Preview

Comparing Odin And Zeus In Greek Mythology

Good Essays
Open Document
Open Document
435 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
Comparing Odin And Zeus In Greek Mythology
Odin and Zeus

In Greek and Norse mythology that took important roles as the foundation of today’s cultures are very similar yet different. They have many different traits and the way people wanted their gods to be. The two mythologies reflect the different ideologies. The similarities and the differences that stand out the most are between the god of all gods, Odin and Zeus.

The biggest similarity between Zeus and Odin is that each of them was the ruler of the Gods in Greek and Norse mythology. Zeus is the lord of sky and the supreme ruler of all Gods. Odin also is the leader of all Norse Gods. They both used thunder and had responsibilities towards the mankind, and were married to a goddess who was in charge of marriage. It is interesting how they also look alike. In the paintings of Zeus and Odin, they are both drawn to emphasize their
…show more content…
The Greek mythology was created to escape the horrors from the uncivilized world. Therefore the mood of the whole Greek mythology is mostly fairytale-like, blissful, and dreamy. Greeks also tried to discover explanation of their beings and how they came to be in their myths. On the other hand, the Morse mythology reflected more of the real world that they lived in. I was full of wars, blood and impending dooms. The stories are mainly gloomy and dark, full of sacrifices and deaths.

Odin and Zeus, representing the two mythologies, are extreme opposite to each other. Zeus, for example, was indestructible and was immortal like all the other gods in Greek mythology. Many stories suggest that he was a philanderer who fooled around with numerous human and Gods. He was depicted as a playful and a comical God. Odin however was destined to die and was strange, solemn, and detached from other Gods. Because he was destined to die, he had a continuous craving of knowledge, which he got at the price of one of his

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Satisfactory Essays

    Zeus was the god of the sky. He was ruled as king of the gods. He is the youngest in his family. Zeus’s name means “Shine” or “Sky”. He was respected as an allfather who was chief of the gods and assigned the others to their roles.…

    • 195 Words
    • 1 Page
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    In Anansi Boys by Neil Gaiman and Mythology by Edith Hamilton, there are many ways in which characters from both books are similar and different. One of the closest connections I saw was between Spider from Anansi Boys and Loki from Mythology. Their connection is very close because Spider and Loki did something abominable and they both paid for their actions through torture in two similar ways. It seems that Neil Gaiman modeled Spider after Loki because of their similar stories.…

    • 337 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Jeffrey Michel thor

    • 942 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Thor the god of thunder, is the blood-son of Odin, the universal father, and Jord. Father of the Asgardians, and Jord, who was also known as Gaea, the goddess who was one of the Elder Gods. Odin sought to father a son whose power would derive from both Asgard and Midgard (as the Earth realm is called by Asgardians), and hence he sought to mate with Jord. Odin created a cave in Norway where Jord gave birth to Thor.[1] Months after the infant Thor was weaned, Odin brought him to Asgard to be raised. Not until many decades later did Thor learn that Jord was his birth mother.…

    • 942 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Good Essays

    Dionysus Research Paper

    • 932 Words
    • 4 Pages

    According to Greek myth, the most powerful Olympian was Zeus. He was the god of the sky, lightning, thunder, and all other gods. He was married to his sister, Hera, however he had several children with many different goddesses and mortals. Some of his children include Apollo, Artemis, Aphrodite, Persephone, Ares, and Hephaestus. His symbols include a lightning bolt and an eagle.…

    • 932 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    The Norse Myths Summary

    • 372 Words
    • 2 Pages

    The Norse Myths by Kevin Crossley-Holland is a novel written towards students who have interests in the Norse Gods. The book is a compilation of stories told in Norse mythology. The stories range from Ragnarok to creation. This particular method of storytelling approaches to those who want to understand north mythology without reading lecture notes. Kevin Crossley-Holland appeals to his intended audience superbly. It flows more as a pleasure read than an assigned reading. As a student, I can say as part of the targeted audience that it is written well for students. Kevin Crossley-Holland himself obviously has a strong understanding of these myths. His notes in the book make the stories easy to understand the myths if you need clarification.…

    • 372 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Norse Gods Research Paper

    • 1478 Words
    • 6 Pages

    Odin was the king of Asgard and the ruler of Aesir he was also the lord of war, death and knowledge. Odin had two ravens Hugin and Munin, everyday he sent them to gather information. Whenever Odin travelled he rode on an eight-legged horse named Sleipnir and two wolves Geri and Freki also accompanied him.…

    • 1478 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    The Anglo- Saxons had Beowulf. The Greeks had Ulysses. The Americans had Paul Bunyan. Every culture has its own hero, and each hero has many different qualities that make them stand out from the rest. Beowulf is the representation of an Anglo- Saxon hero and Thor is the reflection of a modern day hero. Although both of these men are known as heroes they each possess different characteristics that allow them to gain this title. In the epic poem Beowulf and the modern film Thor, the hero reflects the values and traits of his culture.…

    • 1312 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    The Vikings had many legends and myths in their society. They believed in many gods and goddesses. Their gods had very distinct personalities that were like human personalities. The king of their gods was Odin. Thor and Frey were also very important gods. They had a place they called Valhalla where the Viking warriors believed they would go to start a new life if they were killed in battle. They had other gods and goddesses that were associated with agriculture, fertility, and other parts of their life.…

    • 606 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    The civilizations that lived during these two distinct periods in Greek history share many similarities in economic, social, and religious ideology. But culturally as well as politically they had very different structures and ideals.…

    • 759 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Zeus and Hera are the king and queen of the gods. Zeus gained his position on the throne from his father Kronos, whom he killed. Zeus is the god of thunder and lightning. He is considered the father of the mythological beings. Hera is the goddess of family. In many myths, she is seen as vindictive because she seeks revenge for her husband's constant…

    • 98 Words
    • 1 Page
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    Roman and Greek Gods

    • 1490 Words
    • 6 Pages

    It has been known that the Romans and the Greeks have had many interactions with each other, whether it would be due to trading or just plain traveling, the stories of their myths have crossed each other in one way or another. This is may be the reason why there are many similarities between Greek and Roman Mythology. Even though a Greek god or goddess may have a different name in Roman Mythology they still performed similar tasks and were worshiped for similar reasons. I will compare and contrast Greek gods with their Roman equivalences to see how similar they truly are to each other. Probably the most famous Greek god, Zeus, was the god of all gods. Born to Cronus and Rhea, he was the ruler of the sky, and had the power to create thunderstorms and lightning as well as earthquakes. As the story goes he overthrew his father, Cronus, and became the ruler of Mount Olympus to head the new line of Gods. Jupiter, also known as Jove, was very much like Zeus. He was the predominant power holder among the Roman Gods. According to Tripp, Jupiter is a "contraction of two words meaning ‘Heavenly Father.'"(Pg. 332) He ruled the sky, controlled all of the weather, and had thunderbolts as a weapon. Tripp also wrote "Jupiter's cult and his general character were, however, well established in Italy before the Greek religion became influential there." (Pg. 333) This implies that the idea of Zeus, Jupiter and Jove had very little influence on each other since they were created before the Greek myths and Roman myths had started to cross paths. Hera, the wife and sister of Zeus, was the goddess of marriage, childbirth, and the queen of the heavens. She gave birth to Ares, Hebe, and Eileithyia. She also gave birth to Hephaestus, but it has been believed that she bore him without the aid of Zeus. In Ovid's Metamorphoses, she was extremely jealous of the affairs that her husband had and she often tormented or harmed Zeus's mistresses. Juno, the feminine version of…

    • 1490 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    The Lord of the Rings and Odyssey are two very weird stories in my opinion. The two stories include several similarities. The most noteworthy similarity of the two that were in common was the use of themes. Both included similar themes such as, life, death,power, brotherly love, myth, temptation, and journey.…

    • 1538 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Good Essays

    Norse Mythology

    • 639 Words
    • 3 Pages

    The great philosopher Aristotle once said, “Men created gods after their own image, not only with regard to their form but with regard to their mode of life” and the Vikings or Norse-men of Scandinavia were perfect examples of this. In Norse mythology, powerful deities held the power to easily vanquish any threat that they came across. Odin, known as the most powerful god in Asgard, could blind, deafen, impair his enemies weapons, or simply speak a word that would extinguish flames, weaken waves or turn the wind. To a Viking, who sought nothing but destruction and subjugation, the idea of an effortless victory must have been enthralling. These Nords believed that their gods were capable of bestowing power that would enable them to overpower anything that stood in their way.…

    • 639 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    For ages now, humans have used mythology to help them understand life and why things are the way they are. Cultures from across the globe have created their own belief systems. The ancients had a way of telling great tales of immortals, beasts, and demigods. However, there was more to it than that. People devoted their lives to their religion and saw that it gave them purpose and meaning. Some of the most famous mythologies come from ancient democracies and empires such as Greece and Rome. Greek and Roman mythology is sometimes thought of as one in the same, but their differences have simply been overlooked. Both the Greeks and Romans had well-defined beliefs with similarities and differences, including time periods, mortals and worship, traits…

    • 884 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    There are many similarities that are found in between Roman and Greek Mythology. Both, Greek and Roman mythology are mostly influenced by Greeks myths and legends, then Italians, since Greek literature and myth occur before the Romans. This demonstrates why Roman myths have similar themes and myths as Greek Mythology. The twelve Olympian god/goddesses in Greek mythology are represented in Roman mythology, but with different names. Also, each god/goddess symbolize and power are similar in both mythologies. These similarities is what makes Greek and Roman mythology parallel to each other.…

    • 391 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays