REL 20.04 Theoretical Approaches to the Study of Myth: Interpreting Ancient Near Eastern Mythology
This course examines various theoretical approaches to the study of mythology that have been developed by scholars in the past century by considering the ways in which these theoretical models have been used in the interpretation of mythologies of two of the great cultures of the ancient Near East, Mesopotamia and Canaan. Readings will include all the major myths of Mesopotamian and Canaanite tradition; major articles by theoreticians of myth such as Bronislaw Malinowski, Clyde Kluckhohn, and Claude Levi-Strauss; and various essays that attempt to apply these theoretical studies to the ancient Near Eastern mythological materials.