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CC 303, Dr. James Patterson, Week 1, Lecture #1 & #2, 24 & 26 August 2016
 What is mythology?
 Study of myth, obviously
 What qualifies as a “myth?”
 Legend, explanation of an event/origin story, fictional; many varying opinions among people
 Buxtonian-Pattersonian definition
 four requirements:
 Narrative – a story
 Meaning (to a group of people) – could be an explanation or origin story or have a moral
 Generational longevity – passed down through generations
 Malleability – able to change with the times
 Narrative must be malleable in order to make the meaning more relevant to the era and
continue its generational longevity and survive
 Applies to myths, legends, and fairy tales
 Ethnic group called Indo-Europeans initially centralized in area between Black Sea and Caspian Sea
 From 5000-3000 BC, migrated outward all over Eurasia from Celtic to Baltic to Vedic to
Tocharian regions
 Originally one main Indo-European god, Dyeus Pəter
 Linguistic jargon
 In Greece, became Zeus Pater  Cloud Gatherer
 In Rome, became Iovis Pater  Jus, Justice Father, God of Law
 In Veda, became Dyaus Pitr  diary, journey, journal; Father of Light
 Original wife was Dione, but later Hera
 Indo-Europeans imposed their gods on pre-established people groups in area
 Resulted in many myths of patriarchal Indo-Euro gods mixing with matriarchal pre-Greek
societies to symbolize “marrying” the cultures together <Zeus’ many affairs represented
combining with the various female deities in different regions>
 Men v. Women becomes a common theme in myths
 Imposition of Indo-Euro sky gods over pre-Greek earth gods also becomes a common theme
in many myths
Factoids
 Ancient Greek did not identify collectively as of Greek “ethnicity;” they preferred to associate more
with their specific town/city
 “Hellenic” is the Greek word for Greek, “Greek” is the Roman word for Greek
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Factoid
 Chthonic deities were often depicted with snake legs and/or wings
 For example, Erichthonius was half man, half snake because he was born from the ground
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CC 303, Dr. James Patterson, Week 4, Lecture #9, 14 September 2016
Pygmalion and the Statue
 Written by Orid who lived from 43 BC to 17 AD
 Propoetides (daughters of Propoetus) on Cyprus tried to abstain from lustful lifestyle
 Angered Aphrodite because they were trying to deny her
 They refused to take part in ritual orgies to honor Aphrodite
 As punishment, Aphrodite turned them in to the first prostitutes
 King Pygmalion resented the prostitutes and wanted a pure virgin as his lover
 Made a marble statue in the image of the woman he wanted  unhealthy obsession with it
 During festival, he prays to Aphrodite for a lover, and his wish is granted by his statue coming
alive as his ideal girl
 They get married; happy ending for Pygmalion and the statue
 Moral of the story: Women were punished for not praying, while the man was rewarded
 Need to honor the gods or they will destroy your life
 Women are held in less esteem than men
Hippocrates and the Scythians
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 Greek civilization
 Logikos/logikoi way of thinking = reasons for everything, natural explainable reasons
 Intrinsic locus of control
 patriarchal
 Scythians nomadic tribe
 Similar to the Greeks, managed to defeat the Persians
 Wore pants, used soap, allowed women to fight, had no permanent civilization  all seen as
barbaric to Greeks
 Women actually required to defeat at least 3 enemies on the battlefield before being
allowed to marry
 Theologos/Theologoi way of thinking = world controlled by the logic of the gods, no real reason
for things
 Extrinsic locus of control
 Won over Greeks in battle because while Greeks only used their horses to ride into battle and
then dismount, Scythians would fight while on their horses, giving them the upper hand
 matriarchal
 Among Scythians, impotence a big problem
 Hippocrates (460-377 BC), a Greek medical doctor, diagnosed the cause from riding on
horseback and wearing pants
 Scythians believed it was caused by Aphrodite
 Example of myth vs. reality
 Scythians placed blame on gods, while Hippocrates believed cause to be a physical consequence
 Power of myth in reality; reflects deeply held beliefs
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Aphrodite and Sexual Health
 Reproductive vs. sexual health
CC 303, Dr. James Patterson, Week 6, Lecture #14, 26 September 2016
Artemis
 Goddess of childbirth, the moon, hunting, wild animals, disease (particularly among young women),
maiden song and dance, harbors
 Several parallels with twin brother Apollo
 Helped mother Leto give birth to Apollo; first act after being born  goddess of childbirth
 Alternate names
 “Diana” – Roman name
 “Phoebe” – tradition of grandmother’s name being passed on
 “Agrotera” – huntress
 “Potria Theron” – mistress of animals
 “Artemis Phosphoros” – light bringer
 Similar to Hekate’s torches
 Artemis’ six wishes to Zeus
1) Remain a virgin
2) Be given a bow and arrow like her brother Apollo
3) Be given the mountains as her domain
4) Not have to dress like a lady; be allowed to wear short skirts (most women had to wear long
dresses)
5) Be a light bringer; with the moon
6) Be given 60 nymph attendants
 In charge of the female transition from girlhood to womanhood
 Parthenon (virgin) to Gune (woman)
 Ephesian Artemis, Kybele, at Ephesus
 From about 10th century BC, syncretism of Kybele and Artemis
 Selene (Titan goddess of the moon, childbirth, and the lunar cycle) combined with Artemis
 Selene also the goddess of childbirth because time was measured based off the lunar cycle
in months which lent itself to how it takes nine months for a child to be born
 Similar to Helios and Apollo; took over something already in existence
 Relationship with Apollo
 Brother and sister, but initially portrayed as husband and wife
 Artemis known for chastity, Apollo not so much
 Story of Iphigenia
 King Agamemnon offended Artemis by killing a deer in her sacred space, so she prevented his
ships from leaving his harbor and going to war
 To try to appease her, king tries to sacrifice his daughter Iphigenia but before she dies, Artemis
saves her by tuning her into a deer and adopting the deer as her symbol and occasional
companion
 Example of wrath vs. mercy demonstrated by the gods
 Story of Acteon
 While hunting in the woods after finishing his work, mortal Acteon happened upon Artemis
taking a bath in a lake surrounded by her nymph attendants
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