Classical mythology—the stories of gods and heroes ranging from Athena to Zeus—has inspired everything from great art and literature to popular films and TV programs.
This course explores classical mythology’s pantheon of gods and the profound impact mythology has had on Western Civilization. It provides an intellectual and theoretical framework with which to examine the content and purpose of the ancient Greek and Roman myths.
In these lectures, you will explore such topics as mythology’s influence on notions of life, death, and gender roles; its possible origins in prehistoric Greek culture; its impact on such writers as Shakespeare; and its continuing influence on popular culture, from Star Trek to Terminator to UFO sightings.
 Write a Review of Classical Mythology
 
learnoutloud, February 17, 2006
Reviewer: learnoutloud
from Los Angeles, California
In this Teaching Company course Professor Vandiver tackles Classical Mythology of the Greeks and Romans in a very scholarly manner. You may be taken aback at first that she dislikes the theorizing of Joseph Campbell and many other mythology theorists. I like Campbell a lot and find his many lectures fascinating and edifying. But what Professor Vandiver dislikes is how Campbell assumes that myth as a whole embodies a universal spiritual truth and he begins analyzing myths from this theoretical viewpoint. In this series of lectures she doesn’t theorize but rather presents the all the major stories of classical myths to us and then mentions many possible theories that interpret these myths. It is a very well structured and intelligent course which refreshed my memory on the myths of all the Olympian gods, the Greek heroes, and the often violent and erotic stories that they become entangled in. The course also opened me up to a lot of other theories of myth that I was previously unaware of.
- Published:
2002
- Number Of Lectures:
24
- Lecture Time:
30 Min.
- University:
University of Maryland
- LearnOutLoud.com Product ID:
C002611
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12 Discs |
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12 Tapes |
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6 Tapes |
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4 Discs |
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Literature
Poetry
Literature
Ancient & Medieval Classics
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