Cronus Essay
Significant Meanings Regarding the Myth of Cronus
As Hesiod stated in Theogony (126-491), the Titan son, Cronus was born to the Greek God of the sky Uranus, and Gaia, the mother of earth. Cronus had eleven Titan brothers and sisters, and was the brother of three Cyclops, as well as the invincible Hecatonchires. For no particularly defined reason, after each of his children were born, Uranus chose to hide them in the depths of the earth or Gaia. At one point, Gaia devised a plan to free her children, which led to the removal of Uranus from power. In doing so, Cronus was now in control of the throne during the Golden Ages. After doing so, Cronus chose his sister Rhea as his mate. For fear that his promised destiny envisioned him being dethroned by his offspring, much like the fate of his father, Cronus swallowed each of his offspring as they were born, until one day being deceived by Rhea; which allowed his son Zeus to become the new ruler of all. (Pages 60, 67-70). The story about Cronus is one of the most important myths in Greek Mythology as it explains the very basics of human nature, thoughts and desires when combined with greed, overconfidence, and power.
Although Cronus strived for everlasting power, and was willing to do anything to stay in control, he may have been emotionally torn in regards to the methods he took. This is stressed repeatedly in the fact that as stated by Morford, Lenardon and Sham in Classical Mythology; most depictions of Cronus show him to be sad or depressed and always with his sickle in hand (Page 70). The fact that he is displayed as sad demonstrates that with all the power in the world, he still is not happy with what he is. The sickle represents the fact that he is continuously on guard against possible actions against him as well as the brute force that he will use in order to retain power. Although not mythical creatures, political figures have allowed this to occur in our recent history. Regardless of
As Hesiod stated in Theogony (126-491), the Titan son, Cronus was born to the Greek God of the sky Uranus, and Gaia, the mother of earth. Cronus had eleven Titan brothers and sisters, and was the brother of three Cyclops, as well as the invincible Hecatonchires. For no particularly defined reason, after each of his children were born, Uranus chose to hide them in the depths of the earth or Gaia. At one point, Gaia devised a plan to free her children, which led to the removal of Uranus from power. In doing so, Cronus was now in control of the throne during the Golden Ages. After doing so, Cronus chose his sister Rhea as his mate. For fear that his promised destiny envisioned him being dethroned by his offspring, much like the fate of his father, Cronus swallowed each of his offspring as they were born, until one day being deceived by Rhea; which allowed his son Zeus to become the new ruler of all. (Pages 60, 67-70). The story about Cronus is one of the most important myths in Greek Mythology as it explains the very basics of human nature, thoughts and desires when combined with greed, overconfidence, and power.
Although Cronus strived for everlasting power, and was willing to do anything to stay in control, he may have been emotionally torn in regards to the methods he took. This is stressed repeatedly in the fact that as stated by Morford, Lenardon and Sham in Classical Mythology; most depictions of Cronus show him to be sad or depressed and always with his sickle in hand (Page 70). The fact that he is displayed as sad demonstrates that with all the power in the world, he still is not happy with what he is. The sickle represents the fact that he is continuously on guard against possible actions against him as well as the brute force that he will use in order to retain power. Although not mythical creatures, political figures have allowed this to occur in our recent history. Regardless of
References: Hesiod (700 BC). Theogony Morford, M (2011). Classical Mythology International Ninth Edition