Zeus
Zeus is a very complex God who rules over the immortals as well as the mortals of the universe. Since he is not the creator of the universe, as explained in Hesiod’s Theogony: “In the beginning there was only Chaos, the Abyss, / But then Gaia, the Earth, came into being.”, Zeus must overthrow the Titans, including his father Cronus, in order to fulfill the destiny fated upon him. In fact, the destinies of Cronus and Zeus contain one similar aspect: both will be overthrown by a child who will take over his rule. For Cronus, he tries to prevent this from occurring by eating all of his offspring. When the time comes to swallow Zeus, Cronus is tricked into swallowing a rock resembling his young son. As for Zeus, he performs a similar act as Cronus. Acting on the advice of Gaea and Uranus, Zeus stuffs his daughter Athena back into his stomach so that Zeus would remain the leader of the immortals. With this act, Zeus begins his ascent to becoming the supreme ruler of the immortals by populating the universe with his own offspring, in essence, becoming the “Father” of the Olympians. Although Zeus is the father to many of the Olympian Gods, and even to some mortals who later become heroes, Hesiod does not view the term “father” to represent Zeus’s paternal bond with his offspring. According to Classical Mythology by Harris and Platzner, “Zeus is the father in his role as ruler of the divine patriarchy, protector and defender of the cosmic order.” This is evident in Hesiod’s Theogony when he describes the Muses gift to men:
The people
All look to him as he arbitrates settlements
With judgments straight. He speaks out in sure tones
And soon puts an end even to bitter disputes.
A sound-minded ruler, when someone is wronged,
Sets things to rights in the public assembly,
Conciliating both sides with ease.
He comes to the meeting place propitiated as a god,
Treated with respect, preeminent in the crowd.
Although Hesiod does not attribute these qualities directly to Zeus, it is with these qualities that Zeus maintains order within the universe. Instead of using violence like his father Cronus, Zeus rules by persuasion to provide order and stability.
When persuasion does not work for Zeus, he resorts to reminding the Gods of his omnipotence and omniscience. For example, when Zeus vehemently warns the Gods not to assist either side during the Trojan War, he speaks with such great force that the Gods are left silent. Midway through his warning, Zeus threatens them: “You may learn then how far my power/ puts all gods to shame.” He ends his stern lecture to the Gods by stating: “That is how far I overwhelm you all,/ both gods and men.” Another example of Zeus’s all powerful, all knowing nature is when he brings back his three brothers from the underground during the battle with the Titans. After telling his brothers: “You have come back from your cruel dungeon/ Returned by my will from the moldering gloom.”,Zeus’s omnipotence and omniscience is reaffirmed by his brother Kottos: “Divine One, what a thing to say. We already realize/ That your thoughts are supreme, your mind surpassing, That you saved the Immortals from war’s cold light.”
Even though Zeus sees himself as all powerful and all knowing, he definitely has a difficult time trying to control the actions of both the immortals and mortals. He wants to control everything and maintain an orderly societal structure, but many Gods and even mortals challenge his supreme authority. Prometheus, for example, gives the gift of fire to mortals by stealing it from Zeus. Angered by this act, Zeus creates women, Pandora, to be a curse for mortal men. Even Zeus’s own wife Hera confronts him about his dealings with Thetis: “Who is it this time, schemer? Who has you ear?/ How fond you are of secret plans, of taking decisions privately!” While Zeus has his moments where his power is challenged, there are times when Zeus is powerless to do anything. Zeus seems perplexed that mortals do not heed the advice bestowed upon them by the Gods. Since the mortals refuse to listen, they experience more problems than what is necessary: “Mortals! They are always blaming the gods/ For their troubles, when their own witlessness/ Causes them more than they were destined for!” In regards to destiny, this is an interesting concept within Zeus’s rule. Since he delegated the duty of destiny to Moirae, the three fates: “And the Moirai, whom wise Zeus gave honor supreme:/ Klotho, Lakhesis, and Atropos, who assign/ To mortal men the good and evil they have.”, Zeus can only blame himself for his inabilities to control the actions of mortals. Zeus’s power is limited to maintaining the balance between good and evil within the universe. Therefore, it is up to the mortals to make the correct decisions in order to live a balanced life. Knowing his limitations regarding his power over mortals, Zeus seems to let all others believe that he controls what happens to the mortals, evidenced by his use of the scales to decide the fate of them during the Trojan War: “Therein/ the destinies of death’s long pain he set/ for Trojan horsemen and Akhaian soldiers/ and held the scales up by midpoint. Slowly/ one pan sank with death’s day for Akhaians.” This display seems like an act Zeus contrives to further prove his omnipotence in the universe.
For all of the limitations of Zeus’s omnipotence and omniscience, he is a fair ruler when it is time to deliver judgments. He upholds the divine law; those who perform good acts are rewarded while those who perform bad acts are punished. When Prometheus steals fire from Zeus and gives it to the mortals, Zeus feels this act narrows the gap between the immortals and mortals. – (Lecture) Prometheus is punished for his bad act. Another example of Zeus’s fair justice centers on the issue of his sons Hermes and Apollo. In this instance, Zeus does not take the side of either son, even though he knows that Hermes is not being very honest about the whereabouts of Apollo’s cattle: “Zeus laughed aloud seeing his child wise in evil/ Denying well and with cunning all knowledge concerning the cattle.” With Zeus not choosing sides in a battle that could jeopardize a relationship with one of his sons, he allows them to eventually come to a remedy on their own. Zeus also upholds the guest-host relationship that is vital for societal order and structure. A visitor who enters someone else’s homeland or domicile should show respect to the host. Those who do not should be punished for their misdeeds. Many examples throughout the myths solidify Zeus’s position on this matter. One example is the Trojans’ fate to lose the war being determined because of Paris’ abduction of Helen, the wife of King Menelaus of Sparta. Another example is involves Odysseus’s return to Ithaca to kill the suitors who are not respecting the homeland of the former king. Lastly, since Odysseus’s crew decides to kill Heilio’s cattle while staying on his island, their punishment results in the destruction of the crew and left Odysseus floating on some timbers left over from his sunken ship.http://www.oppapers.com/essays/Zeus/207276
The people
All look to him as he arbitrates settlements
With judgments straight. He speaks out in sure tones
And soon puts an end even to bitter disputes.
A sound-minded ruler, when someone is wronged,
Sets things to rights in the public assembly,
Conciliating both sides with ease.
He comes to the meeting place propitiated as a god,
Treated with respect, preeminent in the crowd.
Although Hesiod does not attribute these qualities directly to Zeus, it is with these qualities that Zeus maintains order within the universe. Instead of using violence like his father Cronus, Zeus rules by persuasion to provide order and stability.
When persuasion does not work for Zeus, he resorts to reminding the Gods of his omnipotence and omniscience. For example, when Zeus vehemently warns the Gods not to assist either side during the Trojan War, he speaks with such great force that the Gods are left silent. Midway through his warning, Zeus threatens them: “You may learn then how far my power/ puts all gods to shame.” He ends his stern lecture to the Gods by stating: “That is how far I overwhelm you all,/ both gods and men.” Another example of Zeus’s all powerful, all knowing nature is when he brings back his three brothers from the underground during the battle with the Titans. After telling his brothers: “You have come back from your cruel dungeon/ Returned by my will from the moldering gloom.”,Zeus’s omnipotence and omniscience is reaffirmed by his brother Kottos: “Divine One, what a thing to say. We already realize/ That your thoughts are supreme, your mind surpassing, That you saved the Immortals from war’s cold light.”
Even though Zeus sees himself as all powerful and all knowing, he definitely has a difficult time trying to control the actions of both the immortals and mortals. He wants to control everything and maintain an orderly societal structure, but many Gods and even mortals challenge his supreme authority. Prometheus, for example, gives the gift of fire to mortals by stealing it from Zeus. Angered by this act, Zeus creates women, Pandora, to be a curse for mortal men. Even Zeus’s own wife Hera confronts him about his dealings with Thetis: “Who is it this time, schemer? Who has you ear?/ How fond you are of secret plans, of taking decisions privately!” While Zeus has his moments where his power is challenged, there are times when Zeus is powerless to do anything. Zeus seems perplexed that mortals do not heed the advice bestowed upon them by the Gods. Since the mortals refuse to listen, they experience more problems than what is necessary: “Mortals! They are always blaming the gods/ For their troubles, when their own witlessness/ Causes them more than they were destined for!” In regards to destiny, this is an interesting concept within Zeus’s rule. Since he delegated the duty of destiny to Moirae, the three fates: “And the Moirai, whom wise Zeus gave honor supreme:/ Klotho, Lakhesis, and Atropos, who assign/ To mortal men the good and evil they have.”, Zeus can only blame himself for his inabilities to control the actions of mortals. Zeus’s power is limited to maintaining the balance between good and evil within the universe. Therefore, it is up to the mortals to make the correct decisions in order to live a balanced life. Knowing his limitations regarding his power over mortals, Zeus seems to let all others believe that he controls what happens to the mortals, evidenced by his use of the scales to decide the fate of them during the Trojan War: “Therein/ the destinies of death’s long pain he set/ for Trojan horsemen and Akhaian soldiers/ and held the scales up by midpoint. Slowly/ one pan sank with death’s day for Akhaians.” This display seems like an act Zeus contrives to further prove his omnipotence in the universe.
For all of the limitations of Zeus’s omnipotence and omniscience, he is a fair ruler when it is time to deliver judgments. He upholds the divine law; those who perform good acts are rewarded while those who perform bad acts are punished. When Prometheus steals fire from Zeus and gives it to the mortals, Zeus feels this act narrows the gap between the immortals and mortals. – (Lecture) Prometheus is punished for his bad act. Another example of Zeus’s fair justice centers on the issue of his sons Hermes and Apollo. In this instance, Zeus does not take the side of either son, even though he knows that Hermes is not being very honest about the whereabouts of Apollo’s cattle: “Zeus laughed aloud seeing his child wise in evil/ Denying well and with cunning all knowledge concerning the cattle.” With Zeus not choosing sides in a battle that could jeopardize a relationship with one of his sons, he allows them to eventually come to a remedy on their own. Zeus also upholds the guest-host relationship that is vital for societal order and structure. A visitor who enters someone else’s homeland or domicile should show respect to the host. Those who do not should be punished for their misdeeds. Many examples throughout the myths solidify Zeus’s position on this matter. One example is the Trojans’ fate to lose the war being determined because of Paris’ abduction of Helen, the wife of King Menelaus of Sparta. Another example is involves Odysseus’s return to Ithaca to kill the suitors who are not respecting the homeland of the former king. Lastly, since Odysseus’s crew decides to kill Heilio’s cattle while staying on his island, their punishment results in the destruction of the crew and left Odysseus floating on some timbers left over from his sunken ship.http://www.oppapers.com/essays/Zeus/207276