Hermes

Hermes (Mercury) was the god of many things. First, he was the Master Thief. Before the end of his first day of life, he had stolen Apollo’s entire herds. Zeus, his father, made him give them back however, and Hermes received Apollo’s forgiveness when he presented him with a lyre made out of a tortoise’s shell, an instrument that he had just invented. Secondly, he was the God of Commerce and the Market, and the protector of traders. Lastly, he was the God who led deceased souls down into the Underworld. Maia, daughter of Atlas, and Zeus were Hermes’s parents. Hermes had wings on his hat, his magic wand, and his sandals, and because of these he was very swift. He was also the Messenger for his father, who “flies as fleet as thought to do his bidding.”



A nice inclusion of Hermes is in the story of Prometheus and Io. This story is also a great representation of Greek society and ideas. In the story, Prometheus, still bound to a rocky cliff for giving man fire, is told a story by Io. Io is the beautiful daughter of the god Inachus. Zeus falls in love with Io, but the always jealous Hera becomes suspicious of Zeus. Hera arrests Io and puts a hundred-eyed beast named Argus to guard her. Zeus sends Hermes to kill Argus. Hermes puts Argus asleep and then kills him. Though Io is now free, Hera curses her to be swarmed by bugs and pests and become a heifer until she reaches theNileRiver. This story is very reflective on probable Greek ideals. For instance, Hera seems to have a negative connotation. She is also very jealous and angry of Io. Therefore, either the Greeks or the writer didn’t believe these emotions were good for a society. Also, the story reflects how Greeks might have treated their enemies. In the story, Hermes puts Argus asleep by telling Argus long and boring tales. Hermes then kills Argus. This could be used to represent a military strategy called a surprise attack, where the aggressor lets their target think that there will be no attack. The aggressor then attacks while their target’s guard is down. This is very similar to the tale and some military tactics used at that time.
 * Hermes is like Herman Cain because he appears in Greek mythology more often than any other god, and Herman Cain has been in the news lately more than anyone else
 * Hermes is like Warren Buffet because the two are both experts in commerce and wealth
 * Hermes is like Frank Abegnale, a very elusive convict from the 50s, because they are both masters of thievery

Hamilton, Edith. //Mythology//. NY, NY: Grand Central Publishing, 1999. Print.

Connor Clayton and Christopher Terry