if Greek and Roman mythology something you studied read about or perhaps just something you enjoy
then it's very likely the one-eyed giant figure that is the Cyclops is something you're more than familiar with
I know for me growing up the Cyclops always stuck out more than other creatures
but that might just be because I found a giant with one eye in the middle of its face a bit weird and honestly quite disturbing
before we go any further there is one thing I'd like to discuss and it's something I've certainly thought about for a while
and that is the collective or the plural term for a Cyclops
when I was younger I always just referred to them as cyclopses but that isn't correct
so when I looked into it further it appears that it's something people have been debating for some time
and there are some quite interesting ideas to say the least
these can range anywhere from a pack of Cyclops to a herd and even cyclopi in some cases
which to me just sounds like a one-eyed octopus
the actual term that most people seem to agree on when referring to multiple Cyclops is Cyclopes
and that's what I'll be referring to them as for the remainder of this video
the word Cyclops itself when translated roughly means circle eyed or round eyed
which of course refers to the giant eye that sits in the middle of its forehead
now as for the origins of the Cyclopes and they were the children of Uranus and Gaia
making them brothers to the hecatonchires and the titans
according to the Greek poet Hesiod along with the Hecatonchires the Cyclopes were seen as monstrous by their siblings and their father
and when the titans overthrew their father Uranus
Cronus then imprisoned both the Hecatonchires and the Cyclopes in the darkest pits of Tartarus
and placed a dragon outside to ensure that they would never escape
as to why he would do this there are several potential explanations
they could have been scared of the Cyclopes and what they were capable of
they could have also shared their all as the same or maybe they just didn't like the fact that they were different from them
whatever the reason was they would rather throw their brothers into Tartarus than rule the earth with them
the hecatonchires in the Cyclopes remained in Tartarus until they heard a voice from above asking them for their assistance
this was the voice of Zeus who told them that if they help the Olympians defeat the Titans then he would free them and they could live normal lives on earth
well as normal as a one-eyed Giants life can get
they accepted Zeus's offer and when the war was over the Cyclopes and the hecatonchires were set free
where they would act as the craftsmen and guardians to the gods and their secrets
Hesiod referred to three Cyclopes by name Argos brontes and stare Steropes
whom he considered to be the children of Uranus and Gaia and the craftsman to Olympus
they would often be depicted by their Forge as their names were closely linked to blacksmithery and masonry
pretty much every trinket, artefact, weapon or piece of armour used by the gods came from either the Cyclopes or Hephaestus
the Greek poet callimachus described the Cyclopes as the helpers of Hephaestus
the noise emitting from volcanoes was often explained as the Cyclopes and Hephaestus working at their Forge
they also created Zeus's Thunderbolt Poseidon's trident and even Hades helmet of Darkness
all three of these creations arguably contributed to their success and the dethroning of the titans
Zeus's Thunderbolt is an interesting point of discussion because all three brothers came together each given an element that reflected their name
Argos the bright on the vivid added brightness
Brontes the Thunderer added thunder
and Steropes the lightener added lightning
and thus Zeus's iconic thunderbolt was created
they also made Artemis's moon bow and the Sun bow of Apollo
which is quite ironic when we look at the play Alcestis written by the Greek poet Euripides
in this play Apollo is so incensed that Zeus had struck down his son Asclepius with a thunderbolt that he then turned his attention to its creators
rather than retaliate against his own father Zeus Apollo instead killed the Cyclopes presumably with the bow that they created
this of course solves nothing and only served to further anger Zeus
who sent Apollo to Thessaly where he would be the servant of King Admetus for an entire year
Zeus having grown quite fond of the Cyclopes and wanting to remain loyal because of their assistance
then travelled to the underworld where he resurrected them along with Apollo's fallen son Asclepius
there are some versions of this myth that state the Cyclopes were never resurrected
instead their spirits roam the volcano of Mount Etna in Sicily
Euripides also wrote a play titled Cyclops from which he drew inspiration from homer and his Odyssey
in this play there is only one Cyclops who lives on Mount Etna
this depiction differs quite drastically from that of Hesiod
the Cyclops here is an angry cannibalistic and rather stupid character
who ends up being blinded and punished for not respect in the Rite of hospitality
this kind of satirical take on the Cyclopes was quite common as a response to homers story which at the time was criticised by quite a few
so now we move on to perhaps the most famous story featuring a cyclops
the encounter between Odysseus and Polyphemus in book 9 of Homer's Odyssey
similar to the stories we've just discussed
Odysseus and his men land on the island of the Cyclops just off the coast of Sicily
Homer described the Cyclopes as giant one-eyed shepherds who were the children of Poseidon and the Nymph Thoosa
Oddyseus and his men come across a cave full of provisions
and being in desperate need they decide to enter
little did they know that this cave belongs to the Cyclops Polyphemus who had just returned home with his cattle
Odysseus and his men would not find the hospitality that they were expecting
as Polyphemus blocked the entrance to the cave with a giant stone and then ate two of his men
the next morning he ate two more men and left to tend his cattle
which left the Odysseus and his men to hatch a plan of escape
when the Cyclops returned home that evening he again ate two more of Odysseus's men making it six in total
Odysseus then offered his captor some wine but this wine had not been diluted and the Cyclops was soon drunk
he would then ask Odysseus for his name promising to give him a gift if he answered
to which Odysseus responded "my name is nobody"
Polyphemus then promised that he would eat nobody last
when the Cyclops passed out Odysseus took a wooden stake that he had hardened over the fire
and drove it through Polyphemus his eye blinding him in the process
Polyphemus screamed in agony and alerted the other Cyclopes
but his calls for help were ignored as he screamed "nobody has hurt me" "nobody has blinded me"
leaving the other Cyclopes confused and unsure as to what had truly happened
the next morning he let out his sheep and closed the entrance to the cave once again not wanting the men to escape
Odysseus and his men however had tied themselves to the underside of the Sheep as the blinded Cyclops would never see them
once out of the cave Odysseus and his men returned to their ship and set sail
but not before Odysseus made the mistake of boasting that he had escaped the Cyclops
telling Polyphemus his true name so he may know the man who bested him
this would ultimately backfire horrendously as Polyphemus told his father of the man who blinded him
Poseidon then rained down rocks upon his ship which they were barely able to escape
I know whatever I cover Greek myths and stories there are quite a few people who also like to hear about some of the Roman iterations
so in response to this story by Homer the Roman poet Virgil mentions Polyphemus in what he considered to be a sequel to homers story
in his very own epic poem the Aeneid
in this story the hero Aeneas and his crew land on the same island shortly after escaping the Trojan War
they come across a man from Ithaca who was stranded on the island during Odysseus's expedition
the man tells them of Odysseus and his story and how he was able to escape
they then see a one-eyed giant using a tree as a walking stick lead in his cattle to the shore
where he washes his bloody eye socket letting out groans of pain that can be heard all across the island
when Polyphemus spots the men in the ship he begins to give chase
but Aeneas, his crew and the man from Ithaca set sail leaving Polyphemus and the other Cyclopes screaming in the distance
Polyphemus does also appear in somewhat of a love story which we can assume took place before he was blinded
this particular story was told by several poets including Ovid and many playwrights that followed
with George frideric handel telling the story in his musical acis and Galatea first performed in 1718
Polyphemus fell in love with a nymph named Galatea
but with the Cyclops not really being described as the most respectful or even pleasant individual his advances were rejected
instead Galatea fell in love of a handsome man named Acis
and so Polyphemus did what any decent man or Cyclops would do in this given situation
he accepted the woman he loved feel the same and just moved on
naaah I'm just messing with you he took a giant boulder and squashed a kiss because there's no competition if you just squash them of boulders
the blood of a kiss would then form a river with the same name and he would become the spirit of that river
so the whole me squash your lover you marry me now didn't really work for Polyphemus
because he is what we call in mythological terms a one-eyed twat
okay so maybe that's not a technical term but you get the point
Hesiod Cyclopes pretty cool craftsman Polyphemus big angry man-eating dum-dum
the Cyclops is a creature mentioned by countless Greek and Roman poets
and these depictions can vary from brilliant craftsmen to cannibalistic Giants
and in some cases big fat oafs who serve no other purpose but to make us laugh
it is quite interesting to see such varying descriptions
Hesiod believed them to be quite intelligent blacksmiths and craftsmen who were civilised and obedient
whereas Homer portrays them as wild cannibals who have no laws and who live high in the mountains
with little loyalty to even their own kind
the idea of a one-eyed creature or monster is definitely not unique to ancient Greece and Rome
we see one-eyed creatures across many other cultures with one of my favourites being Balor
the one-eyed foromorian of Irish mythology whose eye causes untold destruction in chaos when opened
so pretty much Cyclops from the x-men
overall my opinion on the Cyclopes has changed quite a bit over the years
having seen them in movies when I was younger I honestly just believe them to be evil monsters
but there is definitely more than meets the eye
feel free to let me know what you think in the comments below
which version of the Cyclops had you heard of? and which one do you prefer?
monster or craftsman? let me know in the comments below
as always
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