Where Eris got her name

Greek mythology is, in my opinion, fascinating. Enid Blyton's 'Tales of Long Ago' was my very first foray into those stories that are all so intertwined with each other. The problem with mythology, which is also one of the most fantastic things about it, is that when you set out to explain one myth, you end up talking about at least one other. For example, you start out with the myth of Daedalus and Icarus, flying to freedom from their imprisonment on Crete. However, from there, you wonder why they were imprisoned on Crete. So we learn about the Minotaur. And then, of course, we start to hear about Theseus. Which leads us to Athens. The myths are all so woven up with each other that it is difficult, if not downright impossible, to tell just one.

Which leads us back to the original question; why Eris?

Eris is, in all honesty, my favourite goddess. She has just one main myth, but that myth is the founding root of one of the most famous stories of the Ancient Greek world; the Trojan War.

Some people blame Paris (not the city), some Aphrodite, and others still blame Helen. People with a little knowledge of Greek society, history and mythology, will blame Agamemmnon and his lust for power and glory. However, when you get to the root of it, Eris was the source of all the trouble. This is why I like her. She was the goddess of discord, and she shows what one little action can do, if done at the right time. If she had been the goddess of everyone-playing-together-nicely, there would have been no wars in the ancient world. At least not in the mythology side. Peleus, a mortal, and Thetis, a goddess (albeit a minor one) got married. Huzzah! Weddings are always a cause for celebration. This one was arranged, which eventually led to Thetis getting bored of her mortal husband and wandering back to the sea. The gods all wanted to claim Thetis as their own, because she was beautiful. Then Zeus heard a prophecy that the son of Thetis would be greater than his father. So he married her off to a mortal. Phew. Crisis averted (Incidentally, Thetis' son was named Achilles. Which should ring some bells).

All the gods and goddesses, and some mortals, were invited to the wedding. Apart from Eris. Rather than turn up and proclaim that a child would prick their finger on a spinning wheel, she merely showed up at the wedding, pouted and sulked a bit, and threw an apple into the midst of the guests. A golden apple, with 'For the Fairest' inscribed on it. Hera, Athena and Aphrodite all claimed it. They turned to Zeus to resolve the issue. Zeus, being a canny god, refused to choose between his wife and daughters. So he delegated to a mortal. Paris, Prince of Troy. The goddesses all promised Paris gifts if they picked them. Hera, Queen of the gods, promised him untold power. Athena, goddess of wisdom, vowed that he would be the wisest of men. Aphrodite, goddess of love, told Paris that if he picked her, he would gain the love of the most beautiful woman in the world. Paris picked Aphrodite.

The most beautiful woman in the world was Helen of Sparta. Wife of Menelaus, brother of the greatest king in Greece, Agamemmnon. When Helen, intoxicated with love for Paris at the will of Aphrodite, ran off to Troy, the Greeks declared war.

This is why Eris is so fantastic. She doesn't do much, but what she does spawns plays (Aeschylus' Agamemmnon, among others), epic poems (Yep, the Iliad) and a multitude of myths. She is an example of the fact that even the smallest actions have huge consequences.

Also, I could babble on for pages about all the myths relating to the Trojan War. I won't. But I could. I strongly advise people to just browse the internet, or find a classical dictionary of mythology in the library (Or I could lend you one, I have eleven). If nothing else, mythology is just a fantastic way to pass the time by reading a lot of interesting, interwoven, and often bloodthirsty stories.