Metamorphoses Project, Part 2:
Tracing Mythology through Time and Place
 
Claude Michel, (called Clodion), Bacchus and a nymph, c.1790
View this image and others of Dionysos.
 

Divinity/Hero: Put the name of the divinity /hero here.

Group Members:  Put your names here.

Part 2

Different later versions of the myth (due 2nd Friday at 5 p.m.)

Poets, painters, composers, choreographers--from the Romans to the present--have found classical mythology a rich resource to draw upon as the subject of their works. Find at least five different retellings, reinterpretations, or adaptations of the myths associated with your divinity/hero.  The five retellings should represent at least three of the following media (art, dance, film, literature, music), and at least two versions should be by a woman. Please include a brief synopsis or description of the work, and list the author or artist and relevant bibliographic information.  If you can find the primary text or an image of the myth on the WWW, please include a link to that source. (Check the Mythology Resources Page, esp. the Humanities Home Page, and search the WWW, e.g. AltaVista, to locate the myth.) If the version is a short text and you cannot find it on the Web, you may wish to type it onto your web page.  If you cannot locate it on the WWW, please photocopy it for me so that I can see what you are describing. (Delete this paragraph when you have finished this section of the project.)

Analysis of each retelling of the myth (due 3rd Monday at 9 a.m.)

The stories about various divinities speak to different artists and different ages for many reasons.  Analyze each version of the myth you have found above--using the library and WWW resources presented in class--and explain why this particular story was appealing to the writer or artist.  Why did s/he select this particular story? In what way does this version differ from the Greek version? Why were these changes made? What values does this retelling reveal? What attitudes does the artist reveal about gender, history, ethnicity, religion, etc. In short, how was the myth made meaningful for a new audience?  Length: 1-3 paragraphs with supporting details about each version of the myth.  You may include links within the paragraphs if appropriate. Please be sure to credit the sources you used for your analysis. (Delete this paragraph when you have finished this section of the project.)
 

(You will be adding Part 3 later.)

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Last updated 10 September 97
grubermiller@cornellcollege.edu