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Violence Quotes in The Lightning Thief

How we cite our quotes: Citations follow this format: (Chapter.Paragraph)

Quote #10

Up close, I saw the engravings on the gates were scenes of death. Some were from modern times—an atomic bomb exploding over a city, a trench filled with gas-mask wearing soldiers, a line of African famine victims waiting with empty bowls—but all of them looked as if they'd been etched into the bronze thousands of years ago. I wondered if I was looking at prophecies that had come true. (19.73)

If these etchings really are old and ancient, then the gods knew that these horrible events would happen way in advance. Do the gods have any control over Fate? They must have been able to see that World War II (a war between Zeus and Poseidon on one side, and Hades on the other) would happen to a certain extent. We wonder if they tried to prevent it from taking place? How much power do the gods have? This passage seems to tell us that horrible events in the mortal world are directly tied to the immortal world.