Online Class: Greek Mythology

Do you feel totally clueless when it comes to Greek Mythology? Do you often say to yourself:  "It's all Greek to me"?  You were supposed to learn this stuff in school but classical mythology isn't really taught anymore in elementary or secondary schools. This basic self-paced course can help.

Greek Mythology will give you an overview of the huge collection of stories explaining the creation of the world and the lives of the gods, goddesses, heroes and heroines. The scope of the Greek myths is astounding.  Starting with the birth of the world, through bloody wars like Troy and Thebes, heroic acts of Hercules and childish pranks by Hermes, and the touching stories of mother love in Demeter and Persephone.

Students of this course will discover how our very fabric of society is derived from the ancient Greeks and how our everyday world has elements that go back centuries – back to the ages when the Greeks brought us tales of gods and warriors, of love lost and love regained, of triumph over incredible odds. 

You’ll learn that there’s nothing to be afraid of when it comes to understanding Greek mythology.  Many people are put off by the term “classical mythology,” but the fact is that these are adventure tales that can be as exciting as anything on the screen today.  (In fact, films like TROY and the upcoming 300 are a direct result of those ancient myths – and they are far from boring.)

The course will cover such diverse areas as:

·        The reasons for taking a mythology course:  The student will understand what a myth is, why it is important to our society, and how myths have always impacted the world today.  Students will understand the attraction to delving into the very aspects of creation that have been a part of our nature since the dawn of time.

·        In the beginning:  Students will examine the Greek ideas of creation and understand the birth of Man from the gods.  The Titans will be discussed, as well as the Olympians and learn about the Five Ages of Mankind – and we’ll see how Pandora unleashed a series of misfortunes upon our world through such a simple thing as curiosity.

·        The gods and early heroes in mythology:  The student will learn about the gods and early heroes, including the 12 gods and goddesses of the Pantheon.

·        The great heroes during the Trojan War:  You will learn about the causes of the Trojan War, and will examine such great heroes as Odysseus, Achilles and Paris – understanding the very nature of friendship and sacrifice.

·        Stories of love in mythology:  The student will discover great stories of love in the myths of the Greeks, and see how they have been handed down through the centuries, even affecting the world that we live in today.

·        Famous Greek mythology families and their cities:  Continuing with understanding how Greek mythology affects the world today, the student will examine some of the greatest Greek families and see how their influence affected the very cities that they either conquered or created.

·        More myths from Greek mythology:  Students will learn about Sisyphus, King Midas, Oedipus (which became one of the most important stories of modern times and influenced such areas as modern psychology).

All in all, students of this course will see how incredibly rich and exciting the Greek myths are and how they have literally impacted every area of life today, from art to architecture to literature.