"The House of Atreus."

Essay by naturesclari06High School, 12th gradeA, November 2005

download word file, 2 pages 5.0

Downloaded 21 times

Essay Test;

In this essay I will explain the following concepts:

- What is the House of Atreus?

- Who was involved?

- What happened?

- Literature Examples

________________________________________

What is the House of Atreus?

The royal house of Atreus is one of the most well known and ill-fated families in Greek and Roman mythology. Furthermore, some key members of this family include; Tantalus, Niobe, Menelaus, and Agamemnon and his children. These characters of Greek mythology were haunted by their arrogance and self guilt for many generations. The royal house of Atreus is referred to in some classic novels such as The Odyssey and The Aneid

What Happened?

For generations, a curse was suspended above the house of Atreus. It was started by Tantalus, son of Zeus, who was favored among the gods. He was the only mortal allowed to dine with the gods on Mount Olympus. However, Tantalus' appreciation of this privilege was atrocious.

He took advantage of the gods by stealing their nectar and sharing the secrets he was told with other mortals. Even so, his worst act was far more tragic. This act was the killing of his son.

Tantalus hated the gods and wanted to test the wisdom of the Olympian gods. He thus invited them to his house for dinner. For the main dish, Tantalus had his son, Pelops, killed and cooked in a stew. His intention was to expose the gods as cannibals and reveal his own wisdom. Unaware of Tantalus' plan the gods arrived for dinner and sat patiently, waiting for the food to be served. When the gods set eyes on the plates of food they knew what was before them and they were horrified, except Demeter. In a as she was grieving for her daughter, she was oblivious...