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Art History
| Mythology | Sean-nos Singing |
Contemporary
Art | Anthropology of Art |
Teaching References
MYTHOLOGY
Irish mythology, because it covers such a
vast scope, is commonly broken into four
'cycles'.
The first,
the mythological cycle, comprises the
earliest traditions of the Celtic
pantheon. It contains stories such as the
two battles of Mag Tuired, the Book of
Invasions, the adventures of Tuan
MacCairell, the voyage of Bran and the
story of Etain. It includes characters
like Aengus, the Dagda, the Morrigan,
Fintan and Nuada.
The other
cycles (Ulster, Fenian and Kings Cycles)
are not touched on. My course deals
exclusively with the first Cycle: the
oldest traditions.
There are
three main sources that we use to try to
gain an understanding of Irish Mythology.
The first
source is the stories written down in the
early part of the middle ages by monks.
Some of these stories are very well
developed, and some are only fragmentary.
The second
is the folklore tradition passed down
from generation to generation. Though
these tales have been influenced by other
traditions (such as Aesop's fables and
Greek mythology) there is still much in
them that is purely Celtic.
The third
is folklore practice, such as rituals
associated with the seasons. This source
includes customs associated with the
great festivals of Imbolc, Beltane,
Lughnasa and Samhain.
This
course will refer exclusively to the
mythological cycle and will deal
extensively with translations of early
texts, as this is where most of the
material for this cycle is to be found.
This
course can be as intensive as four 1 1/2
hour lectures or as concise as a one hour
talk.
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