| REL 5023 - Myth & Religion |
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Myth & Religion REL 5023Wednesdays, 1:00-4:45Course ObjectivesThis course will explore the development and theory of myth. By the end of the course, students should be able to understand, analyze, and discuss
FormatGraduate students will participate in the weekly lectures along with undergraduate students from 1:00 to 3:45. Following that class, we will meet for one hour, seminar style, to discuss additional material and work at the graduate level. Course Calendar: Spring 2009JAN 7 Intros; syllabus. What is myth? Myth, ritual, relationships JAN 14 Myth and Origins. Watunna JAN 21 Functions of myth; myth and meaning (Ausband quiz) Read: AusbandSwinbourne's Hymn to Proserpine JAN 28 Early approaches to myth; myth and ritual DUE: Assignment 1 (Watunna) FEB 4 Frazer: Renewal myth: Lord of the Dance--Osiris---Jesus FEB 11 Mystical myth--mystery cults: Black Orpheus--Courtney FEB 18 Eliade: Cosmological myth; sacred space and time--Adam Read: Eliade (Bio and Thought sections) FEB 25 Ausband: Sociological myth-- Andrea Read: Ausband, ch. 5-7 DUE: theorists assignment MAR 4 May: Psychological myth---Comfort MAR 11 Campbell: The hero's journey-- Mark MAR 16-21 ------------------SPRING BREAK--------------------- over break read Quarantine and May MAR 25 Socially constructed reality; universality vs. particularity--Jackie APR 1 Mythmaking--Carmen DUE: Quarantine assignment APR 8 The Power of Myth--Gina APR 15 Mythtelling: Quarantine redux--Sandra Read = to be read by date shown on syllabus = items in this color are links to required readings Due = to be handed in on the day shown on the syllabus TextsIt will not matter what edition you get of these books, or whether you get the hard or paper bound. I have listed one for your reference, but they are all the same for our purposes. Prices cited are from Amazon.S. Ausband Myth and Meaning, Myth and Order Mercer University Press, Macon, GA, copyright 1983 ISBN-10: 0865548994, ISBN-13: 978-0865548992 Price: $25 new; many available online for less Jim Crace Quarantine Picador, copyright 1999 ISBN-10: 0312199511; ISBN-13: 978-0312199517 Price: $11.20; many used available Robert Segal Theorizing about Myth University of Massachusetts Press, copyright 1999 ISBN-10: 1558491910; ISBN-13: 978-1558491915 Price: $23; used available Burton Mack The Christian Myth: Origins, Logic, and Legacy Continuum International Publishing, copyright 2001 ISBN-10: 082641543; ISBN-13: 978-0826415431 Price: $19.75; used available AssignmentsGenerally, we will conduct our grad meeting as a seminar, focused on discussion and student presentation. Each student will be expected to lead discussion on one of the assigned books or the theorists they have researched. Students should read the texts on their own, but must be prepared to discuss a text or a topic being dealt with in a given class (we will draw up a schedule that gives everyone adequate notice.) Each student will have at least one class period in which to present. Insights gleaned from the books should be applied and evident in the written assignments. Assignment 1: Applied TheoryAfter viewing the video on the myth cycle Watunna, write a short (6-10 pp?) essay responding to the following questions: Watunna recounts part of the myth of a tribal people.
Move to a more general discussion of the relationship of ritual and myth, e.g.:
Obviously, this assignment will require you to read up on the arguments of the myth and ritual school (do a little further research, but this is not primarily a research paper). Your essay should demonstrate astute analysis, but also a grasp of the key issues involved in the relationship of myth and ritual. i would expect that you would be referencing sources here, and doing it properly. Assignment 2 : Theories and TheoristsYou will be assigned five theorists (from the list below) on which to do some basic research. For each theorist, use Segal's schema (as described in the introduction to the assigned text) and answer the following questions, based on the views of the particular theorist. Answer in a simple phrase; use no more than 10 words for each answer:
Assignment 3 : MythmakingRead Crace's Quarantine and Mack's The Christian Myth. Prepare a detailed series of notes for a hypothetical lecture on the subject of how myth develops. Use the novel(s) as your illustration, and build your case using the other materials from the course and your own insights. Take particular care to note the postmodern perspective and Mack's insights. How does this position affect the whole concept of myth and the nature of its genesis? We will bring these all together in seminar and use them as the basis of our discussion. Nonetheless, prepare them to be handed in as a written assignment. LinksREL 3109 (The Power of Myth) THIS SYLLABUS IS SUBJECT TO CHANGE AT THE INSTRUCTOR'S DISCRETION |