Imagining Medea: From Myth to Modernity
Literature | Literature
Course Description
This course will consider the figure of Medea from Greek mythology and explore how her story has been reimagined and recontextualized from classical antiquity until the present day. As a mythical character, Medea resists easy categorization into a single archetypal role: she is portrayed as a resourceful “helper-maiden” whose aid is essential to the hero’s quest, a skilled and powerful enchantress, an alienated outsider in Greek society, and a scorned wife who famously takes her revenge by killing her own children. By examining literary representations of Medea from the ancient world alongside more contemporary reworkings of the myth, we will consider questions such as: What draws us to characters who commit horrifying acts of violence? Why has Medea’s murder of her children—an episode probably invented by Euripides—become the focal point of most retellings of her story? Why is Medea associated with both creativity and destruction? How have modern writers used Medea’s identity as a foreigner in Greece to explore issues related to nationalism and exile? And why do certain mythic characters remain part of our collective imagination while others fall into obscurity?
Books to purchase: TBA
Please note that this course has a maximum enrollment of 16 students and that TMI does not allow participants to audit courses for free.
Course Details
Location: Atwater
First Session: Thursday, April 17th, 2024
Course Length: 6 weeks, Thursdays, 6:15 to 8:15 p.m.
Discussion Team: Marilyn Kaplow and Louise Jarette
Degree Credit: 1.5 credits
Course Fee:
$80.00 (New Students)
$125.00 (Standard Tuition)
Administrative Fee:
$30.00
Total:
$110.00 (New Students)
$155.00 (Standard Tuition)
Course fees are refundable in full before the first session. After the first session, a fee of $50 for the withdrawal will be applied. Refunds will not be issued after the second session. Please note that non-attendance does not constitute a withdrawal.
Course leaders, and students wishing to use credit vouchers, should call (514) 935-9585 to pay by phone or to schedule an appointment to pay in person.