

• the authorship of the Iliad and Odyssey

• the textual transmission of the poems

• the historicity of the poems

When were Homeric poems composed?

• ca. 1100-1000 BC, at the end of the Mycenaean period

• between ca. 1000-800 BC, during the Dark Ages

• ca. 750 BC, at the beginning of the Iron Age

Below are five key events related to the development and transmission of the Homeric poems. They are listed out of order. Arrange them in the correct chronological order.

• Collapse of Mycenaean culture and disappearance of Linear B writing

• Widespread dissemination of the poems due to the growth of the Athenian book trade

• Earliest alphabetic inscriptions in verse appear in Greece

• Oral composition of the Iliad and Odyssey

• Homeric poems divided into 24 books by Hellenistic scholars