Greek Mythology in 16 Books — Discover The Living Greek Myths
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Gaia places a sickle in Cronus’s hands. Ariadne gives Theseus the thread that will guide him back through the Labyrinth. In Corinth, Medea wins one more day before exile. The Living Greek Myths follows these choices from the birth of the cosmos to the households of Greek tragedy.
Written in English by Deivede Eder Ferreira, founder of the Brazilian Association of Philosophy and Psychoanalysis (ABRAFP), and published by ABRAFP International Press, the series brings together sixteen literary retellings. Notes and reflections identify the ancient sources, examine differences between surviving accounts, and discuss the choices made in adapting them.
The Birth of the World and the Succession of the Gods
1. The First Opening: Chaos, Earth, and the Birth of the Greek Cosmos
A shepherd learning to sing the myths must decide what to say about a dispute over water. His story unfolds alongside the opening of Hesiod’s Theogony, where Chaos, Gaia, Tartarus, and Eros emerge.
2. Earth Against Heaven: Gaia, Uranus, and the First Revolt
Uranus keeps his children imprisoned. Gaia seeks a son willing to confront him, and Cronus’s decision begins the first great revolt within the divine family.
3. The Crown That Ate Its Children: Cronus, Rhea, and the Survival of Zeus
Afraid of being overthrown, Cronus swallows his children. Rhea hides Zeus on Crete, where the future ruler of Olympus depends on those who feed, shelter, and protect him.
Fire, Pandora, and Mortal Life
4. Fire Taken from Heaven: Prometheus, Sacrifice, and the Cost of Defiance
Prometheus steals fire for mortals. The volume follows three ancient treatments of his gift and its consequences, drawing on Hesiod, Prometheus Bound, and Plato’s Protagoras.
5. The Jar of Sorrows: Pandora, Hope, and the Making of Mortal Life
After Pandora opens the jar, a community must learn to live with suffering. The retelling gives Pandora a voice, while its reflections examine Elpis, the word for hope or expectation that names what remains inside.
6. The Ages of Humanity: Gold, Iron, and the Greek Imagination of Decline
As a family quarrels over a measure of grain, an old singer recounts Hesiod’s five generations. Gold, silver, bronze, heroes, and iron set an everyday dispute within a story of work and justice.
The Wars of Olympus and the World After the Flood
7. War of the Titans: Zeus and the Battle for the World
To win the war against the Titans, Zeus seeks the help of beings imprisoned under the old order. The retelling follows the making of those alliances and the decisions left to the victors once the fighting ends.
8. Typhon's Challenge: The Monster at the Edge of Divine Order
Typhon confronts Zeus and threatens the Olympian realm. Their struggle tests the god’s ability to sustain the order he fought to establish.
9. When Giants Attacked Olympus: The Gigantomachy and the Mortal Ally of the Gods
The Giants attack Olympus. In this war, known as the Gigantomachy, divine victory depends on the intervention of a mortal ally, Heracles.
10. After the Great Flood: Deucalion, Pyrrha, and the Remaking of Humanity
Deucalion and Pyrrha survive the flood. As the waters recede, they must discover how to repopulate the earth. Their story asks what can be rebuilt after a world has been devastated.
Persephone, Orpheus, and Dionysus
11. The Queen Beneath the Earth: Persephone, Demeter, and the Price of Return
Hades abducts Persephone. Demeter prevents the earth from yielding crops and forces the gods to negotiate her daughter’s return. The Homeric Hymn to Demeter guides this retelling.
12. The Backward Glance: Orpheus, Eurydice, and the Limits of Love
Orpheus obtains permission to lead Eurydice back to the light, on the condition that he keeps walking without looking back. The retelling follows the journey from both characters’ perspectives.
13. The Stranger at the Gates: Dionysus, Pentheus, and the Unmaking of Order
Dionysus returns to Thebes and meets a king determined to suppress his worship. Drawing on Euripides’ Bacchae, the book follows the conflict from the palace to Mount Cithaeron and the consequences Agave brings home.
Ariadne, Deianira, and Medea
14. The Thread in the Dark: Ariadne, Theseus, and the Cost of Escape
Ariadne helps Theseus find his way out of the Labyrinth and prepare the escape of the young Athenians. Once the ship leaves Crete, the story follows her fate and the promise made before departure.
15. The Last Labor: Heracles, Deianira, and the Burden of Return
The women captured by Heracles reach Deianira’s house before he does. Iole is among them. In this retelling of Sophocles’ Women of Trachis, a herald’s account and a robe sent to the hero transform the meaning of his homecoming.
16. The Oath That Burned: Medea, Jason, and the City That Cast Her Out
After Jason marries Creon’s daughter, Medea gains one more day before she must leave Corinth with her children. The retelling of Euripides’ tragedy follows the oath through which she secures Aegeus’s promise of refuge in Athens.
Where to Begin
Start with the myth that interests you most. Each volume can be read on its own. To follow the collection in order, begin with The First Opening.
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