Category: | Our Mythical Childhood Survey

Janusz Towpik, Jadwiga Żylińska

Expedition for the Golden Fleece [Wyprawa po złote runo]

Based on: Katarzyna Marciniak, Elżbieta Olechowska, Joanna Kłos, Michał Kucharski (eds.), Polish Literature for Children & Young Adults Inspired by Classical Antiquity: A Catalogue, Faculty of “Artes Liberales”, Warsaw: University of Warsaw, 2013, 444 pp.The story begins when Iolcos, an ancient Thessalian city, was ruled by the usurper King Pelias. Pelias deprived his brother Aeson of the throne, but he didn’t know that Aeson’s lawful successor – Jason – w(...)

literary

YEAR: 1974

COUNTRY: Poland

TAGS: Absyrtus / Apsyrtos Aeëtes Aphrodite Argo Argonauts Circe Clashing Rocks / Symplegades / Cyanean Rocks Dioscuri Golden Fleece Harpies Hecate Hera Homer Jason Lemnos Medea Orpheus Pelias Phaeacia Phineus Phrixus

David Antram, John Malam, David Salariya

Jason and the Argonauts

In this straight-forward retelling of the myth of the Argonauts, the story begins with the prophecy by the oracle who proclaims that Pelias, king of the city-state of Iolcus, should pay attention to his family, because they will deprive him of power. So Pelias decides to kill everyone, showing mercy only to his brother Aeson, whom he throws into the dungeon. When he arrives to kill Jason, his brother's son, he is tricked by Alcimede the boy's mother, into believing that the young man had(...)

literary

YEAR: 2004

COUNTRY: United Kingdom

TAGS: Aeëtes Aeson Alcimede Argo Argonauts Argos / Argus (Constructor of "Argo") Athena Centaur(s) Chiron / Cheiron Colchis Corfu / Kerkyra Golden Fleece Harpies Hera Jason Medea Oracles Orpheus Pelias Poseidon Sirens

Nick Willing

Jason and the Argonauts

Zeus and Hera, looking like a young and handsome couple, peer down at mortals from heaven among the clouds. They are observing Jason’s life from the murder of his father Aeëtes by his uncle Pelias, through his childhood years spent in anonymity away from his home, his return to the King’s court, the forced expedition to seek the Golden Fleece for his uncle, his visit to and escape from the Amazons, the finding of the seer, the arrival in Colchis, Medea’s help in getting th(...)

audiovisual

YEAR: 2000

COUNTRY: United States of America

TAGS: Absyrtus / Apsyrtos Aeëtes Amazons Argo Argonauts Argos / Argus (Constructor of "Argo") Atalanta Castor Clashing Rocks / Symplegades / Cyanean Rocks Colchian Bronze Fire-Breathing Bull Colchian Dragon Colchis Eros Harpies Heracles Hercules Hypsipyle Iolcus Jason Lemnos Magic Medea Olympians Orpheus Pelias Phineus Pollux Prophecy Teeth of the Dragon

José Daniel Cabrera Peña, Neil Smith

Myths and Legends: Jason and the Argonauts

The book describes the quest of Jason and the Argonauts in great detail, accompanied by original paintings by the illustrator as well as maps and photos from other sources. The main story is narrated in the middle, yet there are excerpts in several chapters which illuminate other key points of the story, such as the Golden Fleece, the list of Argonauts, Jason in movies etc. This is not a fiction but rather a narration of the myth aimed at older readership. The book includes an introduction on th(...)

literary

YEAR: 2013

COUNTRY: United Kingdom United States of America

TAGS: Aphrodite Ares Argonauts Athena Circe Golden Fleece Harpies Hera Heracles Hercules Jason Medea Pelias Talos (Automaton)

Nathaniel Hawthorne

Tanglewood Tales for Girls and Boys

Tanglewood Tales is the sequel to Hawthorne’s first volume of Greek myths for children, A Wonder Book for Girls and Boys. In the Introduction to this book, a precocious young storyteller Eustace Bright returns to Tanglewood Manor to visit Nathaniel Hawthorne, and they discuss the success of their recent publication, which, according to the fiction, Eustace composed and Hawthorne edited. Now Eustace presents his friend with a second collection of six stories. Although this volume does not f(...)

literary

YEAR: 1853

COUNTRY: United States of America

TAGS: Aeëtes Aegeus Aethra Ariadne Cadmus Ceres Chiron / Cheiron Circe Crete Delphi Demeter Europa Golden Fleece Hades Hera Heracles Hercules Hermes Jason Labyrinth Medea Minos Odysseus / Ulysses Pelias Persephone Proserpina Telephassa Theseus

Jemal Bagashvili, Aleksander Basilaia, Evgeny Ginzburg

The Argonauts [არგონავტები (Argonavtebi)] / Merry Chronicle of a Dangerous Voyage [Веселая хроника опасного путешествия (Vesёlaia khronika opasnogo puteshestviia)]

The movie presents the myth of the Argonauts in contemporary setting. It starts with an introduction about Tim Severin’s expedition to Georgia in 1984 and then presents the director’s version of the myth. The movie contains most of the main elements of the classical myth. It tells briefly the story of Jason and Pelias, describes the building of “Argo” (which looks exactly like Tim Severin’s “Argo”) and the assembling of the team. Then it presents adventu(...)

audiovisual

YEAR: 1986

COUNTRY: Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR)

TAGS: Aeëtes Amazons Amycus / Amykos Argonauts Argos / Argus (Constructor of "Argo") Colchis Diogenes Dioscuri Golden Fleece Greece Heracles Hylas Jason Laertes Medea Orpheus Pelias Poseidon Sirens Tiphys

Natalia Kapatsoulia, Filippos Mandilaras

The Golden Fleece [Το χρυσόμαλλο δέρας (To chrysómallo déras)]

King Athamas, prompted by his second wife Ino, intends to sacrifice his son, Phrixus, but a golden ram appears and carries Phrixus away. Phrixus and his sister, Helle, ride the flying ram across the seas. Helle falls to her death over a narrow sea passage. At Colchis, Phrixus sacrifices the ram to Zeus and offers its golden fleece to king Aeetes. A dragon guards the fleece. Many years later, Jason requests the golden fleece from Aeetes. To receive it Jason is tasked with ploughing the land (...)

literary

YEAR: 2012

COUNTRY: Greece

TAGS: Aeëtes Apollo Athamas Colchis Corinth Crete Helle Ino Iolcus Medea Orchomenus Orpheus Pelias Phrixus Sirens Talos (Automaton) Zeus