Title Greek Mythology: Fear of the Unknown The ancient Greeks lived in an influential and creative time. Music filled the streets, sculptures towered over the city, and masterpieces hung on the walls everywhere. The education of children led to the birth of great philosophers in the future. This city-state was thriving and is today known as one of the most advanced ancient civilizations. As progressive as these people unfortunately were, they were held back by their own beliefs. The fear of a violent hurricane controlled by Poseidon or one of Zeus' deadly thunderbolts left people scared that these horrible things might happen to them, which made it much easier to follow the lessons of the stories than to think for themselves. When the consequences were so deadly why not follow the rules? The gods were a great way to describe what was happening around them. It was a simpler explanation than a scientific equation. The Greeks were not encouraged to think for themselves, but were rather expected to follow the lessons of myths about love, character traits, and the afterlife. The ancient Greeks grew up with stories of cursed lovers and mortals condemned for falling in love with immortals. Love was a dangerous thing in Greece and falling in love with the wrong person could spell disaster. A great example of punishment for falling in love is Cupid and Psyche. Venus was so jealous of Psyche's beauty that she tried to cast a spell on her and make her fall in love with a horrible beast (Hamilton, 97). When that didn't work, he made her perform impossible tasks (Hamilton, 102). Hera is another pixie... middle of paper... who believes in Gods/Goddesses and that they have complete control over every part of their lives. The stories children grew up with made them fearful of deities and going against them was very scary. The stories were guides on how to live, such as not being greedy, standing by your family, respecting the gods, and much more. In Greek culture it was very important to live by these moral codes. From early times people were almost “brainwashed” by their own religion to follow the “rules” otherwise terrible things would happen. Even though their city was so progressive and prosperous, they were held back because of their religion. Instead of knowing the science, it was easier to assume that a more powerful power controlled the climate or the harvest. They could never think for themselves because they constantly relied on the Gods to think for them.