Ares: The Ancient Greek God Of War

Mythology has been around a long while to tell stories of the Ancient Greek gods and events that happened throughout their time. Although Ares ( also known as Mars in Roman Mythology)is best known for being the God of War, he is also known for his acts of destruction and his influence of a moral lesson on today's society.

Ares was born from the gods Zues and Hera, both of whom detested him. But in some legends he and his twin sister, Eris (Discord), were born when Hera touched a flower that ended up getting her pregnant ("Ares" The Columbian Eectronic Encyclopedia"). Throughout his childhood his parents and the gods that surrounded him noticed his aggressiveness and unpleasantness around others. He was described as bloodthirsty, cruel, and

During the Trojan War, Ares backed the Trojans while Athena (Goddess of War) supported the Greeks. She easily defeated him by angering him with insults and knocking him down with a huge stone(Nardo,Don.Ancient Greece.Detroit). in another legend, Ares severely wounded with whom he fought in defense of his own son, Cycnus. Otus and Ephialles, also known as Aloeids, also despised Ares. They managed to imprison him in a bronze jar where he remained trapped for 13 months until Hermes released him. Ares believed in starting wars for no reason because he liked violence unlike the Athenians who though wars should only be waged for a good and noble reason(Daly,Kathleen N, and Marian Rengel).Ares liked to storm around battlefields accompanied by his companions. He had a vicious crowd that followed him, among them Pain, Panic, Famine, and Oblivion. He is best portrayed in art with one or more of his symbols; a burning torch, a spear, dogs, and vultures which would follow him across the

Ares never married and had a lot of affairs but the most know was with the goddess Aphrodite, who was married and to an Olympian, Hephaestus. Apollo was the first to find out then telling the other gods which knew. Hephaestus defeated Ares not by battle but by cleverness. In order to catch Ares and Aphrodite, he used his smith skills to create a golden net so fine that it was invisible. He placed it on the couch where he knew they'd lay and told his wife that he'd be leaving for a retreat. As soon as he left, he came back a day later to find his trap successful(Daly,Kathleen N, and Marian Rengel). When the other Olympians found out what had happened they despised him even more for doing what he did knowing she was married and were disgusted by him. This left a mark in today's society by showing how committing adultery leaves consequential reputations for the person breaking marriage vows. Now it's a sin for a wife or husband to do that and they have to ask for forgiveness before they enter hell. People don't trust the person who does that from that point forward and Ares left a lesson for the people left on today by describing how the other gods despised him for the way he