CL 222 – GREEK (&) Dr.

Colin MacCormack

ROMAN MYTHOLOGY Spring 2023

TODAY’S AGENDA
Review Syllabus and Schedule So.
You got myth class.
What is (Classical) Myth?
Case Study: Daedalus & Icarus
SYLLABUS & What to Attend When You’re

SCHEDULE Attending
YOUR TEACHING TEAM
Me: Dr. Colin MacCormack
 Email: cdmaccormack@ua.edu
 Office: 215 BB Comer Hall
 Office Hours: Mondays 3-4pm, Tuesdays 1-2pm, or by
appointment (Zoom on request)

Our TA: Lizzie Haywood Saint Jerome in His Study,

 Email: cehaywood@crimson.ua.edu 1451, by Antonio da Fabriano
II
 Office Hours: by appointment

Iris (Ἶρις) goddess of rainbows

and messenger of the gods
COURSE DESCRIPTION &
OBJECTIVES
An introduction to Greek & Roman Mythology
We’re going to study myths in context (historical,
religious, social, cultural etc.), ancient and modern
What I hope you get from this course:
 Cultural Literacy – familiarity with major stories from classical
mythology and their respective sources
 Interpretive Eye – ability to interpret different stories and texts
(literature, film, games etc.) in a variety of ways
 Lastly:
OUTLINE OF TOPICS
Part I – The Olympians
Part II – The Heroes
Part III – The Epics
A NOTE ON CONTENT
This course will occasionally discuss potentially sensitive content present in myths,
including abuse and sexual violence. All such material will be discussed in an
academic, educational, and professional manner. If something said or done in the
classroom either by myself or others that causes offense or discomfort, please let me
know immediately (either in class, privately or anonymously). Likewise, please contact
me if something outside of class is preventing you from fully engaging with the course.
If you have questions or concerns, it is likely you are not alone. By speaking up you are
potentially helping your classmates. If you do not feel comfortable discussing the issue
with me or a TA, please notify your advisor, a trusted faculty member, or a peer. I
encourage you to advocate for an inclusive experience at the University of Alabama.
See also the resources for support and well-being linked at the bottom of this syllabus.
- Syllabus, pg. 6
MATERIALS
Required Texts
 Esposito, S. 2002. Euripides: Medea, Hippolytus, Heracles, Bacchae (Focus)
 Fagles, R. 1982. Sophocles: The Three Theban Plays (Penguin Classics)
 Green, P. 2015. The Iliad; Homer: A New Translation by Peter Green (U of California)
 Lombardo, S. 1993. Hesiod: Works & Days and Theogony (Hackett)
 Lombardo, S. 2010. Ovid: Metamorphoses (Hackett) [An abridged ebook is available through
UA Libraries]
 Johnston, P. 2012. The Aeneid of Vergil (University of Oklahoma)
 Wilson, E. 2020. The Odyssey: A New Translation, Contexts, Criticism (Norton & Co.)

Additional readings will be available online or on Blackboard

Readings to be done before the class they’re posted under (for real, do them!)
See Schedule (Blackboard) for day-by-day breakdown
EXAMS & ASSIGNMENTS
Participation - 20% Weekly Quizzes - 25%
 Daily questions/surveys on Blackboard  Short (10-15 min) multiple choice on that
 Bring some device to answer them week’s readings/lectures
 NB: Come to class as much as you can, it’s  Posted on Blackboard on Thursdays, due
the single best way to do well in this class Friday by 5pm

(Un-)Essay Projects - 25% Exams - 30%

 Choice of standard paper, reception review or  Exam 1 - 10% (Feb 16)
creative project  Exam 2 - 10% (March 30)
 Submit survey by March 9  Final Exam - 10% (May 4 @ 8 am)
 Due April 20  Exam Outline and Unit Guides available on BB
 Key terms/ideas
 Major figures
 Major Texts
ALSO…
See full syllabus for:
 General class policy and other statements
 Wellness resources (with links)
 More jokes!

TLDR: Come to class, don’t cheat, be considerate and respectful, take care of
yourselves (physically and mentally), use available resources (including us)
ALSO, ALSO…
COME TO
GREECE
UA in Greece: Cradle of Civilization
Applications are open through
03/25/2023
Three weeks traveling in Greece (June
10- July 1, 2023)
6 credit hours
See museums, archaeological sites,
monasteries, beaches and more!
Tell your friends
WHAT IS MYTH? I’m Genuinely Asking
MYTHOLOGY
Mythology Greek: μυθολογία
 mythos (μῦθος) “word, speech, story”
 logos (λόγος) “word, discourse, study”

Mythology = the study of myths

But what’s a myth?
 Let’s start with what it’s not
 Myths, Legends, Folktales
LEGENDS
Set in our world, often in (relatively) recent past
Typically feature (historical) human characters
Epitomize societal values and/or a historical figures

Cincinnatus gives up the dictatorship and

goes back to his farm after saving Rome

Weird child-man, George Washington,

confesses to chopping the cherry tree
 Cinderella
and the

FOLKTALES Fairy
Godmother

Often feature everyday, non-special

people (children, farmers, sailors,
bakers etc.)
Magical elements and impossibilities
(e.g. curses, talking animals, witches,
fairy godmothers)
Entertainment and/or moral instruction

Little Red Riding

Hood and the Big
Bad Wolf
MYTHS

Don Cupitt, The World to Come (1982):

 “myth is typically a traditional sacred story of
anonymous authorship and archetypal or universal
significance which is recounted in a certain community
and is often linked with ritual…”

Set in a timeless, ancient, supernatural world

Typically features BIG stuff: gods, demigods,
heroes, monsters, great battles etc.
Is this definition too limiting? Does it describe Battle scene from the Indian epic, the Ramayana.
every kind of myth? What about modern myths
(if those exist) or retellings?
MYTHS IN
CONTEXT
cf. Lisa Maurizio Classical Mythology in Context (2016)
Myths always exist in context
 Particular society, religion, artistic expression
 We should consider myths as parts of a “mythological corpus”

Three Points to Consider:

 Form: whatever shape it takes (oral tradition, poem, comic etc.), a
myth “always includes or itself becomes a metaphor or symbol.”
 Content: “a myth is composed of the religious, political, and
cultural values and meanings about self, society, and cosmos,”
which we have to unpack.
 Function: how might one locate their experience(s) within a
broader framework via myth; what ‘purpose’ might a myth serve
for individuals, groups or society at large.
CLASSICAL
MYTHOLOGY
Our primary context will be Classical Mythology… which is?
From the Latin classis “a naval force, fleet” or “one of the five
classes Roman citizens were divided into”
Classicus (adj.) “belonging to the highest class [of citizens]”
Something ‘classic’ (car, song, joke, episode of tv etc.) is
considered exemplary; it embodies that thing’s ideal
characteristics
In the Renaissance, ancient Greece and Rome became ‘classical’
because they were thought to embody the pinnacle of cultural
success (at least as defined by Renaissance dudes)
CLASSICAL MYTHOLOGY

In short, ‘classical’ mythology

refers to the myths of ancient
Greek and Roman
civilizations
Traditionally, that locates us
around the Mediterranean, ca.
750 BCE – 450 CE
CLASSICAL
MYTHOLOGY
We’ll concentrate on this, but regularly look beyond to:
The Bronze Age (3,300 – 1,200 BCE)
The Near East (Sumer, Babylon, Egypt, Phoenicia)
Other Indo-European cultures (Hittite, Persian, Indian,
Celtic, Norse, Slavic)
Modern reception
Other places (not shown)
Wherever our hearts take us
 LET’S
READ
A MYTH
The Curious Case (Study)
of Daedalus & Icarus
DAEDALUS & ICARUS
The particular version (Form) I’m focusing on is from
Ovid’s Metamorphoses (8.221-78), written ca. 8 CE
 Roman telling of a Greek myth in a poem about transformation

Basic plot:
 The great inventor, Daedalus, and his son, Icarus, are imprisoned
(for minotaur-related reasons) by Minos, King of Crete
 Daedalus fashions wings out of wax for them to fly away
 “Stay in the middle, Icarus. I warn you, if you go lower the
water will weigh down the feathers; higher, the sun’s heat will
scorch them. Fly in between…”
 Icarus flies too high, his wings melt, and he crashes into the sea

Pieter Brueghel, Landscape with the Fall of Icarus,

1558
CONTENT & FUNCTION
What is the of [Ovid’s] Icarus myth about?
 What symbols or metaphors does it contain (Content)?
 What are we supposed to learn from it (Function)?

Etiology: Icaria
Is this satisfying? Does it explain the story’s popularity?
Let’s try to understand it via some modern comparisons…
A MORAL FUNCTION?
“When the boy begins to enjoy this daring flight and veers off
from his leader. He is drawn to the sky and goes higher.” - Ovid
J-Biebs: rise to fame, controversies, 2014 arrest, “fall” from
grace, redemption (?).
Is he an Icarus figure?
Hubris (ὕβρις)
 Ancient Definition: violence or outrage
 Behavior that defies proper or expected behavior and/or challenges one’s
superiors/gods, which in turn brings about downfall
 Modern Definition: excessive pride, arrogance, overconfidence

Is Icarus telling us something about how we should(n’t) behave?

AN ETHICAL FUNCTION?
“And turning his mind toward unknown arts, he [Daedalus]
transformed nature… His son Icarus stood at his side, and,
unaware that he was touching his peril… He gave him flying
instructions while fitting the unfamiliar wings to his shoulders.” - Roman relief of Daedalus and Icarus
Ovid
After Icarus dies Daedalus “swore off his arts.”
What if it’s a myth about technology?
Ian Malcom’s warning in Jurassic Park:
Modern technologies that might be “Icarus wings”?
ANOTHER ETHICAL
FUNCTION?
Frederick
“And what with the work and the admonitions his old cheeks grew Leighton,
moist, and his father’s hands trembled. He kissed his dear son, a Icarus and
kiss never to be repeated, and rising on wings he flies ahead in fear Daedalus, 1869
for his companion - like a bird who leads its tender young into the
air from its aerial nest - urging him to follow, teaching him ruinous
arts, and beating his own wings as he looks back at his son.” – Ovid
Daedalus gives his son the means for his own destruction
In Bao (2018) a mother is very possessive of her son/dumpling,
who in turn rebels. Before he can leave, she eats him (it’s a
metaphor)
What about the role of parenthood in this? The control we exert
over our children? Different cultural attitudes towards parenthood?
FINAL
THOUGHTS?
Do any particular interpretations speak to you?
Any additional ones you’d like to throw in?
Other questions?
FOR NEXT
CLASS
Read Chapter 1 of Maurizio (2016)
[Blackboard] and ‘Phaethon & Phoebus’
from Ovid’s Metamorphoses
Think about how we might understand
Ovid’s Phaethon vis-a-vis Maurizio’s 3-
point definition (form, content, function)
Have a good weekend!