Similarities Between Theseus And The Minotar

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Classical mythology has withstood the test of time because the stories provide important hidden meanings. Writers often create adaptations of Classical myths in order to comment on what is happening in that present society. Among many, the story of Theseus is one which is largely recreated. Although the early forms of the myth often consisted of five main episodes (“the abductions of Helen, Ariadne, and Persephone, and the fights against the Minotaur and the Centaurs”), this analysis will be in reference to the myth of Theseus and the Minotaur. It is quite uncertain who the true author of the original story of Theseus and the Minotaur is, but there is evidence that it was a myth that was “famous throughout the Greek world by the end of the …show more content…

After a few games, King Aegeus asked Androgos to fight a bull, a bull similar to the one that Minos received from Poseidon. Because his son was killed fighting the bull, Minos wanted revenge. As a consequence for asking his son to fight, Minos forced King Aegeus to “pay tribute every year of seven girls and seven boys to become food for the Minotaur.” After three years of this punishment, Theseus, the son of King Aegeus, “volunteered himself as one of the tributes.” Many praised him for being courageous and taking the place of another person, but Theseus volunteered because he had the intention of killing the Minotaur. Theseus wanted to stop the sacrifices of the young Athenian girls and boys. With the other tributes, Theseus journeyed to Crete, where they were given the best of food and accommodations before they entered into the labyrinth. Before he entered the Labyrinth, Theseus fell in love with Minos’ daughter, Ariadne. Ariadne gave him a “golden ball of yarn that would help to guide [him] through the maze” as a way to help Theseus kill the Minotaur and in the end, escape the labyrinth. After he killed the Minotaur, Theseus, the other tributes, and Ariadne escape to Athens. Modern day adaptation: The Hunger