Works and Days

“Theogony” by Hesiod (730-700 BCE)

“Theogony” is an early creation myth that also details the birth of the Greek gods. The work delves into the battle between the gods and the Titans, and it ends with Zeus’s ascension to the throne as absolute ruler. The tale itself predates Hesiod’s work, being a myth passed down through oral tradition. Along with Homer’s works, however, Hesiod’s “Theogony,” which is over 1,000 hexameter ( a line of verse with six feet) lines, is responsible for much of what we know about Greek mythology. Aside from “Works and Days,” it is the only known long epic of Hesiod’s that survives.

“The Iliad” and “The Odyssey” by Homer (750 BCE)

Homer’s works rest alongside Hesiod’s as source material for much of what we now know about the works of Antiquity and Greek mythology. Homer’s works, however, are more popular than Hesiod’s, having received a longer stint of staying power. Both “The Iliad” and “The Odyssey” are mainstays as far as epic poetry for teaching curriculums, and the works continue to provide source material for pop culture. Like other works from Antiquity, scholars debate whether Homer was an actual person writing or if the works derive from several authors.