Classics 315: Greek and Roman Mythology

Suggested Readings

It is the expectation and hope of the Instructor that the student will have read all (or at least some) of the items listed for each week before that class actually meets. This will mean that the student will have a sense of what the basic outline of the myth or mythological character is, will have read some at least of the ancient sources about that character (This is, after all, a course in a language and literature department, and the literature in itself interests your Instructor, at least), and will perhaps have problems or questions that can be addressed efficiently. The Instructor welcomes questions at any time: better to say you aren't following some thing and get a clarification, than to have the course move on into deepening perplexity. The readings also form the basis for the quizzes and exams. The quizzes basically test whether you have read and discovered the major facts in a chapter or topic; the midterm and final test whether you can organize and compare on a larger scale so that you can see the significance of sets of myths and themes.

Lectures will follow the order of items in the Course Outline

There is now a NEW edition of the textbook:

Barry B. Powell, Classical Myth (Pearson Longman 2008)   SIXTH Edition Paper  ISBN 978-0-13-606171-7

But if you have a copy of the older edition, you can continue to use it for the course. Below is the reading list keyed to the FIFTH EDITION (June 2006).

 

Week 1

INTRODUCTION. Books and Course rules.
"What is mythology?"

Week 2

Basic Principles: Some Ancient Ideas (etymology, aetiology, meteorology)

- Powell, Chapter 1, pp. 1-15;

Week 3

Myth Tools (follow the Myth Tools handout. Be sure to look at the photos under Iconography)

- Powell, pp. 353-357 (Danaë); p. 174-175; 666-677 (Daphne). pp. 635-642; 650-653 (Aeneas, Numitor & Amulius, Rhea, Romulus & Remus)
- Powell, (Xenophanes) pp. 141; 675-676; (Euhemerus) pp. 680.

Week 4

Myth Tools: Modern Theories of Mythology (follow the Myth Tools handout)

-Dumezil and the Tripartite Function Theory
Levy-Strauss and the Structuralist Theory
Freud and the Psychiatric Theory
Jung and the Psychological Theory. New Age Theories.

-Powell, Chapter 24, pp. 689-697.

Week 5

CREATION

- Powell, Ch. 4: pp. 101-103 (Enuma Elish).

Internet Assignment

Week 6

HESIOD'S STORY. THE TITANS. THE THIRD GENERATION (Zeus and the Olympians)

- Powell, Ch. 3: pp. 66-68; Ch. 4: pp. 78-94. (Hesiod).
- Powell, Ch. 4: pp. 88-97

Internet Assignment

Week 7

THE THIRD GENERATION (Zeus and the Olympians). THE FIVE AGES OF HUMANITY. PROMETHEUS.

- Powell, Ch. 5, pp. 112-129; 131-135. Ch. 6:, pp. 141-151 (Zeus and his children).

THE SEA: POSEIDON

- Powell, Ch. 7: pp. 159-162; and pp. 355-362 (Medusa)

Week 8

APHRODITE (Gilgamesh, Adonis & Aeneas)

- Powell, pp. 204-206; 329-340 (Gilgamesh); 256-260 (Adonis)

ATHENA. (Athens and the Contest with Poseidon. Arachne.)

- Powell, pp. 222-226; 496-498 (Argo); pp. 355-359 (the Gorgon).

MIDTERM (Friday)

Week 9

A POSEIDON STORY: (Minos and Pasiphae, Ariadne, Theseus & Hippolytus):

- Powell, pp. 428-439; 254-258 (Cybele & Attis, Aphrodite & Adonis)
- Powell, Ch. 15, pp. 402-406; Ch. 16: pp. 442-459 (Theseus, Ariadne, Phaedra, Minotaur)

Week 10

APOLLO (Cassandra, Cumaean Sibyl, Coronis, Asklepios)

- Powell, pp. 162-177; 582-589 (Cassandra, Orestes).

THE AFTERLIFE, I: THE GEOGRAPHY OF HADES.

- Powell, Ch. 11: pp. 297-309.

Week 11

THE AFTERLIFE, II: THE CULT OF DEMETER AT ELEUSIS

- Powell, Chapter 9, pp. 228-246.

DIONYSOS. Death, Communion, Resurrection. (Myth)

- Powell, Chapter 10, pp. 265-290

Week 12

DEATH AND RESURRECTION. ORPHEUS and Eurydice myth. Orphic Cults and Practices (Spiritual purity)

- "Orphic" lamellae [Text in Handouts, "Orpheus" ]
- Powell, 300-306.

Week 13

HERAKLES: THE TWELVE LABORS

- Powell, Chapter 14 (pp. 369-404 only)
- "Twelve Labors of Herakles" in Handouts

Week 14

SAGA: THE TROJAN WAR. Causes: The House of Pelops. Atreus & Thyestes. Agamemnon and Menelaus. Tyndareus and his family. Achilles, Patroclus.

- Powell, chapter 19 (pp. 536-552; 555-560)
- Powell, Chapter 20 (pp. 571-574; 577).

Week 15

LOOSE ENDS. COURSE ASSESSMENT.

Course Assessment Instrument 

The FINAL EXAMS for SPRING 2009 will be held as follows:

MW 8:00 section:       Wednesday, May 13,   8:00 a.m.
MW 12:00 section:     Wednesday, May 13, 12:45 p.m.