This is an on-line course. The Iliad is more than 2,500 years old, and yet it remains startlingly relevant today. It transports us to the final year of the Trojan War, and the catastrophic consequences of an argument between Greek warriors Agamemnon and Achilles. Homer's epic poem still speaks clearly about the horrors of war, but it deals with many other themes besides, such as the impact of war on the women and children who remain at home, and the ever-present role of the gods in archaic society. This course explores the poem in all its complexity, horror and beauty.
What is Ragnarok? Do Thor and Loki really hate each other? And why are Vikings never off the telly? This course looks behind the pop-culture versions of the Norse Myths to get as close as we can to the sources of our knowledge. Through readings of the strange and witty 'Eddas' written down in thirteenth-century Iceland, accompanied by images from Viking-age picture stones and rune stones, and tales of ship burials, we will get to know gods and goddesses, monsters and heroes, and discover why these old tales still speak powerfully to us today.
This is an on-line course. How well do we know the tale of the long wanderings of Odysseus as he returned home from the Trojan War? In this course we will accompany Odysseus through the text of Homer's Odyssey, as he encounters awesome cyclopes, intimidating goddesses, enchanting nymphs, lotus eaters, and the shades of the dead. Reading Emily Wilson's celebrated new translation, we will consider how the epic poem was created, and how it has been received, as we explore the eternal fascination of the myth. This course provides an opportunity to get to know one of the most important stories in Western literature. We will explore the creation of Greek epic poetry, and its transmission and reception from ancient times to the present. We will consider some of the great themes evoked by the Odyssey, including attitudes to home, hospitality to strangers, the status of women, and the horrors of war. Along the way, we will hear some of the most compelling, thought-provoking and fantastic stories of Odysseus' long journey home, giving you a rounded view of the significance of Homer's epic.
From the London-based tales of Poe, Woolf and Machen, and the Parisian flânerie of Baudelaire, to the 'psychogeography' of contemporary cities, the city has been the site of many poetic or visionary walks. We will read some of the authors who have explored the modern city (including Iain Sinclair, Nick Papadimitriou, Laura Grace Ford, and Esther Kinsky) and share their peculiar discoveries. Is the literary walk an act of re-enchantment of the world? Can it be a political gesture against the privatisation of public space? What makes the simple act of walking so powerful?
This is an on-line course. Virgil's Aeneid is the epic poem of Imperial Rome, with its roots in the Greek models of Homer's epics. It tells the story of Aeneas, a refugee from the destroyed city of Troy. What can it tell us today about war, migration and national myth-making? This course follows Aeneas as he recounts the Fall of Troy, meets and abandons Dido, Queen of Carthage, crosses to the Underworld on Charon's barge, and finally gives us a foundation myth for Rome with echoes throughout Western literature.