Humanities 103
MYTHOLOGY
Section 02 [HUM]
Spring 2014
MWF 2:10 - 3:00
3 Credits -- No Pre-Requisites
SLN 03984
Todd 230
Dr. Michael Delahoyde
Avery Hall 355 -- Washington State University
Hours: MWF 9:00-10:00, and by appointment.
Phone: 509-335-4832
E-mail: delahoyd@wsu.edu
Course Description:
This course, Humanities 103, is designed to acquaint you with a body of material with which cultured people of the Western world have been familiar for millennia. Through readings and exposure to other works of art and cultural products, you will come to know some of the world's most influential mythology in more thorough and meaningful ways than its contemporary reduction to cheesy vestiges and obscure trivia questions.We will explore the theory of myth and the uses of myth in art, literature, and film; but more importantly, we will try to tap into "the power of myth" -- the cultural and psychological implications of myths -- that is, their impact on the minds and lives of those who have been influenced by them, especially ourselves.
Graeco-Roman myth, which played a key role in shaping Western culture, will make up the bulk of the course's readings, as we put into perspective some crucial developments of Western thought through a focus on the greatest hits of the ancient world. I am particularly interested in how the principles and issues raised in this body of Classical literature survive and arise in our own contemporary culture. I will encourage you to see and to make connections between ideas, attitudes, and cultures in classroom discussions, and to keep track of ideas (or myths) currently circulating that interest you.
There will be much to cover in this semester, but you can master this material more easily than you'd suspect. It's like starting to watch a soap opera, or the first time you began watching a cable series: you've heard a few of the names already, you catch on to a few key plots, you stick with it for a while, and gradually you're an expert and you realize the field that seemed so vast before was actually finite after all.
Naturally I have many interests that involve these works; and we'll discuss matters such as the presentation of monsters, women, reptiles, men, arrogance, and death. But I'm just as anxious to hear and to read your discoveries concerning these myths.
I've come to believe that this material contains real wisdom: better than most "literature," much more valuable than those cheap one-line adages being bandied about constantly these days, and more healing and affordable than psychotherapy.
Required Texts:
[These are the texts ordered at the Crimson & Gray. You may use other scholarly editions of the following texts but at your own risk; exams will be based largely on quotations drawn from these versions. Cheesy online editions tend to lack line numbers, explanatory notes, and other more professional and helpful features.]Homer. The Iliad. Trans. Robert Fagles. NY: Penguin Books, 1991.
ISBN 0-14-044592-7Sophocles. Oedipus Rex. NY: Dover Pub., Inc., 1994.
ISBN 0-486-26877-2Euripides. Medea. Trans. Rex Warner. NY: Dover Pub., Inc., 1993.
ISBN 0-486-27548-5Ovid. Metamorphoses. Trans. Rolfe Humphries. Bloomington: Indiana University Press, 1961.
ISBN 0-253-20001-6[Lots of other crucial and cool materials will be provided through Angel, in handouts, and on videotape.]
Student Learning Outcomes:
At the end of the course, students should be achieved the following objectives. The Course Requirements detail how these outcomes will be addressed and evaluated in the class work.
- Students will gain exposure to basic terms in the study of mythology and to some of the major artistic works that have recorded the human experience and have shaped Western culture, its later arts, and the way we think.
- Students will increase intellectual maturation and clarification of their own values through examination of ideas and attitudes in cultural contexts and especially through articulation of these in academic discourse.
- Students will develop skills in careful verbal analysis and critical thinking through reading and communicating (in discussion and writing) about literary and cultural texts and other artistic media, so that they will be able to communicate successfully with other audiences both within and outside the University.
Course Requirements:
A significant part of at least your "job" of being a student this semester (but maybe also part of your life) is focusing on the study of Mythology. Responsibly reading and studying the works can be demanding, but at least we have the opportunity to be doing it together as a learning community. The university provides a space and a time in which I, as instructor, do my best to craft an opportunity for engagement and learning (and, truth be told, the thrill of it all). In no strict numerical way, absences will end up affecting your final grade; but worse would be your general "absence": that is, approaching the class under the assumption that your education is a consumer product being served to you, that you can "multi-task" between class and your phone, that you can coast along with a cursory skimming of Sparknotes, that the experience should be reduceable to some kind of "study guide" (if it were, we wouldn't need to meet at all). Do you even have the capacity to be present and "plugged in" to the classroom experience? You will never realize how rewarding this can be, especially when it's Mythology, unless you are.Because classroom interaction is essential for this to be a valuable experience, and because occasional quizzes and homework writings will be exchanged and in-class voting will take place, absences will affect your grade regardless of reason. Here's the math:
1) I will frequently ask you for relatively minor homework assignments to be posted to discussion spaces in Angel), designed primarily to stimulate subsequent discussion and to practice conventions for writing about humanities. At other times I will ask you to answer questions in writing in class, often ad lib responses to the reading before class discussion begins. Homework assignments and quizzes will receive numerical grades (points) and, although these writings cannot be made up (except for a couple optional writings that can take their place), the final semester totals will be curved if necessary. (30%)
2) Your presence will be required at two exams. No make-ups will be crafted for your convenience. Accompanying the in-class portions of each exam will be a written take-home essay turned in on the same day. Late essays will receive F grades; missing the exams or failure to turn anything in, even late, will result in an F for the course. (Each exam 30%)
3) Class participation and other service to the learning community will be expected (occasional group work, for example). (10%)
Some introductory advice about succeeding with homework and exams can be found here.
And here is an explanation of letter grades assigned to class work. No make-up exams or assignments will be constructed. No incompletes will be given.
Students with Disabilities:
I am committed to providing assistance to help you be successful in this course. Reasonable accommodations are available for students with a documented disability. If you have a disability and need accommodations to participate in this class fully, please either visit or call the Access Center (Washington Building 217; 509-335-3417) at the start of the semester to schedule an appointment with an Access Advisor. All accommodations must be approved through the Access Center. For more information contact a Disability Specialist on your home campus.
Academic Integrity:
As an institution of higher education, Washington State University is committed to principles of truth and academic honesty. All members of the University community share the responsibility for maintaining and supporting these principles. When a student enrolls in Washington State University, the student assumes an obligation to pursue academic endeavors in a manner consistent with the standards of academic integrity adopted by the University. Any student plagiarizing on any assignment or cheating on any exam in this class will receive an F for the course and will be reported to the Office of Student Standards and Accountability, who remind us that Washington State University reserves the right and the power to discipline or to exclude students who engage in academic dishonesty. Cheating is defined in the Standards for Student Conduct WAC 504-26-010 (3). It is strongly suggested that you read and understand these definitions.
Safety and Emergency Notification:
Washington State University is committed to enhancing the safety of the students, faculty, staff, and visitors. It is highly recommended that you review the Campus Safety Plan (http://safetyplan.wsu.edu/) and visit the Office of Emergency Management web site (http://oem.wsu.edu/) for a comprehensive listing of university policies, procedures, statistics, and information related to campus safety, emergency management, and the health and welfare of the campus community.