Athena greek goddess biography of william

The god of war and one of the great Olympian gods of the Greeks.

Who is athena

He is represented as the son of Zeus and Hera.¹ A later tradition, according to which Hera conceived Ares by touching a certain flower, appears to be an imitation of the legend about the birth of Hephaestus, and is related by Ovid.²

The character of Ares in Greek mythology will be best understood if we compare it with that of other divinities who are likewise in some way connected with war.

Athena represents thoughtfulness and wisdom in the affairs of war, and protects men and their habitations during its ravages. Ares, on the other hand, is nothing but the personification of bold force and strength, and not so much the god of war as of its tumult, confusion, and horrors.

His sister Eris calls forth war, Zeus directs its course, but Ares loves war for its own sake, and delights in the din and roar of battles, in the slaughter of men, and the destruction of towns. He is not even influenced by party-spirit,