A Study Guide Recommended Grades 4-8

Transcription

1 A Study Guide Recommended Grades 4-8 For use with the Theatrical Production by The Hampstead Stage Company The Hampstead Stage Company

2 Greek Mythology: The Tale of Psyche & Eros Table of Contents Introduction All About HSC....3 About the Novel About the Play: Plot Summary For the Classroom People Vocabulary 8-9 Main themes and Critical Thinking...10 Classroom Discussion Questions Sources

3 All About HSC Hampstead Stage Company are a nationally touring children s theatre that brings high quality, professional theatre to schools, libraries, and communities all over the 48 contiguous states (everywhere but Hawaii and Alaska!). The Hampstead Stage Company s goal is to bring classic literature to life through live theatre. The Hampstead Stage Company got its name from our founders, who came to America from the Hampstead area of London, England to pursue their dreams. Since its inception, our company has grown into one of the largest educational touring companies in the nation. Performing over 1,000 shows a year, we have performed for over twenty million audience members! Our interactive educational tours run year-round and are performed by two professional actors, each playing multiple roles. Our scripts are original adaptations, based directly on literary classics, and include children and adults from the audience. The plays last one hour, with a question and answer session following the performance. We travel to your space, and bring our own realistic sets and costumes; designed using extensive historical research. Our productions are flexible enough to fit into any assembly/performance space. Theatre performance helps us learn about ourselves and the world around us. But more than that, by using our imagination we can be proud of who we are, create goals for ourselves, and even help the way we think at home and in our communities! The Hampstead Stage Company is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization. All HSC study guides and supporting lesson plans are available to download for free from our website! Contact: Anna Robbins, Company Manager: info@hampsteadstage.org Website: 3

4 About the Novel Unlike most shows at the Hampstead Stage Company, The Myths of Ancient Greece is not based on one great book, but on a tiny piece of Greek mythology. Greek mythology is the realm of stories and legends of Ancient Greece: the gods and goddesses, heroes and heroines, mythological creatures, how the world works (and how things came to be), and the significance of the way their country developed. We could even say that this story is from before good books were written down! This particular show focuses on the tale of Eros and Psyche. Eros, more commonly known by his Roman name Cupid, falls in love with a human woman named Psyche. Through their trials and tribulations, we meet many of the strong goddesses and heroines from the Greek myths. This script is the third in our Greek Mythology series. Plot Summary We meet Aphrodite, the goddess of Beauty and Love and her son, Eros, the god of Love. Eros enters very distraught about a painful bee sting he has just received. Aphrodite comforts her son. She then discusses her concern about a beautiful mortal girl, Psyche, who is the daughter of the King of Ithaca and is being worshipped by the people of Greece. Eros has heard of her and informs his mother that they have even built her a temple and claim she is more beautiful than Aphrodite. Jealous Aphrodite decides to use her son s talents for her own purposes. She instructs Eros to take over the voice of an oracle, and tell the King to sacrifice his daughter to the great monster of the sea. Aphrodite wants Eros to make the sea monster and Psyche fall in love which will surely make the people of Greece tear down her temple and resume worshipping Aphrodite. Psyche enters the island to meet her fate trembling, but brave. Her father was so upset when he discovered he must sacrifice his most beloved daughter. The King follows her there and tries to convince her not to give herself up to the monster. Heroic Psyche knows she must do what the Oracle says to save the kingdom her father rules over. She wishes her father farewell and awaits the sea monster. When Eros goes to witness the sacrifice, he accidentally steps on his own arrow, and falls madly in love with Psyche. He saves her from the sea monster. He whisks her away into hiding, and agrees to marry her and love her and keep her safe only if she promises to never look on his face. Mortals 4

5 must never look upon the face of a god. Eros is now happy as can be and enjoys his job creating love once again. Aphrodite enters, looking for her vase. With one look at Eros, she knows he has fallen in love with a mortal. Aphrodite is sure he hasn t fallen in love with Psyche as Eros assures her he has completed his task and has gotten rid of Psyche. Aphrodite warns Eros not to get too attached to a mortal as they do not last forever. Eros notices that Psyche is content and enjoys the beauty of the palace but longs for her family. He brings her father to visit her. The King is so happy to see his daughter is alive and is overjoyed to learn she is now married. However, he discovers that Psyche not only does not know the name of her husband but has also never seen his face! Psyche assures him that they are in love and have spent a great deal of time getting to know one another. She trusts him and has made a promise not to look at his face. The King convinces Psyche that she must sneak a peek at her husband s face while he is sleeping to ensure he is not the monster that Psyche was to be sacrificed to on the island. When Eros falls asleep that night; Psyche enters his room with a candle and takes off the mask he wears. She sees that he is not a monster, but a beautiful god. Eros wakes up devastated. The palace begins to disappear and their life together is now ruined. Eros heart is broken and Psyche is whirled back to the cliff. Aphrodite is disappointed but takes pity on her son. She agrees that if Psyche can complete seemingly insurmountable tasks, then she and Eros can be together forever. Psyche s first task is to sort a huge pile of seeds before sunrise. Psyche feels defeated but remembers that teamwork is the best way to get a task done quickly. She enlists the help of some worker ants and they are able to complete the task just in time. Her second task is to climb Aroania Mountain, fill a pitcher with water from the River Styx and return without spilling a drop. This seems easy until Psyche realizes the steepness of the mountain. She is exhausted when she reaches a wall of stone. Zeus Eagle flies in to aid Psyche. He reminds her that the River Styx is even feared by the gods and that Psyche will likely be unable to gather 5

6 water from the unfriendly stream. He asks her to trust him with the pitcher and assures her he will fill it with water. Psyche does not want to trust him. The Eagle tells her that it shows more bravery to trust another than to climb a mountain. Psyche agrees to trust the Eagle and thus, successfully completes the task. For her final task, Psyche must go to the Underworld to fetch Persephone s beauty pot and return it to Aphrodite. Simply getting to the Underworld is a task in and of itself! She learns of an old man who lives a cave who has been to the Underworld and can instruct her on how to get there. He is reluctant at first but then tells his story to Psyche. He is Orpheus, the best musician to ever live. His wife Eurydice died and he followed her to the Underworld to beg Hades to allow her to live again. Hades agreed to allow his wife to follow Orpheus out of the Underworld under one condition: he must not look behind him. Orpheus made a grave mistake and took a quick look and his wife disappeared back into the Underworld once again. He instructs Psyche on how to get to the Underworld. Psyche does as the old man tells her goes to the Vent of Dis, the entry of the Underworld. She gives the Ferryman, Charon, a golden drachma to cross the Archeron, the River of Woe. She gives Cerberus, the three-headed dog that guards the Underworld, a cake and enters Persephone s bedchamber. She finds the beauty pot! Persephone finds Psyche and is upset to find her in her bedchamber. Psyche tells Persephone that she must take her beauty pot for love. Persephone is understanding and wishes Psyche the best. She warns her not to use the beauty cream for herself as it is not meant for mortals. Psyche leaves the Underworld. She is pleased with herself but wonders why the goddess of Beauty needs beauty cream. She figures it is for power and decides to give the beauty cream a try. She immediately falls asleep. Eros is elated to discover Psyche has completed all of the tasks but finds Psyche falling asleep. He knows she has disobeyed and tried the beauty cream. He figures his mother is to blame! In a frantic state, Eros pleads for his mother to bring Psyche back and offers to be made mortal so that he can be with Psyche forever. Aphrodite cannot believe that her son is willing to give up immortality and power to be with a puny mortal. The gods convene, and decide that Eros and Psyche can be together forever. Psyche is even declared the goddess of the soul and is made immortal. 6

7 Meet the Main Characters Aphrodite (Aff-row-DIE-tee): The goddess of love and beauty. She was born (as a grownup!) out of the sea and her name is said to mean the foam-risen. She can be very jealous if she thinks someone is prettier than her, and that is why Medusa and her sisters have snakes for hair! She is the mother of Eros. Eros (AIR-ose): The Greek god of love. Also known as Cupid, he is a mischief maker! He likes to play matchmaker and make people fall in love. He falls in love with Psyche as a result of his own games. He is not depicted as such in our version but in some stories, he is blindfolded because love is often blind. Psyche (SIGH-kee): A beautiful human girl and the youngest daughter of a Greek King. Aphrodite was very jealous of her beauty. Eros falls in love with her after being pricked by his own arrow. She falls in love with him but betrays Eros and looks upon his face. She must go through a series of impossible tasks to appease Aphrodite. Her name in Greek means soul. Father: Psyche s father and King of Ithaca. He was a kind king and was willing to sacrifice his country for the love of his family. Eagle: Zeus personal messenger and companion. The Eagle helps Psyche fetch a pitcher of water from the River Styx. Old Man: An old man who lived in a cave and never came out. It is discovered that he is Orpheus, son of a Muse and a great musician. He tells Psyche how to get to the Underworld. Ferryman: Charon (CHAR-on) was the ferryman of the river Styx Hades. It was thought that the dead should be buried with a coin on their eyes or in their mouth as toll for their passage across the river, into Hades (the Underworld). Those who could not pay had to wander the waters and shore for eternity. Persephone (per-seh-fon-ee): the daughter of the king of the gods Zeus, and the harvest goddess Demeter. She is the wife of the king of the Underworld, Hades. She is the reason the Greeks say we have seasons. Cerberus: the three-headed dog that guards the Underworld. 7

8 Vocabulary Abhorrent - inspiring disgust and loathing; repugnant. Atone to make amends. Acheron The River of Woe. The newly dead must be ferried across by Charon, the Ferryman, to enter the Underworld. Chimera - according to Greek mythology, a monstrous fire-breathing hybrid creature composed of the parts of more than one animal. Drachma - the currency of Ancient Greece and one of the oldest coins known to man. Different city-states had different drachmas. Their value was determined by the quality and quantity of metal. The engraving of drachmas was often elaborate and told a story of the history of the city-state. Epic - heroic; impressively great; usually pertaining to a poem or tale, centering on a hero overcoming the greatest odds. Eurydice - a nymph in Greek mythology, one of the daughters of the god Apollo. She was married to Orpheus, a legendary musician and poet. Fate - the development of events beyond a person's control, regarded as determined by a supernatural power. Jealousy - resentment against a rival, a person enjoying success or advantage, etc., or against another s success or advantage itself; wanting something someone else has. Mortal - able to die; being of the human realm; describes a wound that you will die from. Mount Olympus - the highest mountain in Greece; believed in mythology to be the home of the Greek Gods. Mythology - stories, beliefs, and traditions that focus on a particular group of people or events; the study of myths. Oracle - a place, person, or thing through which the Greek Gods spoke to their followers, offered advice, or answered questions. Pantheon - a group of gods, heroes, or idols 8

9 Pernicious having a harmful effect. Polyphemus - Polyphemus was the giant son of the god Poseidon and Thoosa. He was a Cyclops, having a single eye. He is best known in the story of the Odyssey. Reunite - to bring back together, after a separation of some kind; making individual parts into one original whole. River Styx - a river in Greek mythology which formed the boundary between Earth and the Underworld. The gods respected the Styx and swore binding oaths by it. Trireme - an ancient Greek or Roman war vessel (large boat) with three banks of oars. Underworld - the region under the earth s surface, also called Hades; the home of departed souls. Vent of Dis - the only known opening into Hades for humans. Zephyr - was the god of the west wind, one of the four seasonal Anemoi (Wind- Gods). 9

10 Main Themes & Critical Thinking Use another sheet of paper for more space! Jealousy: When someone wants what someone else has. Sometimes jealousy changes the way people treat each other. 1.) Why is Aphrodite so jealous of Psyche? Does it make sense for the goddess of love and beauty to be jealous? Why or why not? Selflessness: Concern more with the needs and wishes of others than with one's own. This story is full of people doing things for the people they love and care about! 1.) List 2 examples of selflessness in The Tale of Psyche and Eros. 2.) Does being unselfish make us better? Does it help the people around us? How can we be unselfish at school or at home? Trust: firm belief in the reliability, truth, ability, or strength of someone or something. 1.) The Eagle in our production states Sometimes it shows more bravery to trust another than to climb a mountain. What does this mean? 2.) What is an example of how you have had to show trust in your life? Love: A feeling of deep affection. 2.) What other kinds of love besides romantic are seen in the story? 3.) How do we see Psyche and Eros love grow and change throughout the story? 10

11 Additional Critical Thinking & Classroom Discussion Questions 1.) If Psyche is the protagonist of this story, who would you say is the antagonist? Why do you think so? 2.) Do you think it's fair for Eros to expect Psyche not to be curious about what he looks like? Is it wrong for Psyche to take a peek? Why, or why not? 3.) Is there a moral to this story? 4.) Compare and contrast this story to the fairytale of "Beauty and the Beast." What similar themes, plot events, and character types are seen in each? In what ways are the tales different? Sources Hamilton, Edith. Mythology. Little, Brown, and Company,