cf. Thornton Wilder, The Bridge of San Luis Rey; movie version (2004)
I. Herakles ("Glory of Hera")/Hercules: the basics
a. mortal (mother Alcmena)/hero (cult)/god (father Zeus)
b. panhellenic hero (not just Dorians)
c. problems (what else) at Thebes: kills teacher Linus, kills wife Megara
d. therefore: 12 Labors supervised by king Eurystheus
(Course Packet pp. 142ff.), including: Nemean Lion,
Hydra, Stables of Augias, Apples of Hesperides, Cerberus
II. His many roles
a. civilizer--vs. barbarians (Busiris) and monsters (Geryon)
b. womanizer, girlieman (Omphale), and drunk
c. making an ethical choice (Virtue vs. Vice), hence
d. using his mind: philosopher (Stoic [accept Fate, endure], Hercules Farnese)
and rhetorician
e. muscleman (Hercules in New York, 1970 with Ahnold)
III. Carl Jung's take on mythology: archetypes -- myths as cultural DNA
(collective unconscious)
IV. Archetypes, mythological stock motifs, and some other
Greek mythological figures in Disney's Hercules (1997)
a. heroes face early obstacles: exposure (Moses, Oedipus, Romulus)
b. the quest (incl. for identity): "I will find my way,
I can go the distance"
c. heroism: not just action, but inside yourself
(cf. ???)
d. giving up immortality for life with a mortal (cf.???)
e. the 3 Fates (A-tropos "Scissorhands"); Venus de Milo;
seated Zeus at Olympia and the Lincoln Memorial
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