What's Scheduled for this Week:

COMPLETE THE FOLLOWING WORK:

• First, listen to my short weekly audio lecture. You can listen to the lecture in either Real Audio format or you can listen to the lecture in Windows Media format.
• Review a brief Overview of Myth
• Next, explore the following lings:
  • Creation stories; and here's a link to an Ohio University site that covers many aspect of myth, including a few links to creation myths from around the world
  • If you did not read my observations on the biblical mythology behind common Old Order Amish beliefs, you might do so now.
  • What does science think about origin myths? Read a short analysis of origin myths from the National Center for Science Education
  • Be a folklore detective? Compare the Mesopotamian and Hebrew flood myths to determine if polygenesis or diffusion are responsible.
  • Native American Myths, Legends, and Folktales. Read a traditional prose narrative or two from local Native American groups or visit a Traditional stories site. Remember, though there are thousands of collected Native American texts, it is often quite hard to know whether the text in question is a myth, legend or folktale. Proper placing would demand that the folklorist know whether the text was believed to be true, know its function, and perhaps be present at the actual performance. Even today, some tribes have rules about who can tell a tale, who can listen, and even when a tale can be told. Lastly, the long contact between Native Americans, European settlers, and African American slaves has likely caused much interchange of narrative elements. Keeping this in mind, visit a another site that has over a hundred Native American stories on line
  • Spend some time with The Encyclopia Mythica --an encyclopedia of mythology, folklore, and legend.
  • Visit University of Michigan's collection of information about myths.
  • Do we have Heroes today? Is Bruce Willis our knight in armor?

•  Review the Homefun on Myths and Motifs (not a graded assignment)
• Take a short quiz on myth. You should be able to define myth, motif, and understand the difference between myth and folktale.
• Post your first creative work to the appropriate discussion conference. You may do either the Cowboy/Cowgirl poem or a etiological  narrative.
• Read pp 196--228
• Post to the Discussion Board by end of week.