Soonmin+Hwang-Minotaur


 * MINOTAUR **

Greek: Μῑνώταυρος Latin: Minotaurus Etruscan Θevrumineś

toc The Minotaur was half bull and half human. It was the monster that ate the fourteen Athenian tribut es that were sent every nine years to the famous [|labyrinth] in [|Crete]. The monster was finally slayed by [|Theseus].

Its name derives from the Greek Μῑνώταυρος, which combines Μῑνώ (Minos) and ταυρος (Taurus), which translates to the “Bull of Minos”. Also, in Crete, it was known by the name of [|Asterion].

= __Origin__ =

The Minotaur was the offspring of a beautiful bull and [|King Minos]’s wife, [|Pasiphae]. The generally accepted store is that the bull was a gift to Minos from [|Poseidon] (Neptune) after he asked the God for some mark to affirm his position for the throne, and assure his brother would not receive this position. Poseidon agreed to give this bull but on the condition that Minos would have to sacrifice it to him. Because Minos was unable to do so, the God sent [|Cupid] (Eros) to make Pasiphae fall in love with this white-bull.

After it was born, Minos did not kill him. [|Daedalus], the famous great architect and inventor, was asked to construct a place of enclosure so it would be impossible to escape. This confinement area was called the Labyrinth, and this is where the Minotaur remained until Theseus volunteered to be a tribute.

= = = __Appearance__ =

The Minotaur had a head of a bull and a body of a man.

It is often represented as a muscular man with a tail and two large horns on his head. He also has coarse fur covering his body.

= __Mythological stories__ =

The Minotaur is in the story of Theseus. Athens had to send seven girls and seven boys to Crete because Minos had threatened to completely destroy Athens if they didn’t every 9 years. Minos declared this terrible fate when his only son, [|Androgeus], died while he was visiting King Aegeus.

Theseus was an Athenian who spent his childhood in his mother’s home located in southern Greece. His father was [|Aegeus], the Athenian King. Before he left to go to Athens, he left his sword and a pair of shoes under a big stone so Theseus could later retrieve it when he became big and strong.

Once that time came, he claimed the items and decided to embark on a journey to his father. He refused the easy route that was by ship, and instead he went to Athens by land. On the way he dealt with justice and killed all the bandits using the same techniques the bandits use to kill their victims. Some of the outlaws that were killed include [|Sciron] who kicked the captured into the sea and [|Sinis] who fastened the target into two bent pine trees and flung them into the air.

After reaching Athens, he was announced to be Aegeus’s son and heir. He volunteered to be a tribute and planned on killing the Minotaur. Before he left, he told his father that the ship will have a black sail if he did not succeed or it will be switched to a white sail if he accomplished killing the Minotaur.

When he arrived, Minos’ daughter [|Ariadne] instantly fell in love with Theseus. To try saving him, with the condition that Theseus would have to marry her, she went to Daedalus for help. He gave her a ball of thread where he could fasten it to the door.



When Theseus saw the Minotaur sleeping, he pinned him down and beat-up the Minotaur with his fists. Once they traced their way back, they went on the ship to go back to Athens. On the way home, they stopped by the island of [|Naxos]. Here they left Ariadne and sailed away without her. [|Dionysus] found her later and eased her. Another source says Ariadne was seasick so he set her on the land. While he went back to the sick to work, a violent wind carried them out.

Either way, when they were close to shore King Aegeus saw the black sail that they forgot to change and jumped down into the sea, which is now called the [|Aegean Sea].

Theseus became the new King of Athens. Because he wanted a people’s government, he became the Commander in chief instead.

= __Importance__ =

The Minotaur represents several[| “coincidentia oppositorum”] (meeting of opposites).
 * Creature and human
 * Mystical and instinctual
 * Nature and our freedom

=__Modern References__=

Books
//The Lightening Thief// and //The Last Olympian// by Rick Riordan.



Movies
// The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe // (2005) // [|Minotaur] // (2006) // Role Models // (2008) // The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian // (2008) // The Scorpion King 2: Rise of a Warrior // (2008) // Percy Jackson & the Olympians: The Lightening Thief // (2010)
 * The trailer for this movie is hyperlinked. RATED R
 * We can see several differences in the movie and what the myth tells us. In the movie, the Minotaur is in no way depicted as half human. Also, fourteen Athenians, not eight, are sent every 9 years, not every 3 years.

=Works Cited=

Hamilton, Edith, and Steele Savage. //Mythology,//. Boston: Little, Brown and, 1942. Print.

"Minotaur Meaning and Example Sentence: Meaning, Definition, Sample Sentence of Minotaur | Dictionary 3.0." //English Dictionary 3.0 | Real Life English Dictionary//. Web. 01 Jan. 2012. .

"The Cryptozoologist: Minotaurs - Awesome Minotaur Moments in Movies - UGO.com." //TV News - Best New Movies, Video Games & Hot Girls | UGO//. Web. 01 Jan. 2012. .

"The Minotaur - Camp Half-Blood Wiki- Percy Jackson, The Heroes of Olympus, The Lightning Thief Movie, Books, Series." //Camp Half-Blood Wiki - The Lightning Thief Movie//. Web. 01 Jan. 2012. .

"The Minotaur | Minds Behind The Myth." //Minds Behind the Myths//. Web. 01 Jan. 2012. .