Zeus Research Paper

From around 700 BC to this day in age, Zeus is continuously growing in fame. By being the face of a great deal of mythology movies and stories, it is hard to not know about him. In almost every movie depiction of him he is a strong, muscular being, with a long beard, and as seen in Percy Jackson, his famous lightning bolt. His story of how he got his power, is told around the world to many. Zeus transformed into many gods as mythology evolved, and still has a lasting imprint on modern day culture today good and bad.

Though Zeus is commonly seen in movies as Lord of the Sky, usually with his lightning bolt; he was many different gods in his lifetime. In V.X.L Encyclopedia of World Mythology it is said that Zeus was “originally a sky god, he

One way he is used in today’s culture is his name. In Who’s Who in Mythology by Michael Senior, he states “His roman name ‘Jupiter’ and his more common name Zeus, is used in company names worldwide to depict their product as powerful and useful,” (52). This is important because it shows just how powerful Zeus and his name are. Also, Zeus’s other name being Jupiter is why the largest planet in the solar system is named Jupiter. This could represent Zeus’s status in popularity and rank within the gods of mythology. Though Zeus is still imprinted in much of our culture today, the way he is depicted is different every time. Some depictions see him as good like in Disney’s Hercules. Zeus was shown as an all-around kind hearted, goofy, sort of person. Reason being, if Disney were to show a deeper reflection of Zeus’s actual character the audience would probably have to be seventeen years old and up instead of the average six-year-old. Many might say that Disney’s depiction of Zeus was correct because he was a good guy; others may say to the contrary to that, by bringing up other parts of Zeus’s story where he is an alleged rapist. Eva Kuels in The Reign of the Phallus writes “The master rapist, of course, was Zeus: the catalogue of his conquests became a topos of Greek literature, and led to a scurrilous Greek anecdote.” (50). She also states in her writings three times when Zeus does rape women: “He rapes Leda in the form of a swan, Danaë in the guise of a golden rain, and Alkmene in the persona of her legitimate husband.” (51). This is important because it shows how many ways Zeus’s story is conveyed to different people. And more specifically which parts are chosen to be