HIS 135: WORLD MYTHOLOGY
North Island College, Winter 2012
Meeting Times: T, TH 1:00 -2:20 pm
Meeting Place: Tyee 201
Instructor: Dan Hinman-Smith
Office: Village G6
Office Hours: Tuesday: 2:30 pm - 4:30 pm (or by appointment)
Office Phone: 250-334-5000, Extension 4024
Home Phone: 250-336-0238 (Do not hesitate to call with course-related questions).
Web-Site: http://www.misterdann.com/
E-Mail: dan.hinmansmith@nic.bc.ca
Course Description
The secret of life, explains the sacred tavern-keeper Siduri in an ancient Sumerian epic, is that there is no secret. "When the gods created man they allotted to him death, but life they retained in their own keeping," she tells the king Gilgamesh. "Fill your belly with good things, dance and be merry, feast and rejoice. Let your clothes be fresh, bathe yourself in water, cherish the little child that holds your hand, and make your wife happy in your embrace; for this too is the lot man. " This course will in some ways defy the strictures of Siduri in returning to the questions that rest at the centre of world mythology. Who are we? Where do we come from? Where are we going? What is the nature of the cosmos? What is the relationship between the individual, the family, the community and the transcendent? How are life and death intertwined? We will discuss such questions in a philosophical context but the thrust of the course will be to use an historical and comparative framework that analyzes particular mythic traditions. Rather than attempt to encompass all of world mythology within a one-semester course, we will focus upon the myths of Greece, Mesopotamia, Egypt, Northern Europe, Mesoamerica and the Pacific Northwest as case studies.
Tentative Class Schedule
Week 1
Thursday, January 5
a) Introduction
b) Video: "Theseus And The Minotaur"
Week 2
Tuesday, January 10
a) Discussion: Of Ariadne's Thread And The Minotaur's Gaze: An Intensive Focus On The King Minos Legend
b) Name That God
Reading Assignment:
Browse extensively in Ariadne's Thread and The Minotaur's Gaze
Thursday, January 12
a) Discussion: Of Pandora's Box and Prometheus's Fire: Gods And The Mortals
b) Video: "Aegean: Legacy of Atlantis" (50 mins.)
Reading Assignment:
Browse extensively in Pandora and Prometheus
Week 3
Tuesday, January 17
a) Lecture: Of Zeus And Jerry Springer -- The Olympian Pantheon
Reading Assignment:
Browse extensively in Pandora and Prometheus
Thursday, January 19
a) Video: "Jason and The Argonauts"
Week 4
Tuesday, January 24
a) Discussion: The Trojan War
b) Lecture: Sing Of The Wrath Of Achilles -- The Trojan War
Viewing Assignment:
"
Optional Reading Assignment:
Browse extensively in Homer and The Trojan War
Thursday, January 26
a) ***C.S.I. Delphi Class Presentations
Week 5
Tuesday, January 31
a) Lecture: Hero's Journey -- Heracles, Perseus And Oedipus As Case Studies
Thursday, February 2
a) Lecture: Welcome To Middle Earth -- Norse Mythology, Part I
Listening Assignment:
"
Week 6
Tuesday, February 7
a) Discussion: Yggdrasil -- The Tree In World Mythology
b) Lecture: Welcome To Middle Earth -- Norse Mythology, Part II
Reading Assignment:
Browse extensively in
Thursday, February 9
a) Discussion: Flood Myths
b) Video: "Mesopotamia -- Return To Eden"
Reading Assignment:
Browse extensively in
Week 7
Tuesday, February 14
a) Discussion: Epic Of Gilgamesh
Reading Assignment:
Epic Of Gilgamesh
Thursday, February 16
a) Lecture: Mesopotamian Mythology
***First Half Portfolio Due
NO CLASS WEEK OF FEBRUARY 20-24 (Reading Break)
Week 8
Tuesday, February 28
a) Lecture: Way To Eternity -- Egyptian Mythology
Thursday, March 1
a) Video: "Shangri-la"
Week 9
Tuesday, March 6
a) Discussion: Green Man
b) Video: "Beowulf" (Clash Of The Gods)
Reading Assignment:
Browse extensively in Green Man Discussion Topic.
Thursday, March 8
a) Discussion: King Arthur And The Holy Grail
b) Lecture: King Arthur And The Holy Grail
Viewing Assignment:
"
Listening Assignment:
"
Reading Assignment:
Browse extensively in
Week 10
Tuesday, March 13
a) Video: "Maya: The Blood Of The Kings"
Thursday, March 15
a) The Flayed God: Mesoamerican Mythology
Week 11
Tuesday, March 20
a) Video: "The Underworld"
b) ***Trip Of A Death-Time Mini-Presentations and Discussion
Thursday, March 22
a) Discussion: Theorists of Myth (1): Carl Jung
b) Video: "The Trickster"
c) Video: "The Forest"
Reading Assignment:
Browse extensively in
Week 12
Tuesday, March 27
a) Discussion: Power Of Myth
b) Video: Selections from "Power Of Myth Series"
Reading Assignment:
Joseph Campell, Power Of Myth
Thursday, March 29
a) Discussion: Theorists of Myth (2) -- Marija Gimbutas
b) Video: "The Goddess Remembered"
Reading Assignment:
Browse extensively in
Week 13
Tuesday, April 3
a) Discussion: Myths Of Creation And Destruction
b) Lecture: Myth Theory
Reading Assignment:
Review the web-site Big Myth
Browse extensively in
Thursday, April 5
a) Lecture: The Mythology Of The Sun And Moon
Week 14
Tuesday, April 10
a) Discussion: A Story As Sharp As A Knife
Reading Assignment:
Robert Bringhurst, A Story As Sharp As A Knife: The Classical Haida Mythtellers And Their World
Thursday, April 12
a) Final Exam Review
***Second Half Portfolio Due
Week 15:
FINAL EXAM: TBABooks
Epic of Gilgamesh, trans. N.K. Sanders. London: Penguin, 1972.
Bringhurst, Robert. A Story As Sharp As A Knife: The Classical Haida Mythtellers And Their World. Vancouver: Douglas and McIntyre, 1999.
Campbell, Joseph. Power of Myth. New York: Doubleday, 1988.
***n.b.: You are responsible for ordering Joseph Campbell on your own and are free to choose between the book ( Power Of Myth ); the audio book ( Power Of Myth ); and the documentary series ( Power Of Myth ).
Optional Book
In past semesters, I have used the Scott Littleton text listed below. Unfortunately, it is presently out-of-print. There is certainly no need for you to order this book, though particularly eager students may be interested in searching used book sources for discount copies.
Littleton, C. Scott, ed. Mythology: The Illustrated Anthology of World Myth and Storytelling. London: Duncan Baird, 2002.
Evaluation
Letter of Introduction 1%
First-Half Portfolio 33%
Second-Half Portfolio 33%
Final Exam 23%
Class Participation 10%
a) Letter of Introduction (1%)
Who are you? Where are you from? What are your interests? Why are you taking this course? Do you have any questions, concerns, or suggestions as we start the course? Write two or three informal paragraphs for the second class of the semester to introduce yourself to me.
b) First-Half Portfolio (33%)
The First-Half Portfolio will include the C.S.I. Delphi assignment (50%), the Titans and Olympians worksheet (15%), and the Gilgamesh mini-essay (35%).
c) Second-Half Portfolio (33%)
The Second-Half Portfolio will include the Trip of A Death-Time assignment (60%) and the Campbell or Bringhurst mini-essay (40%).
d) Final Exam (23%)
The Final Exam will ask you to write short essays analyzing paired historical terms. A detailed preparation sheet will be handed out in advance.
e) Class Participation (10%)
The class participation grade will be based upon attendance; pre-class preparation; and the willingness to contribute thoughtfully to full-class and small-group discussion. Although attendance is not required, I will take roll, and those who are not in class regularly will receive a poor grade for this component of the course. I would like to encourage a classroom environment in which all are eager to share their ideas and in which lectures are accompanied by thoughtful dialogue.
Assigning class participation grades can be quite arbitrary. When I assign participation grades at the end of the semester, I place each student in one of three following categories:
1) Regular class attendance and excellent class participation.
2) Regular class attendance and fully satisfactory class participation.
3) Irregular class attendance and preparation.
Those in Category 1 receive top participation grades. Those in Category 3 receive poor participation grades. Those in Category 2 are most likely to receive no specific participation grade but rather have the 90% total for their written work pro-rated to a 100% scale (in some cases the participation component may help a Category 2 student's final grade but in no instance will it lower the final grade). Thus, shy students are not penalized for class participation so long that they attend faithfully and I need only to distinguish between strong, satisfactory and weak participation rather than attempt to make fine distinctions.
A Note On Plagiarism
Everything that you hand in should be your original work unless otherwise indicated. Violations of this policy may result in failing an assignment or the course in its entirety. Please talk to me if you have any uncertainty about what is permitted here.
Welcome To The Course
