Can anyone direct me to a website that gives the names and brief descriptions of the characters of Greek mythology?
I would like to use this as I read the Iliad.
Hi Bert,
Try these ones:
http://homepage.mac.com/cparada/GML/
http://www.myths.com/pub/myths/myth.html
I used to have more links, but last time I changed the operatring system, I forgot to back up them 
I generally use this one: http://www.mythome.org/greek.html
Mic
Thanks.
Lots of stuff there.
I have never learned anything about Greek mythology, but knowing some of the basics will increase my enjoyment in reading the Iliad.
BTW, Zeus sure was a ladies man.
His tastes were actually a bit more wide-ranging than that.
Know the Roman names for all his dalliances and you’ll know the names of Jupiter’s moons. 
καὶ τόδε· http://www.theoi.com/ .
Knowing the names of some of the gods is a help already but there are many characters in the Iliad who are not gods.
It is too bad that Cunliffe tried to save 10 pages in his lexicon by not listing any names.
pantheon.org has info on characters such as Calchas, Chryseis, Briseis (OK, I just checked the characters from the lines of the Iliad that I have read, so not that many yet).
It seems to include more than just gods.
Regards,
Adelheid
Thanks Adelheid.
I looked for it and I found individual articles but not a listing that I can print off and put beside my chair for occasional reference.
William wrote;
"Know the Roman names for all his dalliances and you’ll know the names of Jupiter’s moons. "
I thought: surely only the moons that were known to excist for a long time already and not the ones that have been discovered recently. That would be 70 or more. Looking around in pantheon.org, I found that he messed around with over one hundred ladies that produced offspring.
William also wrote;“His tastes were actually a bit more wide-ranging than that”
So I quess he had uh.. relationships with males (gods or men) or possibly with lower life forms?
Ganymede, most definitely.
He’s not just bearing Zeus’ cup, if you catch my drift.
I can’t think of any inanimate objects, though…
The Greeks liked their head god virile.
So I quess he had uh.. relationships with males (gods or men) or possibly with lower life forms?
Not with, but as. Among the most notable: as a swan to Leda (which has inspired a lot of quite disturbing art), he carried off Europa after taking the form of a bull (less distressing art), and upon Danae he rained himself as gold (not molten - more strange art, but mostly a vehicle for naked reclining ladies).
Any fool can do a titration Diane 
curse google image searches! episcope, da mihi illum laterem rubrum quo saner!
hah!
Fore memet mittaretur; ponderis tamen nimium possidet istuc quo iniciam.
Ipse autem latere suimetve causa vulneratus persaepe concedit futurum nunquam lapideve percussus vel nilo sanetur. Si nobis pessima intulerit, vos amasse Episcopum perhibeo.
Tís tamen causa vult sibi nocere. Tu tis tibi tetefac
DOMUM PRIMA LUCE REDEO, MOMMY POPOSCIT QUANDO AGAM BONAM VITAM. DELECTARI SOLUM VOLUNT FEMELLAE.
τί δῆτα σημαίνει ταῦτα; We need a “my head has just exploded” smiley.
Who ever thought that there would be a story behind such a random comment.
I have a soft spot for any one named Diane and you in particular Diane.
but-1,3-diene
The best of luck with Pharr, it is too hardcore for me 
I thought somebody has posted this to the one of the fora. I forgot who and where.
http://www.ancientlibrary.com/bookshelf.php
see “Dictionary of Greek and Roman Biography and Mythology”
beware it’s huge. 3741 pages in toto, divided into 3 volumes.
So how come Apollo has such a hard time with the ladies? Cassandra spit on him and Daphne prefered to be turned into a tree and Coronis cheated on him while pregnant with Asclepius.