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  4. 2015-2016
  5. Anthropology
  6. AT551A: Advanced Survey in the Anthropology of Myth

AT551A: ADVANCED SURVEY IN THE ANTHROPOLOGY OF MYTH (2015-2016)

Last modified: 25 Mar 2016 11:38


Course Overview

Studying myths is a core part of anthropology of religion; they are sacred narratives. Myths are also a core part of the oral literature of a culture. We start with ancient Greek mythology to explore the category of myth distinguished from other kinds of verbal arts. The course then looks at the performer-audience relation in order to understand the production of texts. Studying myths is an excellent way to get at particular cultural categories and how those categories shape individual and collective action. Lecture is open format with time for questions and tutorial is a small group in teacher’s office.

Course Details

Study Type Postgraduate Level 5
Term Second Term Credit Points 15 credits (7.5 ECTS credits)
Campus None. Sustained Study No
Co-ordinators

Sorry, we don't have a record of any course coordinators.

Qualification Prerequisites

None.

What courses & programmes must have been taken before this course?

  • Any Postgraduate Programme (Studied)

What other courses must be taken with this course?

None.

What courses cannot be taken with this course?

None.

Are there a limited number of places available?

No

Course Description

The anthropology of myth highlights the social and cultural contexts of myths as sacred narratives. This course draws upon a wide range of cultures, from ancient Greeks, Mesopotamia and China to contemporary Africa, Asia, and the indigenous peoples of the Americas. Boasian approaches to Native American myths as oral literature and windows into cultural values can be contrasted with the functionalist theories of Tylor and Malinowski. This course emphasizes the performative qualities of myth, drawing upon the work by Dell Hymes, Albert Lord, Dennis Tedlock, Claude Lévi-Strauss, Edmund Leach, Ruth Finnegan, Peter Gow and others. The course concludes with a discussion of the relevance of myth in contemporary society, such as found in the fiction by Tolkien or novels by Native American writers like Alexie, Silko, or Welch.

Further Information & Notes

Not running 2014/15
Students will be able to identify a myth and explain how a particular story qualifies as a myth in its cultural contexts vis a vis other genres of stories. Students will learn a wide range of anthropological approaches to myth. They will come to understand the breadth of global variation in the qualities of different myths in different cultures and the breadth of theoretical schools in the analysis of myths. Students will learn how myths operate as performances in the context of their telling. Students will learn how to interpret myths in the social and cultural context of their setting. Students will learn how myths can be transformed as they move across cultures.

Contact Teaching Time

Information on contact teaching time is available from the course guide.

Teaching Breakdown

More Information about Week Numbers


Details, including assessments, may be subject to change until 30 August 2024 for 1st term courses and 20 December 2024 for 2nd term courses.

Summative Assessments

1st Attempt: Assessment 100% continuous (one 3,000 word essay)

Formative Assessment

There are no assessments for this course.

Feedback

None.

Course Learning Outcomes

None.
 

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