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Metis

Mythology
Pronunciation

Understanding ARPABET Pronunciation

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The pronunciation guide uses the ARPABET phonetic system—the same system used in speech recognition and text-to-speech applications.

Vowel Examples:
AE1 = cat, bat
EH1 = bed, head
IY1 = see, me
OW1 = go, boat
UW1 = boot, do
Stress Numbers:
0 = no stress (unstressed)
1 = primary stress (loud)
2 = secondary stress (medium)
Example:
AH0 TH IY1 N AH0
= a-THEE-na (Athena)

The stressed syllable (marked with 1) is pronounced louder and clearer than others.

Quick Definition

Titaness of wisdom and cunning, first wife of Zeus; swallowed by him while pregnant, leading to Athena’s birth from his head—symbolizing strategic intellect.

Detailed Definition
Metis, whose name means “cunning intelligence,” was swallowed by Zeus while pregnant with Athena, fulfilling a prophecy that her child would surpass him. Athena later emerged from Zeus’s head. In poetry, Metis symbolizes wisdom internalized, the subsumption of female intellect into male authority, and strategic thought.
Example
Example in poetry:
Metis, first wife of Zeus, is swallowed while pregnant with Athena in Hesiod’s Theogony; In Orphic hymns, Metis represents primordial wisdom; Ovid alludes to Metis’s cunning in Metamorphoses; Plato references Metis as the embodiment of practical intelligence; Renaissance allegory uses Metis to symbolize strategic thought; Modern feminist poetry reclaims Metis as suppressed female wisdom.
Additional Notes
Metis, first wife of Zeus and goddess of cunning intelligence, was swallowed by him to prevent a prophecy—Athena later sprang from his head; she symbolizes strategic wisdom absorbed into patriarchal power—key in poetry about hidden knowledge, gendered intellect, or the birth of reason.
Also Known As
Titaness of Wisdom First Wife of Zeus Cunning Counsel
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