Classics 102 (GS03) Greek and Roman Mythology Theory Slides PDF

CLASSICS 102 (GS03) GREEK AND ROMAN MYTHOLOGY C. Myles Chykerda Sessional Instructor, Department of Humanities WEEK 1.2 Mythology What is myth? Mythology? How do we approach ancient myth? Cultural context Part 1: Cultural Context – why it matters ELEMENTS OF GREEK AND ROMAN CULTURE Classi...

CLASSICS 102 (GS03) GREEK AND ROMAN MYTHOLOGY C. Myles Chykerda Sessional Instructor, Department of Humanities WEEK 1.2 Mythology What is myth? Mythology? How do we approach ancient myth? Cultural context Part 1: Cultural Context – why it matters ELEMENTS OF GREEK AND ROMAN CULTURE Classical Mythology pp. 17-24 Feminist critical theories – “controversial” interpretations of classical myths. Why controversial? Think back to those images of white Roman emperors Shattering the views of 19th century old white dudes, the stereotypical Classicist. Myths, in any culture, can be experienced, interpreted, re-cast, modified, etc, by any member of society. There isn’t, in my humble opinion, a ‘correct’ take This is a reflection of culture being dynamic and multi-faceted. Problems – 1. anachronistic application of our social ideals onto the past. 2. assuming the “Classical” period is one giant homogenous ball of wax as opposed to many cultures interacting over thousands of years. WOMEN IN ANCIENT GREECE Evidence is “meager and conflicting” – largely based on readings of Plato and Xenophon. Gynaikon – women’s quarters of a house. Conflation of concepts of separation and isolation. Challenged by ongoing work including archaeological research. 19th century Victorian views of white men – see how these things keep coming back? Similarly, we can see how stories involving rape can be taken in all sorts of ways depending on the audience. The term ‘rape’ is also something that has had different meanings Compare the situations of Helen and Persephone HOMOSEXUALITY Simply put – homosexuality was part of life in the ancient world and no religious condemnation was present Pegging social expectations can be difficult. “Greek” spans hundreds of years and a vast distance, just as “Roman” does. There WERE social rules in place and accepted and unaccepted ways to act. Numerous examples of important myths having same-sex relations as core theme Focus of research only after the 1950s and the Kinsey Reports. Focault’s History of Sexuality Greek sexuality revealed to be “variegated and inventive” – no consistency or uniformity. Unique. THE TAKEAWAY The role of women, reactions to and concepts of rape, and the prevalence and ‘acceptance’ of homosexuality in the ancient world are all topics difficult to fully comprehend. Look at the myths themselves - and other primary sources like material culture. What does this corpus tell us about these topics and how the ancients viewed them? Ground up rather than top down research Ie. Achilles and Patroclus – if the characters are ‘bi’, Homer simply takes it for granted. It’s not a big deal. But it sure is in the movie Troy where there is an effort to downplay things Part 2: Stories – How they’re classified and studied THERE’S THIS Hardcore mythology BASIC TERMS Myth What does the term ‘myth’ conjure up for you? Traditional? Oral? What medium are they displayed/transmitted in? Does it imply TRUTH? Must religion be the topic? FORMAL CLASSIFICATIONS True Myth / Myth Proper Concerned with gods/divine beings and their relationship with humans Saga / Legend Relationship to history, even if the relationship is tenuous. As long as it is some kind of tie to a historical fact. SPLINTERING OF CLASSIFICATIONS King Arthur – Legend (?) What about The Wedding of Sir Gawain and Dame Ragnelle? Example of the “Loathly Lady” archetype Folktale/Fairytale embedded withing a broader umbrella of Arthurian lore Folk and Fairy Tales Folk: adventure, fantastic beings, hero triumphs. Entertainment Fairy: sub-type containing high moral element. For the young. MYTH AND TRUTH A different way to think about it National/Political myths Washington and the Delaware What might Mircea Eliade say about this? Creation of a world in a holy era Origin myth – political/national cosmogony Spiritual release from historical time? REASONS FOR MYTH Etiological αἰτία: the reason or cause Narrow interpretation – explication of the origin of some fact or custom Broader interpretation – explain something! Morford et al still not happy as it does not identify a MYTH specifically or distinguish it from other stories. Conflicts between theories of source Euhemerism – real events as origins Antirationalists – myth as metaphor and allegory hiding profound meaning Muller – extreme allegory – nature only JUNG AND FREUD Myths as projections of collective unconsciousness Symbols or archetypes are primordial elements that society has come to rely upon. Myth is an expression of this shared and common elements that give us instruction. Heracles and Thesues as models teaching us how to behave. Theories that remain extremely prevalent in academia, but rely on assumed nature of dreams and, taken to an extreme, a belief in a sort of genetic memory binding humanity together (shades of Dune). BUT, does it all matter? Or as Counsellor Troi once told Data, sometimes a cigar is just a cigar. STRUCTURALISM Myth belongs alongside music or language as a form of communication Break things down into structures and their component parts. From their analyses can take place. Levi-Strauss – human behaviour is based on unchanging patterns and the basic structure of the mind constantly deals with binaries in the world: life/death, nature/culture, light/dark. Propp – myths share basic elements (motifemes). They don’t all have to appear, but those that do follow a set sequence (differs from LS’s theory), and each has a constant function. Morford et al see structuralism as useful in organizing study BURKERT – A SOLUTION? Walter Burkert – Classicist who said we need to recognize the historical component, or layers, of myths. Myths differ with the time of telling and the teller. Four theses: Myth belongs to the more general class of traditional tale The identity of a traditional tale is to be found in a structure of sense within the tale itself Tale structures, as sequences or motifemes, are founded on basic biological or cultural programs of actions Myth is a traditional tale with secondary, partial reference to something of collection importance CLASSICAL MYTH – CAN WE DEFINE? The TL:DR of Morford et al’s discussion is we should feel free to approach Classical Myth from all kinds of angles. There is no single or proper way to approach them – and it’s not just about studying them, it’s about experiencing them as well! Myth was varied in the past, just as it is now Text positions Classical myth as a ‘middle ground’ – connected to preliterate forms of myth as much as it is to modern literature. “…is a story that, through its classical form, has attained a kind of immortality because its inherent archetypal beauty, profundity, and power have inspired rewarding renewal and transformation by successive generations” BUT - CAUTION Be wary of idea that puff up grandeur of “Western Civ”