MYTH!
Gods, goddesses, superhuman beings, magical creatures, beasts and monsters around the world.
Fridays 10am - 3pm | Ages 8 and up | September - December 2014
From the beginning of time, humankind has told stories. These stories—passed on from one generation to next—hold immense cultural power. Myths are the symbolic narratives of gods and superhuman beings involved in extraordinary events. Although existing apart from ordinary human experience, mythology has deeply influenced human life. Traveling back in time and whirling around the globe, we will look at myths and mythologies from diverse cultures. We will examine how these myths structured a society’s belief systems. What did the Greeks believe? How many children did Zeus have? How was the world created according to the Aztecs? Who is Quetzalcoatl? How many deities are there in Hindu cosmology? Who killed the Egyptian god Osiris and how did Isis bring him back to life? Which crazy creatures embodied evil in different mythologies?
Each week, we will immerse ourselves in a mythology from disparate people, times, and places—such as Greek, Norse, Aztec, Hindu, Native American, Haitian, Chinese, African, Roma, Arabian and Egyptian cultures. Together we will explore the myths of ancient and contemporary cultures and ask ourselves: How do myths from the great world cultures still enter into our lives today?
Using our newfound mythological knowledge as a starting point, we will delve deeper and explore how these archetypal narratives connect to our essential selves. We will become our own mythologers and express our stories through performance, art, writing, storytelling, rituals, craft, and whatever other creative means we are inspired to try!
A workshop with Jennifer Wai-Lan Strodl and Nicole LoBue.
Born in Canada, Jennifer Wai-Lan Strodl received her Bachelor of Arts degree in English Literature and Creative Writing from Princeton University, where she studied fiction with writers such as Toni Morrison, Joyce Carol Oates, and Russell Banks. She has been a comic book editor at Marvel Enterprises and is currently a writer for Bard College. She holds a Master of Arts in Teaching from Smith College and has traveled the world teaching kids in China, Mexico, Canada, and the U.S. She now lives in Ghent, New York.