Tales of the Greek Hero Trivia Quiz

Answer: Achilles

The son of King Peleus and Thetis, a nymph, Achilles was dipped into the River Styx in an attempt to make him immortal. Considered to be the main character in Homer's "Iliad", Achilles was the commander of fifty ships that each contained fifty men. During the Trojan War, he killed Hector, one of King Priam's sons, who was considered to be the greatest Trojan warrior.

Although the death of Achilles is not mentioned in Homer's story, it was told that Hector's brother, Paris, killed Achilles with an arrow to his heel, the only part of his body that Thetis failed to immerse in the river.

Answer: Heracles

Considered to be the last mortal son of Zeus, Heracles was the strongest of all mortal men, and stronger than most of the gods as well. Being hated by Hera was no small problem! She drove him mad, and in a fit of madness, Heracles killed his own children.

In order to gain forgiveness for such a terrible action, Heracles performed several labors, eventually twelve altogether, so he could be purified; some sources say that he became immortal when he completed the labors, others say that he joined the gods on Mt. Olympus upon his death.

Answer: Cadmus

Cadmus was believed to be the founder and first king of Thebes in ancient Greece. The brother of Europa, he was ordered by their father to return his sister to the Phoenicia after she had been abducted by Zeus. Not only was he credited with bringing the alphabet from Phoenicia, which was eventually modified to become the Greek alphabet, he was also credited with the invention of farming, and civilization in general.

Answer: Jason

Raised by the centaur, Chiran, after his uncle, Pellas, overthrew his father, Jason was given the task of finding the Golden Fleece. If his quest was successful, Jason's uncle would allow him to reclaim his father's throne. Jason faced both adventure and hardship during his quest, and his success in claiming back his father's throne was short-lived. Unfaithful to his wife, he lost his family, children, and eventually, his life.

Answer: Odysseus

Odysseus became famous during the Trojan War for his suggestion to create the Trojan Horse. After unsuccessfully trying for ten years to enter Troy, the Greeks built the horse, left it at the gates of the city, and pretended to board their ships and leave Troy.

The Trojans, thinking the horse was a peace offering, opened the gates of their city and began celebrating; the Greeks who were hiding in the horse, let the others in the city, and easily defeated the incapacitated Trojans. Homer's book, "The Odyssey" details Odysseus's ten-year journey home when the war was over.

Answer: Perseus

Alas, Perseus was at his mother's wedding to Polydectes with no gift; when asked to name the gift, Polydectes asked for the head of the Gorgon Medusa. With a bit of supernatural assistance, Perseus was successful. On the return trip with the gift, he fell in love with and married Adromeda, who had been chained to a rock to appease a sea monster after her father angered Poseidon, declaring his daughter to be more beautiful than the sea nymphs.

Their descendants included the great Heracles.

Answer: Bellerophon

After accidentally killing his brother, Bellerophon was banished from his home. As a favored guest who could not be punished (this would anger the gods) and through no fault of his own, he was sent to kill the Chimera, which was a terrible fire-breathing monster.

The goddess Athena gave him a golden bridle, which allowed him to tame Pegasus. Ultimately he was able to kill the Chimera with a block of lead; as he flew over the top of the animal, the lead was dropped in its mouth, the heat of his breath melted the lead, and he was suffocated.

After many more adventures, Bellerophon fell out of favor with the gods, when his pride led him to try to ascend Mt. Olympus.

Answer: Aeneas

In Greek mythology, Aeneas was a Trojan hero, the son of Aphrodite, goddess of love and beauty, and Anchises, who was a member of the Trojan royal family. The "Iliad" mentions that Aeneas was saved by his mother (and other gods) while on the battlefield during the Trojan War, where he served his cousin, Hector, as a principal lieutenant.

After the war he went on to lead the few survivors of the siege of Troy to Italy, where in Roman mythology, he was an ancestor of Romulus and Remus.

Answer: Orpheus

Not only could Orpheus, son of the muse Calliope, charm the gods, but it was written that his singing was so beautiful that even the stones and trees danced while he played. His music was so lovely that he was able to persuade the god Hades to allow him to rescue his deceased wife from the underworld.

Unfortunately, he did not meet Hades's condition of walking in front of his wife and not looking back until they reached the upper world.

Answer: Theseus

The son of the King of Athens, Theseus allowed himself to be sent to King Minos of Crete as part of the seven boy and seven girl tribute that was due every nine years. There he killed the Minotaur, the creature with the body of a man and head of a bull, which ended the tyranny of Crete over Athens.

He was so honored that the saying "not without Theseus", came to mean that he had to be included in any important plan. He is credited with unifying the land of Attica in ancient Greece, which became part of the polis of Athens.