Four Great Adventures, Phaethon By Edith Hamilton

In the short story, “Four Great Adventures, Phaethon” by Edith Hamilton one of the seven cultural elements found in the myth was vaules. Values was a cultural element because the fact that Phaethon wanted to know who his father is and that he wanted to get to know him and have the opportunity to build that strong relationship with his father. It is important that he wanted a relationship with him because most people do not want to know who their parent or parents are because for one they left their children for a reason and that hurts the children so they would rather not get to know them. In the beginning of the short story, Phaethon was accused by other kids at his school of not being the son of Helios. Phaethon decides to travel to the Palace of the Sun to figure out if he is the son of Helios.
However, his wish was to be his father for one day (the sun god) and ride Helios’s golden chariot across the sky and over the sun. But, all goes wrong and Phaethon ends up scorching the entire world and falling to his death because Zeus had thrown a thunderbolt at the chariot. In the short story it says, “No doubt Phaethon had often watched the Sun (Helios) riding through the heavens and had told himself with a feeling, half awe, half excitement, ‘It is my father up there.’ And then he would wonder what it would be like to be in that chariot, guiding the steeds along that dizzy course, giving light to the world. Now at his father’s words this wild dream had become possible. Instantly he cried, ‘I choose to take your place, Father. This is the only thing I