Bulfinch’s Mythology · Character

Theseus

Athenian prince who volunteers as tribute to face the Minotaur, then inherits a throne and a reputation for forgetting the debts that made him king.

supporting

Also known as the Minotaur, Minos, King Minos, the ungrateful Theseus

First appearance: Theseus—Daedalus—Castor and Pollux

As a supporting figure in Bulfinch’s Mythology, Theseus is not background color—the story leans on what they do once the chapter opens.

King of Crete, besieges Megara, rejects Scylla's betrayal and gift.

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Theseus enters the Cretan labyrinth as one of fourteen Athenian youths sent to feed Minos's monster, and walks out with a crown waiting in Athens. His heroism is real but tangled with obligation: he owes his survival to Ariadne, and the myths that follow him keep asking whether he repaid what he owed. In Bulfinch's telling, Theseus anchors the Athenian cycle the way Hercules anchors the Theban — a hero whose adventures double as civic founding stories, which is why his ingratitude becomes as memorable as his sword.

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See Theseus in Theseus—Daedalus—Castor and Pollux

Character Web

47 connections

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Relationship types

Other

Character groups

Greek Mythological Heroes
Greek and Trojan Heroes
Miscellaneous Mythological and Romance Figures
Protagonist

+42 more in the full Character Web

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Narrative arc

Story tension across the book — this chapter sits in Exposition.

Setup
Escalation
Breaking point
Aftermath
Closing

This excerpt marks the dramatic climax because it presents the emotional peak of Tristram’s brief reunion with…

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In the story

Theseus appears across 17 companion beats. Open any chapter in the free preview to see the notes beside the text.

Nisus and Scylla
King of Crete, besieges Megara, rejects Scylla's betrayal and gift.
The Golden Fleece—Medea
Another renowned hero who sailed with the Argonauts.
The Golden Fleece
Mentioned as one of the renowned heroes who joined Jason's expedition.
Medea and Aeson
Mentioned as the son of King Aegeus, whom Medea later marries in Athens.
XIX: Hercules—Hebe and Ganymede
Freed by Hercules from Hades after attempting to carry off Proserpine.
Hercules
Admirer and imitator of Hercules; freed by Hercules from Hades after attempting to carry off Proserpine.
Theseus—Daedalus—Castor and Pollux
Son of Aegeus, hero who slays the Minotaur, abandons Ariadne, fights Amazons, and later dies in Scyros.
Theseus
Protagonist; son of Aegeus and Aethra; performs heroic deeds, slays the Minotaur, becomes king of Athens.
Daedalus
Mentioned as the one who escaped the labyrinth built by Daedalus using Ariadne's clue.
Castor and Pollux
Absent from Attica when Castor and Pollux rescued their sister Helen from him and Pirithous.
Ariadne
Ariadne helps Theseus escape the labyrinth, but he ungratefully abandons her on Naxos.
XXIII: Achelous and Hercules—Admetus and Alcestis—Antigone—Penelope
Guest of Achelous, hears the story of Erisichthon and the river-god's defeat by Hercules.
Achelous and Hercules
Guest of Achelous, to whom the river-god tells his story.
Antigone
King of Argos who gives his daughter in marriage to Polynices and aids him with an army to reclaim the Theban throne.
L
Killed the Minotaur in the Labyrinth with Ariadne's aid.
T
Described as son of Aegeus and Aethra, King of Athens, a great hero of many adventures.
Z
Companion of Zetes, a winged warrior.

Chapter companion notes

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See Theseus in Theseus—Daedalus—Castor and Pollux

See Theseus in Nisus and Scylla