Lesson plan
Itys
and Procne preparing to kill Itys (Louvre, Paris) In Greek mythology, Itys ( ) is a minor mythological Thracian character, the son of Tereus, a king of Thrace, by his Athenian wife Procne. Itys was murdered by his own mother and aunt and served to be consumed during dinner by his father, as part of a revenge plan against Tereus for assaulting and raping the maiden Philomela, Procne's sister. Following those events, Itys' immediate family were all transformed into birds afterwards, and in some versions he too joins them in the avian kingdom. Itys' story survives in several accounts, the most extensive and famous among them being Ovid's Metamorphoses. His myth had been known since at least the sixth century BC, though myths that would eventually shape the standard tale go back even further.
Article summary
and Procne preparing to kill Itys (Louvre, Paris) In Greek mythology, Itys ( ) is a minor mythological Thracian character, the son of Tereus, a king of Thrace, by his Athenian wife Procne. Itys was murdered by his own mother and aunt and served to be consumed during dinner by his father, as part of a revenge plan against Tereus for assaulting and raping the maiden Philomela, Procne's sister. Following those events, Itys' immediate family were all transformed into birds afterwards, and in some versions he too joins them in the avian kingdom. Itys' story survives in several accounts, the most extensive and famous among them being Ovid's Metamorphoses. His myth had been known since at least the sixth century BC, though myths that would eventually shape the standard tale go back even further.
Key claims
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Discussion questions
- Summarise the article in your own words. Which single claim would you verify first, and why?
- Which claim in this article is most likely to be revised as the sources update? How would you check its current status?
- If two sources disagreed about one of these facts, what would you need in order to trust one over the other?
Bibliography
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Key claims and bibliography are generated from the same tracked claims and sources as the article page.