With the release of Christopher Nolan’s Odyssey, the nation is yet again captivated by Greek Mythology. With popular actors like Tom Holland, Zendaya, and Anne Hathaway, people get to see Homer’s epic poem from the late 8th century Greece come to life. The poem shows the action-packed journey of Odysseus travelling home from Troy. The Iliad and the Odyssey were among the earliest of its kind to be recovered. They set up the narrative for a lot of adventure stories and superhero movies we see today. But the Odyssey isn’t the only Greek Myth-related media that has caught the attention of the modern world.
On of the most popular references of Greek Mythology in today’s pop culture is the Percy Jackson series. The book series, written in 2005-2009 by Rick Riordan, sparked the creation of two film spinoffs that became very popular. The first film series, the Percy Jackson movies released in 2010-2013, helped a perfect book series from our childhood come to life. This movie series got the generation that grew up with it to be interested in the unique world of Greek mythology. From classes in middle school learning about the crazy way Zeus gave birth to Athena, to taking online personality quizzes to find out which divine parent you would have at Camp Halfblood, this generation has always been interested in Greek Mythology. But this interest isn’t just ending with the kids of the early 2000’s, another adaptation of the series released in 2023. This tv show goes more in depth about the original book series with episodes exploring the adventures of Percy Jackson, played by Walker Scobell. This release captivated the generation to follow those changed by the 2010 series. But what about before the world of Camp Halfblood? Did the interest of Greek Myth start with this iconic series?
Percy Jackson wasn’t the first time Greek Mythology has been brought to a younger audience. In 1997, Disney released the popular depicting the story of the Greek hero Hercules. Disney turned a popular Greek myth into an entertaining animated film that helped a young audience learn about Greek Myth. The movie depicts Greek Gods and Goddesses like Zeus and Hera, mythological creatures like the Pegasus, and represents the most intriguing aspect of Greek Mythology which is that the Gods and Goddesses of Olympus have very real and human personalities. Before Percy Jackson made it cool for a new generation, Disney had already introduced millions of kids to Mount Olympus.
Greek mythology, architecture, and storytelling have affected so many of the things we see today. An iconic superhero, Wonder Woman, is Amazonian, a group that had encounters with the Greek heroes. Mentioned in the Iliad, this powerful group of women inspired a popular hero in the world of DC comics. Alongside just movies and comics, the neo-classical architecture style originating in the 18th and 19th century draw directly from Ancient Greek building style. Famous buildings like the White House, British Museum in London, and the Jefferson Memorial are perfect examples of this regal architecture style. Greek beauty and mythology even have influence today on social media with trends like “blessed by Aphrodite” to show-off your stunning features, and the comparison of Connor Storrie’s physique to a “Greek God”. Aesthetically, Greek influence has always been popular. The light linens and gold accents are staples of a classy-summer appearance. People are always talking about Greek Mythology and influence- without even necessarily noticing it.
It’s important to be involved with stories from the past, and it is forever interesting to see what the ancient people of a faraway land believed in and told stories about. I hope the trend of Greek Myth and aesthetic keep remerging from generation to generation, to keep us all mesmerized by this unique ancient group of peoples.
Sources:
Percy Jackson & the Olympians: The Lightning Thief (2010) – IMDb
The Iliad by Homer | Read Free Online
Top 25 Examples of Neoclassical Architecture – Architecture of Cities