Okay, we know our mythology: Zeus and Demeter, Loki and Thor, Isis and Osiris, Arabian Nights, King Arthur. It’s awesome. Now let’s level up.

Along with these ancient fireside tales, world culture has given us the great epics—closer to the Odyssey or Morte de Arthur. Building on all our knowledge of the popular myths (and yes, those Rick Riordan style novels help too), together we’ll read the big epics and discuss what they teach about cosmology, heroism, legend, and culture (We will be respectful, as some of these belong to active religions. Those who know more about some of these cultures than the teacher are encouraged to share.)

We can also discuss Jung and Campbell’s theories that everyone worldwide is telling the same basic story and see how much we agree. In many cases, these are the original versions from which the famous myths come, and thus an enlightening source for myth-lovers. It’s the world’s greatest stories, for lovers of great battles, gods, and monsters.