This course would capitalize on the growing popularity of retellings of ancient myths from diverse perspectives. In particular, the course would explore how the stories about Theseus, Ariadne, and the Minotaur have been reimagined from antiquity to today, as we explore several sites significant to their myths. The first half of the course would begin with a study of ancient works depicting myths of Theseus. During these two weeks, our focus would be especially on Theseus’s early life and how the myths of Theseus were used for political purposes in ancient Athens; in addition to visiting archaeological sites and museums around Athens, students would also travel in the footsteps of Theseus, visiting Thebes, Mycenae, and Corinth.

The second half of the course would focus on the Cretan episodes of the myths and receptions of them. Students would study Roman works focusing on Ariadne (including Catullus 64 and Ovid’s Heroides 10) before we turn to a few examples of modern receptions that show the diverse appeal of ancient myth (such as Jorge Luis Borges’s “House of Asterion,” Derek Walcott’s “Goats and Monkeys,” and selections of Jennifer Saint’s recent novel Ariadne). This second half of the course would feature travel to Crete. In addition to surveying different versions of these rich myths, the course invites students to ponder how poets, artists, politicians, and authors from ancient Athens to Europe, South America, and the Caribbean have imagined that the distant past resonates with their present worlds.

Course Details

Enrollment

This course requires a minimum enrollment of 10, with a maximum enrollment of 20.