Classical Mythology - Week 1

Reading and Listening Assignments

This week, listen to Elizabeth Vandiver's Lecture 2, "What is Myth?" and Lecture 4, "First Was Chaos."
Lectures 1 and 3 ("Introduction" and "Why is Myth?") are optional.

Reading Assignments in Harris and Platzner, Classical Mythology:

    Chapter 1, 3-23. Skim 22-33 so you'll know where to find historical information when you're looking for it--you'll find it really helpful to know where it is when the editors mention different periods in later chapters.

    Chapter 3, 57-79 and the selection from Hesiod's Theogony on pages 80-95

    Chapter 5, 135-140.

On the web, read the class Deity of the Week page, featuring Zeus.

This week's deadlines:

On or before Wednesday, January 14, make your first discussion post in response to your group's assigned topic on the discussion board. Please give your post a title. The board will be a lot easier to navigate for everybody if we don't have a long line of posts all called "Re: Week One Question."

On or before Friday, January 16, make your second post. This is a response to somebody in the other group. The assigned groups are listed in the table at the bottom of this page.

On or before Saturday, January 17, take this week's quiz. The quiz has 20 questions and will be graded on a straight percentage: 90% and above is an A, 80% and above is a B, 70% and above is a C, 60% and above is a D.

Information on what I expect to see in your posts, and on how the posts will be graded, can be found here.

All discussion posts and quizzes throughout the semester are due at midnight on the deadline date.

Discussion posts and quizzes will be accepted up to 24 hours after the deadline, but these late assignments will earn only half of the points that they would have received had they been turned in on time. After 24 hours, you will not receive credit for late assignments. And I do mean exactly 24 hours. Posts that are time stamped one minute past midnight on the night they're due will still receive only half credit. Posts that are time stamped one minute past midnight on the night after the deadline will receive no credit at all.