The word myth is often mistakenly understood to mean fiction something that never happened, a made-up story or fanciful tale. Myth is really a way of thinking about the past. Myths tell only of that which really happened. This does not mean that myths correctly explain what literally happened. It does suggest, however, that behind the explanation there is a reality that cannot be seen and examined.
             Mythology is a body or collection of myths belonging to a group of people and addressing their origin, history, deities, ancestors, and heroes. To the Greeks, mythology was extremely important. These stories answered every question of why something was the way that it was in their civilization. They also showed that the gods were powerful and the people looked up to them as well as interacted with them. They passed these stories on from one generation to the next. The stories were very exciting and created with much imagination. The stories show mankind and their struggles with themselves and with the gods. Greek mythology is still present all around the world especially in the United States.
             The legends of ancient Greece are more familiar because they have become so permanently embedded in literary traditions of Western civilization. Greek mythology followed the pattern of other mythologies: the forces of nature were given personalities and were worshiped. There was no worship of animals or of gods in animal form, however, as there was in Egypt. Greek gods and goddesses were pictured as being much like men and women. The term for this is anthropomorphism, meaning "in the form of a human." The gods were conceived as more heroic in stature, more outstanding in beauty and proportion, and more powerful and enduring than humans. They were nevertheless endowed with many human weaknesses. They could be jealous, envious, spiteful, and petty. Among them only Zeus was known as the Just.
             The ancient Greeks were very creative sto...