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Cultural Values In Hesiod's Theogony

1203 Words5 Pages

From viewing stories produced from various cultures, it is easy to see how those culture’s beliefs and values have influenced their texts. In particular, it is easy to see the influence of cultural values in Hesiod’s story Theogony and in the story of creation from the book of Genesis. In Theogony it is evident that Hesiod’s culture valued masculinity and the distribution of power. In contrast, Genesis exemplifies the cultural values of partnership and a strong hierarchy.
To understand a work as it relates to culture, it is pivotal to analyze how the author themself influenced the story based on their own beliefs and values. Hesiod does not shy away from depicting women as evil entities. Not only are women portrayed as separate from men, but …show more content…

If Hesiod’s telling of the creation of the world was fundamentally problematic, it would not have been well received in his culture. However, as Hesiod's views reflect a more radical version of a set of cultural values, his work was able to withstand the test of time and expand past his culture to be told globally. Taking into account Hesiodis radical beliefs, it would be more rational to conclude that his story does not reflect on a cultural value of misogyny, but rather the culture’s true value of masculine traits. This idea is supported as in Theogony gods are commonly punished for taking on feminine traits. When Prometheus tricked Zeus into eating bones instead of “innards rich with fat” (Theogony, 147), Zeus punished humankind by taking away humanity’s fire. When Prometheus stole the fire back, Zeus “bound Prometheus with ineluctable fetters, painful bonds, and drove a shaft through his middle, and set a long-winged eagle on him that kept gnawing his undying liver” (Theogony, 146). By deceiving Zeus into eating bones, Prometheus took on the feminine trait of cunning trickery; closely paralleling Rheia and her deception in getting Cronos to eat a rock (Theogony, 145-146). This sneaky behavior is punished by Zeus and his transparent use of violence. While Zeus’s actions are arguably equally or even more immoral than Prometheus’s, Zeus’s brash actions are more masculine in …show more content…

Unlike in Theogony where gods are constantly trying to trick and overthrow one another in a constant struggle for power, in Genesis there is a clear order of power that goes unquestioned. At the top of the metaphorical pyramid is God. Not only did he create “the heavens and the earth” (Genesis, 1.1), he also created everything else including man and woman. “God created humankind in his image, in the image of God he created them; male and female he created them. God blessed them, and God said to them, ‘Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth and subdue it” (Genesis, 1.27-1.28). While Adam and Eve have the power over the earth and its inhabitants, God has power over Adam and

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