The following sets of poetry describes a prominent Greek figure in popular mythology; do you think you can figure out who is being described without being stumped? Answers are at the very bottom of the page if you wish to check. Good luck!
1. The Man And His World
His hands are calloused, rough, rugged
such as the terrain of the Himalayas
but instead of climbing mountains
he was holding up the sky.
A friend-turned-foe once pleaded
“Help me, allow me to rest.”
So he took the burden
fooled for eternity.
Meanwhile, the world grew bigger;
thousands of years culminated into man-made destruction,
war and inner turmoil,
infestation of mortals,
until the world was too big.
His hands crumbled,
his shoulders sagged,
his head bowed,
until his world consumed him.
2. The Short-Tempered God
His ego the size of his throne in Olympia,
he commands the power of the sky.
He steals the hearts of numerous mortal woman,
angering his immortal wife who had cursed one too many.
His two brethren rule the dead and the sea
forever in conflict the trinity stays.
He hurls his bolt at those who displease him,
his weapon of choice made by faithful cyclops.
Commander of wind spirits and cloud nymphs
his domain remains the jewel of civilization.
3. Huntress
A maiden for eternity,
she refuses the company of men except that of Orion
whom her fiery brother had killed out of spite.
Her father the king and her mother an affair,
Hera subjects her to scorn.
Her Hunters become her sisters until the end of time
engaged in the pursuit of justice,
chasing evil straight into Tartarus.
Releasing arrow after arrow,
her target remains her focus and the center of her world;
she never misses.
Silver like the moonlight,
she casts a glow that few are lucky to see.
4. Embracer Of Darkness
He craves death, destruction, danger;
he had stolen his wife from the mortal world
now she is forced to stay in his realm
for she had eaten the cursed seeds.
His second companion blessed with three heads,
the beast guards the entry to his unholy domain.
The helm of darkness, his prized possession,
wielded by Perseus in his battle against Medusa.
His palace resides next to the River Styx
where a promise broken warrants a fate worse than death.
Life after death is his choice;
he will decide: Fields of Asphodel or Elysium.
Lord help the soul that attempts to escape his clutches.
Answers:
1. Atlas
2. Zeus
3. Artemis
4. Hades
