| A | B |
|---|
| word of mouth | how Greek myths were first passed on |
| heroes | subjects of the stories told by the Greeks |
| Greek heroes | fought monsters, performed superhuman feats, and consorted with the gods |
| polytheists | ancient Greeks believed in many gods |
| Mount Olympus | home of the gods and goddesses |
| omens and oracles | how gods communicated with mortals |
| oracles | spokespersons for the divine who answered questions, often in riddles |
| Delphi | greatest oracle lived here |
| gods would | aid or hinder heroes in their quests |
| hero's life beginnings | not ordinary, often the offspring of gods or abandoned in wilderness |
| Oedipus and Atalanta | abandoned as babies in the woods |
| shepherds | saved Oedipus as a baby |
| bear | nursed Atalanta as a baby |
| education | received by heroes was often unusual |
| Chiron | centaur, greatest one, who was half man, half horse |
| centaur | half man, half horse |
| Chiron's skills | included healing arts (medicine) and his civility |
| Dark Ages | prior to this time, kingdoms had produced arts and crafts |
| golden masks | art found on site of ancient Mycenae |
| Mycenaean | known as the Heroic Age, refers to the ancient site |
| centuries of violence and ruin | Dark Ages |
| bards | poets/singers who told stories of heroes |
| Homer | blind poet/bard who told stories of Odysseus and the Trojan War |
| backward step | civilization during Dark Ages when progress was stalled |
| Golden Age | people looked before time of Dark Ages when heroes walked the earth |
