chapter 3 lecture one of two the development of classical myth ©2012 pearson education inc

Chapter 3Lecture One of Two

The Development of Classical Myth

©2012 Pearson Education Inc.

The Development of Classical Myth

• Features of Greek myth appear in primordial past.

• How did myth begin and develop in the historical periods?

• Where do we look for evidence of their earliest origins, and how do we assess it?


THE BEGINNINGS OF GREEK MYTH


Figure 3.1Fertility idol from Çatal Hüyük . Neolithic fertility idols are found throughout southeast Europe and the Near East.


Museum of Anatolian Civilization, Ankara, Turkey

Figure 3.2Cycladic fertility idol.


The N. P. Goulandris Foundation, Museum of Cycladic Art, Athens; author’s photo

The Beginnings of Greek Myth

• Potnia Thērōn• Is she Artemis?


Figure 3.3Artemis as the Potnia Thērōn.


Museo Archeologico Nazionale, Florence


• Indo-European myths• Linguistic analysis

– Zeus and Jupiter < Dy –– The Indo-Europeans worshipped a sky god?

• Comparative Analysis– “twin”– good versus evil? – social dichotomy?



• Writing as a method of transmission• Linear B tablets

– Zeus, Hera, Poseidon, Athena, Artemis, Hermes, Enyalius, Paean, Eileithyia, Dionysus, Potnia.

• Myths mostly transmitted orally by aoidoi



• Songs performed for entertainment by bards– Homer’s Demodocus

• Dactylic hexameter• Rhythmic patterns and stock phrases


Figure 3.4An aoidos singing a song, represented by random letters.


Chazen Museum of Art, Univesity of Wisconsin-Madison

THE INFLUENCE OF NEAR EASTERN MYTH


Near Eastern Myth

• Non-Indo-European Mesopotamian sources of Greek myth

• Greek myths of cosmic origins come from Near Eastern sources

• Mesopotamian myths known only by report until recently

• Cuneiform script decoded in the 19th century



Sumerian Myth


Sumerian Myth

• Sumerians the earliest people in Mesopotamia (4000 B.C.)

• First full-fledged cities• Each city had protective deity

– “Lived” on the ziggurat


Figure 3.6Ziggurat of Ur-Nammu.


World Religions Photo Library/Alamy

Sumerian Myth

• Myths preserved on tablets and seals– cuneiform (wedge shaped)

• Seal Impressions– Gilgamesh/Enkidu cylinder seal


Figure 3.5A cuneiform tablet.


British Museum, London; © The Trustees of the British Museum / Art Resource, New York

Figure 3.7Akkadian seal-impression.


© Bettmann/CORBIS. All Rights Reserved

Sumerian Myth

An Sky God | Supreme

Inanna Queen of Heaven | Sex and War

Enlil Lord of the Storm | Tablets of Destiny

Enki Lord of Earth | Sweet Ground Water | Trickster God

Ki One of Many Names for Mother Earth

Ereshkigal Queen of the Underworld

Utu Sun God


Figure 3.8Mesopotamian terracotta relief.


Scala/Art Resource, New York

Sumerian Myth

• Deities are anthropomorphic but indistinct– Hard to tell often who’s been represented

• Filled with human emotions and motivations• Important in the Epic of Gilgamesh



Semitic Myth


Semitic Myth

• Semites– Modern term < Biblical “Schem”– Arrive in Mesopotamia in 2000 BC– Designates linguistic group

• Sargon the Akkadian (2340 BC)• Adopted Sumerian culture


Semitic MythSumerian Akkadian/Bablyonian Domain

An Anu Sky

Inanna Isthar Sex; War

Enlil Enlil or Marduk Storms

Enki Ea Fresh Water; Wisdom; Magic

Ki ----- Earth

Ereshkigal ----- Death

Utu Shamash Sun


Semitic Myth

• Hammurabi (1750 BC)– Semitic Babylonians– Empire in Mesopotamia

• The Ennuma Elish– “When on high . . .”– Creation account– Cult hymn


Semitic Myth

• Hebrews– Abraham (2000 BC?)

• Migrated to Canaan and then to Egypt• Moses (1200 BC)

– Monotheism (from Egyptian period of Akhenaten 1400 BC?)

– Yahweh– The Exodus and Ten Commandments


Semitic Myth

• Invasion of Canaan– Battles with the Canaanites and the Philistines

• Kingdom of David and Solomon (1000 BC)• Babylonian Exile (586–536)

– Nebuchadnezzar


Semitic Myth

• Collected their written and oral traditions• Completed around AD 90 • Wrote with the “Phoenician alphabet”

– syllabary of twenty-two signs without vowel signs


Semitic Myth

• Easier than cuneiform but still difficult– Hence the prestige of readers (the rabbi)

• Adapted into Arabic script and ultimately into the Greek alphabet



Other Sources


Other Sources

• Hittites (1600–1200 BC)– Central modern-day Turkey– Non-Semitic– Inherited and modified Babylonian myths

• Egypt– Had few myths– Mostly proverbs, hymns, and clever short stories– Connected narratives come from Greek sources (Osiris and

Isis)


End


chapter 3 lecture one of two the development of classical myth ©2012 pearson education inc

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