Among his many gifts, Joseph Campbell's most impressive was the unique ability to take a contemporary situation, such as the murder and funeral of President John F. Kennedy, and help us understand its impact in the context of ancient mythology. Herein lies the power of The Power of Myth, showing how humans are apt to create and live out the themes of mythology. Based on a six-part PBS television series hosted by Bill Moyers, this classic is especially compelling because of its engaging question-and-answer format, creating an easy, conversational approach to complicated and esoteric topics.
What makes something mythic? What do mythic events and narratives have to do with us? In Mythology, David Leeming offers an unusual and effective approach to the subject of mythology by stressing universal themes through myths of many cultures. This anthology collects a wide array of narrative texts from the Bible to English literature to interpretations by Joseph Campbell, C.G. Jung, and others, which illustrate how myths serve whole societies in our universal search for meaning.
A Dance to the Music of Time 08 - The Soldier's Art
The Soldier's Art is the eighth novel in Anthony Powell's twelve-volume masterpiece A Dance to the Music of Time, and the second in the war trilogy. It was published in 1966, and touches on themes of separation and unanticipated loss. The language, always exact, sometimes sardonic, also takes on the quality of blank verse in dealing with episodes that echo classical mythology. Memorable new characters like Finn are introduced with spare precision, but kept separate from the original participants in the Dance for several of whom this proves to be the last turn upon the floor.
J.R.R. Tolkien's zeal for medieval literary, religious, and cultural ideas deeply influenced his entire life and provided the seeds for his own fiction. In Tolkien's Art, Chance discusses not only such classics as The Hobbit, The Lord of the Rings, and The Silmarillion, but focuses on his minor works as well, outlining in detail the sources and influences--from pagan epic to Christian legend-that formed the foundation of Tolkien's masterpieces, his "mythology for England.
Who's Who in Classical Mythology is an indispensable guide to all the Greek and Roman mythological characters, from major deities such as Athena and Bacchus, to the lesser-known wood nymphs and centaurs. Also included, of course, are the heroic mortals, figures such as Jason, Aeneas, Helen, Achilles, and Odysseus, all brought to life in a fascinating series of portraits drawn from a wide variety of ancient literary sources. Each entry offers a small window into a timeless mythological world, one filled with epic battles, bizarre metamorphoses, and all sorts of hideous and fantastic monsters.
