How has classical mythology influenced society?

Let Professor Elizabeth Vandiver mesmerize you with the characters, stories, and relationships between classical myths and their authors. Learn about the following in detailed lectures: Hesiod's Theogony and Ovid's Metamorphoses; the gods Zeus, Apollo, Demeter, Persephone, Hermes, Dionysos, and Aphrodite; the Greek Heroes, Theseus and Hercules; and, of all the classical myths, arguably the most famous, the Trojan War. Professor Vandiver goes beyond skimming the content and characters of several well-known myths.

She examines what makes up a myth, where myths came from, what societies influenced others in ancient times, and much more. She shows how these stories have shaped modern society in so many ways – gender roles, sexual themes, and priceless art and literature have all been influenced by these timeless works, so well appreciated and embraced today, hundreds of years after their creation. Professor Vandiver explores the origins of mythology by examining the oral part of it…these works have been recounted so many times that getting to the root of the original story is often a difficult task; in some cases, one that will never be accomplished.

Also studied in this series is the most influential thinking of the 1800 and 1900s regarding myths. Philosophers of this time thought and recorded their ideas on such things as the content and function of popular myths.