Golden apple

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Greek mythology

Atalanta

"After Atalanta participated in the hunt and received the pelt, her father claimed her as his offspring and wanted her to get married. Although a very beautiful maiden, Atalanta did not particularly want to marry after an oracle

Oracle

An oracle is a person or agency considered to be a source of wise counsel or prophecy opinion; an infallible authority, usually Spirituality in nature....
 told her that she will gain bad luck

Luck

Luck is a chance happening, or that which happens beyond a person's control. Luck can be good or bad ....
 if she marries. In order to get her a husband, her father made a deal with Atalanta that she would marry anybody who could beat her in a foot race. Atalanta happily agreed, as she could run extremely fast.

She outran many suitors. The one that finally became her husband accomplished this through brains, not speed. Hippomenes (also known as Melanion) knew that he could not win a fair race with Atalanta, so he prayed to Aphrodite

Aphrodite

Aphrodite is the classical Greek mythology goddess of love, sex, and beauty. According to Greek oral poet Hesiod, she was born when Uranus was castrated by his son Cronus....
 for help. The goddess gave him three golden apple

APPLE

This article is about the satellite APPLE. For the fruit apple, see Apple. For other uses see Apple .The Ariane Passenger PayLoad Experiment , was an experimental communication satellite with a C-Band transponder launched by Indian Space Research Organisation satellite on June 19, 1981 by Ariane 1, a launch vehicle of the European Spac...
s (sometimes the fruit was quince

Quince

The Quince , or Cydonia oblonga, is the sole member of the genus Cydonia and native to warm-temperate southwest Asia in the Caucasus region....
 instead) and told him to drop them one at a time to distract Atalanta. Sure enough, she quit running long enough to retrieve each golden apple. It took all three apples and all of his speed, but Hippomenes finally succeeded, winning the race and Atalanta's hand. Unfortunately, Hippomenes forgot to thank the Goddess and she turned them into lions"

Main articles: Judgement of Paris

Judgement of Paris

The Judgement of Paris is a story from Greek mythology, which was one of the events that led up to the Trojan War and to the foundation of Rome....
, Apple of Discord

Apple of Discord

An apple of discord is a reference to the Golden Apple of Discord which, according to Greek mythology, the goddess Eris said that she would give "to the fairest" at the wedding of Peleus and Thetis, sparking a vanity-fueled dispute between Hera, Athena and Aphrodite that eventually led to the Trojan War ....

Zeus

Zeus

Zeus in Greek mythology is the king of the gods, the ruler of Mount Olympus and the god of the sky father and List of thunder gods. His symbols are the thunderbolt, eagle, bull , and oak....
 held a banquet in celebration of the marriage of Peleus

Peleus

In Greek mythology, Pele?s was a Greek hero cult who was already known to Homer. Peleus was the son of Aeacus, king of the island of Aegina, and Ende?s, the oread of Mount Pelion in Thessaly; he became the father of Achilles....
 and Thetis

Thetis

Silver-footed Thetis , disposer or "placer" , is encountered in Greek mythology mostly as a sea nymph, one of the fifty Nereids, daughters of the ancient one of the seas with shape-shifting abilities who survives in the historical vestiges of most later Greek myths as Proteus ....
. Left off the guest list was Eris

Eris (mythology)

Eris is the Greek mythology goddess of strife, her name being translated into Latin as Discordia. Her Greek opposite is Harmonia , whose Latin counterpart is Concordia ....
 (goddess of discord), and upon turning up uninvited, she threw or rolled a golden apple into the ceremony, with an inscription that read: ?a???st? or, "for the fairest one." Three goddesses claimed the apple: Hera

Hera

In the Twelve Olympians of classical Greek Mythology, Hera or Here was the wife and older sister of Zeus. Her chief function was as goddess of women and marriage....
, Athena

Athena

In Greek mythology, Athena is the shrewd companion of Hero and the goddess of Hero endeavour. She is the virgin patron of Athens, which built the Parthenon to worship her....
 and Aphrodite

Aphrodite

Aphrodite is the classical Greek mythology goddess of love, sex, and beauty. According to Greek oral poet Hesiod, she was born when Uranus was castrated by his son Cronus....
. Zeus remembered Paris of Troy as being the most beautiful of mortal men and was aware of the bull-judging contest which was soon to come, in which Paris would be judge. So Zeus sent Ares, who disguised himself as a bull, which was one of his symbols. Ares accepted this duty given by Zeus humorously. Being a god, he appeared perfect in all respects and therefore was awarded the Golden Laurels. Zeus deemed Paris as the judge as he knew that Paris would be a fair and equal judge. He gave the apple to Hermes and told him to deliver it to Paris and tell him that the goddesses would accept his decision without argument, and so the goddesses appeared. Each of the goddesess offered Paris a gift as a bribe in return for the apple. First approached Hera who offered to make him a famous, powerful king; next came Athena, who offered to make him wise, above even some of the gods; and last of all came Aphrodite, who said she would give him the most beautiful woman in the world as his wife, Helen at that time, of Sparta (later to be titled Helen of Troy). Paris chose Aphrodite, which would ultimately lead to the start of the Trojan war. Paris soon went to celebrate the marriage of Helen and Menelaus with his brother. They spent the night there, and Menelaus was called to Agamemnon, and thus Helen and Paris were left alone. In this time they made love, and Helen left Menelaus and sailed to Troy with Paris, thus initiating the Trojan War

Trojan War

In Greek mythology, the Trojan War was waged against the city of Troy by the Achaeans after Paris of Troy stole Helen from her husband Menelaus, the king of Sparta....
.

Norse mythology

In Norse mythology

Norse mythology

Norse, Viking or Scandinavian mythology comprises the beliefs, myths and legends of the Norse paganism of the North Germanic language people, including those who settled on Faroe Islands and Iceland, where most of the written sources for Norse mythology were assembled....
, golden apples grant immortal life to the gods. They are cultivated by the Goddess Iðunn

Iðunn

I?unn is a goddess in Norse mythology. I?unn is attested in the Poetic Edda, compiled in the 13th century from earlier traditional sources, and the Prose Edda, written in the 13th century by Snorri Sturluson....
.

One day, Loki

Loki

File:Loke og Sigyn by Eckersberg.jpgIn Norse mythology, Loki is a ?ss or j?tunn . Loki's relation with the gods varies by source. Loki assists the gods, and sometimes causes problems for them....
, Odin

Odin

Odin , is considered the chief ?sir in Norse paganism. Homologous with the Anglo-Saxons Woden and the Old High German Wotan, it is descended from Proto-Germanic *Wodanaz or *Wodanaz....
 and Thor

Thor

Thor is the red-haired and bearded god of thunder in Germanic mythology and Germanic paganism, and its subsets: Norse paganism, Anglo-Saxon paganism and Continental Germanic mythology....
 go on a camping trip. An eagle (a giant in disguise) takes Loki and makes him promise to hand over Idun so that he might wed her and also have eternal youth. Loki agrees and takes Idun to him. The gods don't miss the apples at first but then start to demand where Idun and her apples went. Loki confesses and agrees to get her back under pain of death. He succeeds after a risky flight, and the gods rejoice that they have the apples back.

The golden apples play an important role in the Norse Gods' lives because they are the source of their immortality and perpetual youth.

Golden apples are associated with a leitmotif

Leitmotif

A leitmotif is a recurring musical Theme , associated with a particular person, place, or idea. The word has also been used by extension to mean any sort of recurring theme, whether in music, literature, or the life of a fictional character or a real person....
. It is first sung by Fafner

Fafnir

In Norse mythology, F?fnir or Fr?nir was a son of the Norse dwarves king Hreidmar and brother of Regin and ?tr. In the Volsunga saga, F?fnir was a dwarf gifted with a powerful arm and fearless soul....
, when he explains to his brother Fasolt why they must take Freia away from the gods.

Fairy tales

Many European fairy tales begin when golden apples are stolen from a king, usually by a bird. These include:

In the words of Fairy Tales the Three Golden Apples was with Hippomenes and had given it to Atalanta to trick her so he can win the race.

• Tsarevitch Ivan, the Fire Bird and the Gray Wolf
  Tsarevitch Ivan, the Fire Bird and the Gray Wolf
  
  Ivan Tsarevich, the Firebird and the Gray Wolf is a Russian fairy tale collected by Alexander Afanasyev in Narodnye russkie skazki.It is Aarne-Thompson type 550, the quest for the golden bird/firebird....
  , Russian
• The Golden Bird
  The Golden Bird
  
  "The Golden Bird" is a Brothers Grimm fairy tale, number 57, about the pursuit of a golden bird by a king's three sons.A French version, collected by Paul S?billot, is called The Golden Blackbird....
  , German
• The Golden Mermaid
  The Golden Mermaid
  
  The Golden Mermaid is a German fairy tale. Andrew Lang included it in The Green Fairy Book, attributing it to the Brothers Grimm, but there are noticeable differences between it and the common Grimm version of The Golden Bird....
  , German
• The Nine Peahens and the Golden Apples
  The Nine Peahens and the Golden Apples
  
  The Nine Peahens and the Golden Apples is a Serbian epic poetry. It was published for the first time as a fairy tale by Vuk Stefanovic Karad?ic in 1853....
  , Bulgarian
• Prâslea the Brave and the Golden Apples
  Prâslea the Brave and the Golden Apples
  
  Pr?slea the Brave and the Golden Apples is a Romanian fairy tale collected by Petre Ispirescu in Legende sau basmele rom?nilor....
  , Romanian, where the thief is not a bird but a zmeu
  Zmeu
  
  The Zmeu is a fantastic creature of Romanian folklore and Romanian mythology. Sometimes compared to other fantastic creatures, such as the balaur or the v?rcolac, the zmeu is nevertheless distinct, because it usually has clear anthropomorphic traits: it is humanoid and has legs, arms, the ability to create and use artifacts such...
  

Modern literature

The William Butler Yeats

William Butler Yeats

File:William Butler Yeat by George Charles Beresford.jpgWilliam Butler Yeats was an Irish people poet and dramatist and one of the foremost figures of 20th century in literature....
 poem

I will find out where she has gone

And kiss her lips and take her hands;

And walk among the dappled grass,

And pluck till time and times are done

The silver apples of the moon,

The golden apples of the sun.

See also

• The Golden Apples of the Sun
  The Golden Apples of the Sun
  
  The Golden Apples of the Sun is a collection of thirty-two of the most famous short story by Ray Bradbury. It is named after the W. B. Yeats poem The Song of Wandering Aengus, the last stanza of which reads:...
  
• Apples and oranges
  Apples and oranges
  
  "Apples and oranges" refers to the idiom "comparing apples and oranges" or "apples to oranges", which is used to indicate that two items or groups of items have not been validly compared....
  
• German Apple Front
  Front Deutscher Äpfel
  
  The Front Deutscher ?pfel , also called Apfelfront is a Satire organisation, founded in Leipzig in 2004. It satirizes Neo-Nazism, especially the Nationaldemokratische Partei Deutschlands ....
  
• Westchester County

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