Zeus was the God of Sky, Lightning, Weather and most importantly, the King of Gods and Humans. He had the ability and power to do whatever he desired. There were times when he undermined even the other Olympians, including Apollo. Apollo did not forget how Zeus killed his son Asclepius for treating mortals.
“How dare Zeus treat me, Apollo, god of the sun, poetry and plague, as if I were the merest vermin?” Apollo demanded of the air, to which his words were responded with only a quiet voice in his head. Perhaps I can trick him, weaken him, then take the throne! Apollo thought. “Yes,” he decided, “I shall go to my dear other half, Helios. I am sure he will be glad to pull Zeus down from that damn throne of his.”
Apollo paid a visit to Helios’s palace.
“Hey Helios, how is it going?” Apollo greeted Helios casually.
“Oh Apollo! What wind blew you here today?” Helios was surprised.
Apollo pretended to cough, “Oh it’s nothing, I’m just bored you know, there’s nothing much going on these days. So I stopped by to say hi!”
Helios frowned, “Apollo, are you alright? I heard that Zeus killed your son Alsclepius. I would totally understand if you are feeling down.”
Upon hearing this, Apollo stopped his casual gesture and had a serious look on his face, “You heard. Do you not think it’s ridiculous? Just because he is the father of immortals and mortals does not make him able to do whatever he wants. Him killing my son is like slapping me right in the face! He sees me as nothing but air! I’d have enough of this. I can’t stand this any more.”
“I will make him pay.” Apollo slowly hissed, a stray of hatred in his eyes flashed past.
Helios was stunned, “Oh Apollo…”
Apollo looked at Helios in the eyes, “Do you want to do this together? I have no desire for that damn throne, I only want him to taste the loss of prestige.”
Helios thought thoroughly for a while, then he extended his hand, “Teammate.”
Apollo was delighted at his immediate agreement.
And so began the process of creating the most powerful poison to have ever existed in the hands of Gaea. Months later, the weapon was done, and Apollo slipped it into Zeus’ nectar one night when he was dining.
The poison took effect gradually. As the years passed by, Zeus started to lose his health. He was so sick he could not even rise from his bed. He tried to find the cause of his sickness, yet there was nothing he could find in the world to define his symptom.
Meanwhile, Apollo and Helios began to shine burning heat upon the Earth, and with Zeus’ weakened state, he was unable to halt this.
Year after year, the sun shines through the cloudless sky onto the bare earth, making the ground temperature rise to a new level. The sea level is also rising due to the continuous melting of the ice bergs. This is the cause of global warming.
Analyze of the Myth
The inspiration of the myth came from the sun and the clouds. Briefly speaking, the phenomenon of global warming is the rays of sun being so strong that it even radiates through the clouds and makes the sea level rise. The two main components in this phenomenon are the sun and the sky, including the clouds. In ancient Greek mythology, the Olympian god representing the sun is Apollo (Cundy 5). Also Helios who was born from Euryphaessa and Hyperion (Homer, Homeric Hymns XXXI). There are two choices for the protagonist of this myth, Apollo and Helios, since they both symbolize the sun and have some hostility against Zeus. Yet aside from the god of sun, Apollo is also the god of plague, the god of oracles and prophecy (Cundy 5). He has more chance of succeeding the plan than Helios does.
This short myth has a limited number of characters. There are Zeus, Apollo, Helios, and Apollo’s son Alsclepius. First and second sentences of the story describe some of the titles dedicated to Zeus. Like other Greek gods, Zeus also has many names. The most famous of his names being the god of Sky, Lightning, Weather and also the father of immortals and mortals (Cundy 3). The last title makes him in a higher status than everyone else and it means that he has more ability than others. However, his actions are not worthy of his crown. There are countless times when he made out with wives of other men and was unfaithful to his wife, Hera. This is one of the reasons why I make him the one being pulled down the throne by Apollo. Apollo and Zeus have many conflicts. In this particular myth, Apollo is mad at Zeus for killing his son Alsclepius (Apollodorus, The Library 3 10.4). However, Apollo never mentions taking revenge for his son’s death. Rather than the reason, the death of Asclepius serves more of a fuse for Apollo to enact his plan. From what is mentioned in the Metamorphoses II, Apollo couldn't care less for Asclepius (Ovid, Metamorphoses II 596). He tried to kill Asclepius’ mother when she was pregnant with Asclepius (Ovid, Metamorphoses II 596). What Apollo is mad about is the fact that Zeus made him lose prestige.
Apollo mentions Helios as his “other half”. This is primarily because they are the two gods who have direct relationships with the sun. He is certain that Helios would help him because he believes most of the gods hold some sort of grudge towards Zeus. And indeed Helios dislikes Zeus. In Odyssey XII, Helios’ beloved cattle is eaten by Odysseus’ comrades (Homer, Odyssey XII 352). Even though Odysseus himself does not know about the deed at the time it was done, Helios is still angry at the group (Homer, Odyssey XII 364, 374). Even after Zeus punishes the men for their theft, Helios still dislikes Odysseus and secretly complains about why Zeus does not zap Odysseus too (Homer, Odyssey XII 404).
When Apollo greets Helios in the myth, he talks casually. This way of talk is developed through the inspiration of his image. Apollo is often pictured as a beardless, golden-haired youth (Cundy 5). He is also very outgoing and charming. The Apollo in my myth differs somewhat from the Apollo in early classical Greek authors and poets. He likes to play and tell jokes, and has a very easy going personality. Even when he is discussing serious business with Helios he still has an easy smile on his face. Yet, like other gods, he could not stand being slapped in the face. He regards pride as crucial. Therefore he is immediately angered when Zeus kills his son Alsclepius.
Helios, on the other hand, is much more calm and mature in my myth. He is more collected when Apollo is in a furious mood. In the moment of Apollo reaching out to him, he does not answer Apollo immediately but thinks through the chances of this plan and when he sees the possibility of succeeding, he then replies to Apollo. Nonetheless, to Apollo, Helios still responds in a rather quick speed. He knows that this is a grand plan and has expected Helios to think it through for some days. Therefore he is delighted at Helios’ instant agreement. Though the two are on different channels. Helios thinks Apollo is mad at Zeus for killing Alsclepius, which is the superficial cause, while Apollo is only looking for a reason to pull Zeus off the throne.
Apollo, being the god who could bring plagues with his bow and arrow, has the ability to make poison strong enough to weaken Zeus without notice (Homer, Iliad 1, 22-52). Apollo’s identification with plague first appeared in Homer’s Iliad when he heard Chryses the priest pray for his help to punish the Greeks (Homer, Iliad 1, 22-52). Apollo is a rather kind-hearted god, he immediately shot an arrow with head dipped in sickness towards the Greek camp (Homer, Iliad 1, 22-52). This is a main reason for me to put Apollo as the dominating figure in this plan.
The phrase “hands of Gaea” is a more humorous term for on the planet of Earth. It is meant to be the deadliest “chemical weapon” in history. This is also to praise Apollo’s greatness at developing poison and medicine. This poison works slowly but deadly and there is no cure for it. In order for Zeus to drink without suspicion, Apollo designs it to be tasteless, scentless, and colorless. Also Apollo often drops into Zeus’s drink when he’s nearly unconscious, this timing is a crucial point for the poison to work. The poison does not kill Zeus but makes him fall into deep unconsciousness. In the myth, the clouds signify Zeus’s health. As Zeus weakens, the clouds also become thin and eventually disappear. While the poison is at work, Apollo and Helios shine through the thin clouds onto the earth. This myth mainly explains the phenomenon of global warming through Greek deities.
Bibliography
Cundy, Jody, Module 1: Vulgar vulgate. Ancient Mythology II: Greece and Rome CLAA06. Toronto: University of Toronto P, 2021.
Apollodorus. 2000-2017. The Library 3. Translated by J. G. Frazer.
Homer. 2009. Iliad 1. Translated by A. S. Kline.
Homer. 2000-2017. The Odyssey XII. Translated by A. T. Murray.
Homer. 2000-2017. Homeric Hymns 5-33. Translated by H. G. Evelyn-White.
Ovid. 2000-2017. Metamorphoses II. Translated by Brookes More.