A complete notes from 2024 CLA204H1F Online Asynchronous course from University of Toronto St. George. Notes of every lecture including what's on the slides and important points which professor covers.
Week 2: CLA204 Hesiod, the Birth of the Gods, and the Generations of Mankind
Sep 9-14, 2024
Hesiod
• Earliest Greek author: 750-700BC
• Wrote two epic poems in Dactylic Hexameter (a meter of epic poetry)
o The Theogony and the Works and Days
o The Shield of Herakles (but people say its written by another poet)
o Distinctive personality from his work: Poet is present in his poem as a
narrator and is a character in his own poetry
§ However all the information regarding this poet character (Hesiod)
may be a fictive character
o Likely a wealthy farmer
§ Where it was an agricultural society with wealthy land holding farmers
§ Boeotia, with Mt. Helicon where the Muses were said to live
Historical Context – 8th Century Greece
• 800BC-700BC: Emerging from the Dark Ages
o Expansion in population, increase in urbanization, increase in trade of foreign
goods, mobility around the Mediterranean
o Expanded mythology as increase in movement, mobility and traveling
§ Anxiety in coming to a new land, meeting new people
o Wealthy, independent land-owning farmers make up the privileged class
§ Had political sway
o Chieftains hold powers and consensus
§ Democracies
o Transhumant pastoralism continues to be importance to economy that time
o Written texts and Greek alphabet emerge
§ Nestor’s Cup: earliest known Greek writing are lines from a scene
from poetry
Travelling Bards and Poetic Festivals
• Aoidos – singers/poets who travel around and perform songs/poems
• After 8th century, emergence of sanctuaries, began performing for open public
religious festivals
• Mobility of poets – to perform and compete in a poetic festival
, o Spread of myth in Mediterranean, transform and modified through festivals
across
Theogony – Genealogy (or family tree) of the gods
• Epic poem giving an aetiological explanation about the birth of the universe and the
gods
• Describes the wars and cooperation that creates the 12 Olympian gods today
o Hesiod’s version of Theogony
• Familial relationships of the gods in Greek pantheon were viewed in early
o Who’s oZspring by who
o Who’s parents is who
The Theogony
• Invocation: Calls for inspiration from the gods or the muses in the beginning and the
end: hallmark of epic poetry
o Marks the religious nature of poetry
• Hesiod as a shepherd – fictional persona or real?
o Describes himself as one of the pastoral poets, known to be a divinely
inspired poet
• Muses gives Hesiod a laurel staZ (plant associated Apollo related to muses and
music)
o Connotation: a symbol of poetic authority & chosen one to this power of
poet (creates a character of being a reputative and gifted as the the Muses
entrusting the power of poetic)
• Ambiguity towards myth: warning towards the audiences: “we are accustomed to
speak when we wish to, the literal truth, too” [line 26]
o Muses and gods may give wrong vision of the world
Birth of the Muses
• Mother is Titan Mnemosyne (memory), father is Zeus, slept together for 9 nights and
bore the 9 muses
o Patrons of the arts
§ All has its own art
o Their roles & role of art:
§ Born to give respite from woe and as a means of forgetting
§ bestowing mortal race escape/relief through their art
The benefits of buying summaries with Stuvia:
Guaranteed quality through customer reviews
Stuvia customers have reviewed more than 700,000 summaries. This how you know that you are buying the best documents.
Quick and easy check-out
You can quickly pay through credit card or Stuvia-credit for the summaries. There is no membership needed.
Focus on what matters
Your fellow students write the study notes themselves, which is why the documents are always reliable and up-to-date. This ensures you quickly get to the core!
Frequently asked questions
What do I get when I buy this document?
You get a PDF, available immediately after your purchase. The purchased document is accessible anytime, anywhere and indefinitely through your profile.
Satisfaction guarantee: how does it work?
Our satisfaction guarantee ensures that you always find a study document that suits you well. You fill out a form, and our customer service team takes care of the rest.
Who am I buying these notes from?
Stuvia is a marketplace, so you are not buying this document from us, but from seller niinasakon. Stuvia facilitates payment to the seller.
Will I be stuck with a subscription?
No, you only buy these notes for $4.64. You're not tied to anything after your purchase.
