Jessica+Lee-+Cyclops

Jessica Lee
 * ‍‍Cyclops ‍‍ **

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__Origin__
Homer and Hesiod, two notorious Greek poets, are the main source for information about the origins of the Cyclops. Homer believed the Cyclops were the sons of Poseidon. One of which was Polyphemus, whom Odysseus encounters. According to Hesiod, the Cyclops were children of Unanus, god of the sky, and Gaia, goddess of the Earth. However, Uranus had a habit of keeping all his children, including the Cyclops and Titans, imprisoned in Gaia. When Cronus, a titan, decided to assist Gaia by overthrowing Uranus, the Cyclops decided aid Cronus. Unfortunately, fearful of the Cyclops, Cronus then imprisoned them on Tartarus. Then, when Zeus, son of Cronus, overthrew his own father, he set the Cyclops free. As thanks, they awarded lightning bolts to Zeus.

Another possibility for the origins of Cyclops came from a skull a prehistoric dwarf elephant, which is approximately twice the size of a human head. However, the Greeks who found this skull, which could have been found on Malta, Cyprus, Crete, or Sicily misinterpreted the large nasal cavity for the trunk as a single eye socket.

__Appearance__
The Cyclopes were enormous mythological creatures and each had a single eye on the middle of their forehead. Also, they were a primordial race of giants; therefore they were massive in size.

Odysseus and the Cyclops[[image:akhsmonsters2a/L8.1Polyphemos.jpg width="359" height="226" align="right" caption="http://www.theoi.com/Gallery/L8.1.html"]]
After defeating his enemies in the Trojan War, Odysseus was finally returning home to Ithaca. However, his journey was difficult and he faced many challenges and obstacles on the way. One of his adventures involved the Cyclops, Polyphemus. As he was sailing back home, Odysseus heard the sound of bleating goats coming from a large island. His supply of food was dwindling so he decided to land the boat on shore and search for food. There, Odysseus and his men found a huge pen of sheep outside of a cave. Inside of the cave was all the meat and cheese they desired. As they lounged around and ate to their heart’s desire, the Cyclops, Polyphemus, enter the cave.

Then, Polyphemus carefully rolled a massive boulder in front of the mouth of the cave. He turned around to face Odysseus, snatched up two of his men, and ate them. Afterwards, the Cyclops retired into a corner and drifted to sleep. There was nothing Odysseus could do but wait through the night terrified. The only time Polyphemus moved the boulder was to let the sheep out to a pasture. Then, he would seal the entrance again and eat more Greeks for his dinner.

Desperate to escape, Odysseus devised a plan. He gave Polyphemus some of his wine that had not been diluted with water. Polyphemus became extremely intoxicated and asked Odysseus what his name was. Odysseus replied “Nobody.” “Well, Mr. Nobody, I like you. I’ll do you a favor and eat you last,” Polyphemus said drowsily. Then, the Cyclops fell asleep. Odysseus and his crew then quickly sharpened a large pointed stick, hardened it in the fire, and rammed it straight into the eye of teh Cyclops. In agony, Polyphemus blindly reached around for his tormentors. He shouted for the other Cyclops to come to his aid. “Who has bothered you?” they asked Polyphemus. “Nobody has!” he responded. So thinking that Polyphemus had summoned them just to bother them, the other cyclops went back to their caves.

The next day, the Polyphemus let out the sheep but planted himself in front of the door to restrict the Greeks from leaving. However, the wise Odysseus had another idea. He ordered his shipmates to hold on to the bellies of the sheep so they would not be detected by the Cyclops as they left the cave; then they would run to the shore and sail away from the island. After Polyphemus realized that he had been deceived, he ran to the shore, but it was too late. Odysseus and his crew were already rowing away to safety.



Titanomachy
After Zeus was able to make Cronus disgorge him and his siblings, him and his siblings challenged the elder gods for power. This became known as the Titanomachy, or divine war. Being extremely skilled blacksmiths, three Cyclops aided Zeus, Poseidon, and Hades by making them weapons. They gave Zeus lightning bolts, Poseidon a trident, and Hades the Helmet of Darkness.



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Comic

 * In the comic X-Men, the character Cyclops destroys his enemies by using a laser beam that comes from his eyes.



Movie

 * Another modern reference of Cyclops is in the movie //X-Men Origins: Cyclops.//

media type="youtube" key="m-J3nxYCsEk" width="425" height="350" align="center"

__Works Cited__
[] [] [] [|http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hades] [|http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cyclops#Origins] []