Assignment for Friday, 11.08.19

Dear Mythologists,

As we continue our discussion of The Avengers (2012), please read the following in our Assembling the Marvel Cinematic Universe textbook:

• Sweet, Derek R. "America Assemble: The Avengers as Therapeutic Public Memory" (pp. 64–75); and
• Mullen, Antony. "Bodies That Shatter: Violence and Spectacle in The Avengers" (pp. 141–48).

As before please take notes on anything interesting or helpful to your understanding of the MCU in mythical terms.

DC

Assignment for Wednesday, 11.06.19

Dear Mythologists,

For Wednesday, November 6, please do the following:

(1) Watch — via streaming service, reserved DVD, or your own copy — The Avengers (2012), the first film in our superhero team-up series (though hardly the first MCU film). As you watch, take notes on anything that strikes you as resonating with Greco-Roman myth, especially on the What? Why? and How? spectrum of ideas. Your notes will form the basis for our discussion of the film in class.

(2) Read Liam Burke's "'A Bigger Universe': Marvel Studios and Transmedia Storytelling," AKA chapter 2 of our Assembling the Marvel Cinematic Universe textbook (pp. 32–51). Take notes on interesting comments and insights, and be sure to bring the book to class.

(3) The following students must use the blog comments feature to recommend 3–5 minute sequences from The Avengers for close review in class: Cohen, Darby, Fitzhugh, Forte, Franzel. In your comments, please

• briefly describe the sequence;
• give approximate starting and ending times (hh:mm); and
• explain why reviewing this sequence is worth our time as it pertains to a mythical considerations of the MCU.

First come, first served. If someone has already suggested your sequence, choose another. If you're not signed in under your Google ID, or don't have one, be sure to identify yourself in the comments.

DC

Assignment for Friday, 11.01.19

Dear Mythologists,

On Friday, November 1, we'll continue our transition to the Marvel Cinematic Universe by considering, among other things, the origins of so-called comic book movies.

Please do the following:

(1) Read "Genre," chapter 1 of Blair Davis' Comic Book Movies (2018), which is part of the Rutgers Quick Takes series on films and popular culture. It's a breezy introduction to the vast terrain in which comic book movies exist.

Please print out the chapter and bring it to class (no laptops). As you peruse it, note which aspects of Davis' discussion do, and do not, apply to the MCU.

DC

Class on Wednesday, 10.30.19

Dear Mythologists,

On Wednesday, October 30, we'll embark upon the second unit of our seminar, namely: viewing the Marvel Cinematic Universe from the perspective of Greco-Roman myth. We'll discuss the specific goals of upcoming courses, as well as some new formats necessary to see them through.

As such, there's no assignment for this class, but you should devote the time to continuing to work on the next milestone of our project, Annotated Bibliography I.

DC

(No) Class on Friday, 10.25.19

Dear Mythologists,

A friendly reminder that no classes are held on Friday, September 25, which is set aside as an all-College study day. We will already have had our midterm, but you should use the time to study for other upcoming exams — or to get a jump on the second milestone of our semester project, annotated bibliography 1.

DC

Midterm Exam on Wednesday, 10.23.19

Dear Mythologists,

Our midterm exam will be held in class on Wednesday, October 23. We've discussed the format previously: those guidelines are archived on the Syllabus page of our website (and are also available here).

Good luck, and let the instruction team know if you have any questions.

DC

Project Proposal on Saturday, 10.19.19

Dear Mythologists,

As discussed in class, the first milestone of the semester project — the project proposal — is due by 11:00 p.m. on Saturday, October 19.

The requirements for format and content are available on the Project page of our website. Please follow them scrupulously. Above all, remember to email your proposal as a PDF.

Please let me know if you have questions, and take advantage of your Peer Mentor's generous offer to discuss potential topics with you.

DC

Assignment for Friday, 10.18.19

Dear Mythologists,

On Friday, October 18, we end our first full unit and conclude our reading of the Argonautica of Apollonius (a.k.a. Jason and the Golden Fleece).

Please do the following:

(1) Read Argonautica books 3 and 4. We'll pay particular attention to the role of Medea in these books and to the ways in which she is, and is not, an epic hero.

(2) Continue to take notes on anything that seems relevant as you read, and bring these notes to class. We will continue the group discussion exercise we began last class.

Please let me know if you have questions.

DC

Assignment for Wednesday, 10.16.19

Dear Mythologists,

On Wednesday, October 16, we start winding down our considerations of ancient myth with the Argonautica of Apollonius (a.k.a. Jason and the Golden Fleece). Written in a different era from the Iliad and the Odyssey (four centuries after) and in a different locale (the city of Alexandria in Egypt), the Argonautica will naturally provide a different take on heroes and heroism. The poem is also a prequel of sorts to the Iliad and Odyssey, and once again shows how poets will jockey for position within the larger world of Greek myth.

Please do the following:

(1) Read the Apollodorus handout on the Argonautic expedition, distributed October 4. As he has done previously, Apollodorus will provide us with a helpful overview of the entire myth and leave us free to savor the fuller version by Apollonius.

(2) Read Argonautica books 1 and 2. As we noted when exploring Iliad 1, the first book of any epic is crucial to understanding the aims and intentions of the author. Apollonius' book 1 is no exception.

(3) Finally, take some notes on anything that seems relevant as you read, and bring these notes to class. I AM GOING TO TURN THE BULK OF THE DISCUSSION OVER TO YOU, to see what you make of this poem. After reading Hesiod, Euripides, and Homer in terms of the "What? Why? and How?" of myth, you ought to be able to hold an extended conversation amongst each other about these features in Apollonius.

Please let me know if you have questions.

DC

Class on Friday, 10.11.19

Dear Mythologists,

On Friday, October 11, I will be away at a conference. Our Peer Mentor will be in charge of class (and taking attendance!), and she is developing a robust slate of topics you ought to know, including:

(1) Preparing for the semester project; and

(2) Planning your classes in the spring.

The first hour of class will be spent on these and other issues. The second hour will be occupied with a learning game devised by the staff of Scribner Library, designed to get you used to the library's resources. (More information on this the day of.)

For convenience, class will probably be held in the Library itself. Watch for a message from our Peer Mentor telling you where to meet that day.

DC

(No) Class on Wednesday, 10.09.19

Dear Mythologists,

A friendly reminder that the College will not hold classes on Wednesday, October 9, in observance of Yom Kippur. Have an easy fast and Yom Tov, if you are observing the holiday. If you are interested in services at Skidmore, please contact our Peer Mentor.

Given that there're no outside assignments this week, I suggest you use the time you might otherwise spend preparing for class in preparing the first milestone of our semester project, due October 19.

DC