The Tale of Theseus versus The Tale of Perseus Archetypes

There are many archetypal connections between the story of Theseus and Perseus and one of them is the hero out to prove his worth. While this also encompasses the hero archetype, I think this is also a specific kind of archetype. You have your ordinary hero who saves the planet, but then there's another type of hero who embarks on a quest in order to prove their worth and their heroism.

In the case of Perseus, he unintentionally embarks on what is supposed to be an impossible quest to kill Medusa the Gorgon in order to give the king Polydectes "the perfect gift". With the divine guidance and aid of Athena, the goddess of battle strategy, and Hermes, the messenger god, Perseus manages to kill Medusa and returns with her head as a gift to Polydectes. However, Perseus, accidentally or no, holds the Gorgon's head eyes forward and turns everyone in the banquet hall to stone. So Polydectes and his courtiers never really got to acclaim Perseus with the honour he had set out to achieve, but at the end of the day, he acquitted himself with enough honour by ending Polydectes' cruel reign.

In the story of Theseus, he has to travel to Athens and show his king father a particular sword that was kept for him, and right off the bat, instead of traveling the safe route of the sea, he decides to trek overland to Athens where there are bandits at every corner. He kills almost all of them and becomes popular and well known throughout Greece as the protector of the weak and travellers along the road. This is not the only time Theseus tries to acquit himself with honour. Because he is a danger-loving individual, he decides to become a tribute to enter the Labyrinth to kill the Minotaur. With his bare hands. He succeeds and wins the hand of Ariadne, who gives him the way out of the Labyrinth in the first place, due to her unconditional love for him. This is a bit of a spoiler alert, but this reminds me of a section in the book series A Song of Ice and Fire by George R.R. Martin. In the second book, A Clash of Kings,   Theon Greyjoy has to prove to his men from the iron islands that he was not "softened" by living with the Starks for ten years, and that he is a trueborn man of the iron islands and will pay the "iron price". Thus, he sets out to kill the last two remaining male members of the Stark family to prove himself to his men.

In conclusion, the archetype that the tale of Perseus and Theseus have in common would be the hero trying to acquit himself with honour or by proving himself as a better man. In the case of Perseus, it was killing Medusa and bringing her head back, turning a tyrant and his court to stone in the process. In the case of Theseus, it was ever-present in the many adventures he had, from his journey to Athens to his encounter with the Minotaur.