Study of Genre Introduction Genres make up many different forms of writing by putting together conventions that each genre

of writing has. Complex writings are broken down into smaller conventions or expectations that allow a reader or writer to determine the genre of the text. By understanding genre, one can understand how many writings work or are why they are written the way they are. Some of the conventions include forming certain relationships with the reader or writer by using certain context. I will be studying the genre of mythological Greek writing, in doing so I will find what kind of connections the writers of the myths try to make with the people of the time of the writings, and how their writing influences their lives. Greek myths are usually not well known because of the belief being little to none anymore, so the people that were influenced by writings such as these were ancient Greeks. The main reasons that the gods were created was to give belief of higher beings helping the humans through various ways, each god having their own area in normal life to control or influence. Purpose The main purpose of Greek myths is to influence the people of Ancient Greece to live their life in a certain way to will live up to the gods expectations. Generally there is one god for one big part of life; these parts come in various shapes and sizes. Some being; love, death, heaven, sea, and war. Although the Greeks had many different gods to please and ask for help, I will be talking about the five most important and well known gods, and how they influence the lives of the ancient Greeks.

Stories Poseidon Poseidon played a large role in the Trojan War. Laomedon, the king of Troy, asked Poseidon and Apollo to help them by building a great wall surrounding their city in return for payment. When the two gods finished the wall a year later the king refused to pay and angered the gods. Apollo was satisfied after inflicting a plague on the town, but Poseidon held grudges. Poseidon would go out of his way to afflict the city of Troy in any way he could due to their kings dishonesty. Poseidon is known for holding grudged and switching sides very often, like the sea, he is powerful, changeable, and treacherous. Zeus Although Zeus was known to not be too fond of humans, he sometimes softens his feelings towards them. He would go down to Earth and roam about in his human disguise speaking with random people he meets. One of the more known occasions is of his meeting with Philemon and Baucis. Although they were poor, they treated him with great kindness. They chose to kill their last goose in order to feed him for dinner that evening. When he saw their great kindness he showed his true self and told the couple that he would grant them long life for their kindness. When they died he turned them into great oak trees that stood in front of his temple. Athena Athena played a part in many stories, one of the most known is the story of her and Odysseus. Being the goddess of cunning intelligence and wisdom, she helped create the outcomes of many wars. In the war against Troy, she gave the idea to Odysseus of building a giant wooden horse,

the Trojan horse. With this they were able to infiltrate Troy and storm the city which leads to the fall of Troy. Hera Hera was said to be the most important goddess for women. Hera gave women fertility, blessed their marriages, protected their children, and helped with their financial security. She was the figurehead for all Greek women and was treated as such. Hera was said to be amazingly beautiful to represent all women. Although she had many mishaps with her own marriage and children, she still protected all of the human women. Hades Hades was used by the Greeks as a symbol of the epitome of fear and terror. The Greeks would do their best to abide by the laws and the gods wishes so that they would not end up in the underworld with Hades. He was almost like a modern day Grim Reaper. By instilling fear into the mortals, they treated each other well and followed the rules that were given to them. Context Although the Greek god Zeus did not really influence what happened on earth to the humans, he was in charge of how the other gods were to deal with the humans interactions and how the other gods dealt with each other. There are many stories that tell of Zeus coming to earth and interfering with their affairs, but his main purpose towards them is unclear. Although there are many stories that tell of him coming down to earth to check on humans. Often when he was treated kindly in his human disguise he would bless the humans that treated him so with

immortality. With this in mind many Greeks are influenced to be kind to anyone around them, even if they are strangers. Zeus acts as a neutral god that helps both humans and gods. One of the most well-known gods in all of the stories is Poseidon, god of the sea. The Greeks would always go out of their way to attempt to please Poseidon so that they would have a safe journey over the sea. Eventually he was known as the god of sea and earthquakes, so with the power to influence the lives of many people, he received many prayers and sacrifices to quell his anger. When the Greeks prayed to him and gave him sacrifices it calmed their thoughts about having to deal with the sea, if they made Poseidon happy they didnt have to worry about their voyage. Athena, the goddess of wisdom and protector of craftsmen, helped the people of Greece by creating defensive military weapons to aid them in war. Athena is less known than Poseidon because she isnt as sought after in the normal life of an ancient Greek. Although she helped them with certain military advances and other things, she did not influence a normal Greeks life as much as other gods. She was one of the gods that get less recognition but was still around for parts of life. Gods are not limited to helping all humans. Hera, goddess of love and marriage only helped women. By praying to Hera a womans marriage was blessed and her children were protected. This lessens the duty and stress that a mother had to worry about which in turn calmed the mothers down and allowed them to put all effort towards their families. On the other end of the spectrum, Hades is a god that people feared. Hades represented the grim reaper in Greek myths and is a story that they all knew. With the fear of going to the

underworld when one dies, people tried to change their identity and be great people, to maybe gain the possibility of becoming an immortal and not end up going to the underworld. Conventions Many of the stories that were told in ancient Greek times were often created by various different people. Some writers would have different ways of telling the stories and often times were told in completely different context than most stories. Although they were written differently, most of them still had conventions used to meld the stories together and create the vision of the gods. Some of the conventions used in the majority of the writings I found were, Family Conflict between Gods Grudges being held towards humans or other Gods Half-bloods being killed and angering Gods Sacrifice for the sake of making the Gods happy Half-bloods solving issues on Earth Human Heroes becoming immortal Grave punishment for disobeying the Gods rule

Many times some of these conventions lead to another convention and started a chain reaction that in turn made room for more stories to be told. They all link together at some points and can be put together to create a large story of the entire lives of the Gods and the Greeks.

Conclusion As it turns out, the genre of Greek Mythology is very repetitive. There can always be new monsters, or dilemmas that can be churned out, but the stories always go the same. By having so many similar conventions the writers of the myths can easily make a story with anything they want in it, as long as it has a slight amount of the norms. As long as the writer catches the audiences attention, the story works out and becomes a myth known by many.

Works Cited "Athena - Ancient Greek Goddess." Athena - Ancient Greek Goddess. University Press, 11 Dec. 2003. Web. 11 Dec. 2013. Conner, Nancy, PhD. "Classical Mythology." Poseidon and the Trojans. Netplaces, 11 Dec. 2007. Web. 11 Dec. 2013. Hades." Villains Wiki. Mesektet, 11 Dec. 2005. Web. 11 Dec. 2013. "The Story of Hera." The Story of Hera. The God and Goddess, 10 Dec. 2007. Web. 10 Dec. 2013. "Zeus." Ancient Greek God. University Press, 11 Dec. 2003. Web. 11 Dec. 2013.