Zeus is the chief god in Greek mythology: king of the gods on Mount Olympus, ruler of the sky and of thunder, and in the stories the one who finally decides things among gods and people. His weapon is the thunderbolt, his bird is the eagle, and Roman writers called the same god Jupiter, so when you read a Roman story about Jupiter it is the same figure under another name.

Zeus is the chief god in Greek mythology:Zeus是希臘神話裡的眾神之王：king of the gods on Mount Olympus,住在奧林帕斯山上，ruler of the sky and of thunder,統治天空和雷電，and in the stories the one who finally decides things among gods and people.故事裡最後總是由他來決定神和人之間的事。His weapon is the thunderbolt, his bird is the eagle,他的武器是雷電，他的鳥是老鷹，and Roman writers called the same god Jupiter,而羅馬的作家把同一位神稱為Jupiter，so when you read a Roman story about Jupiter所以你讀到羅馬故事裡的Jupiter時，it is the same figure under another name.其實就是同一個角色換了個名字。

He is not a distant, perfect god. The myths make him a family man with a very complicated family — married to Hera, endlessly unfaithful, father of Athena, Apollo, Artemis, Hermes and many heroes including Heracles — and much of Greek storytelling grows out of his affairs and Hera's anger about them.

He is not a distant, perfect god.他不是一個遙遠、完美無缺的神。The myths make him a family man with a very complicated family神話把他寫成一個家庭很複雜的一家之主——— married to Hera, endlessly unfaithful,娶了Hera赫拉，卻不斷外遇，father of Athena, Apollo, Artemis, Hermes and many heroes including Heracles是Athena雅典娜、Apollo阿波羅、Artemis阿蒂蜜絲、Hermes荷米斯，還有包括Heracles海克力士在內許多英雄的父親——and much of Greek storytelling grows out of his affairs and Hera's anger about them.而希臘故事裡有很多情節，都是從他的外遇和Hera的憤怒長出來的。

That matters for reading English, because when a writer calls a man 'a Zeus figure', they usually mean someone powerful, commanding and a little bit dangerous, not someone good. The name also turns up as a general symbol of top authority, in the phrase 'like Zeus throwing thunderbolts' for someone in charge losing their temper, and as a brand and character name in games and films.

That matters for reading English,這對讀英文很重要，because when a writer calls a man 'a Zeus figure',因為當作者說一個男人是「a Zeus figure」，they usually mean someone powerful, commanding and a little bit dangerous,通常意思是這個人強勢、有主導權，還帶點危險，not someone good.不是在說他是好人。The name also turns up as a general symbol of top authority,這個名字也常被當成最高權威的象徵，in the phrase 'like Zeus throwing thunderbolts' for someone in charge losing their temper,像「like Zeus throwing thunderbolts」用來形容主管發脾氣，and as a brand and character name in games and films.也常被拿來當品牌名或遊戲、電影裡的角色名字。