Mythology for Dummies (Paperback, 2)

Introduction 1

Part 1: Mythology Basics and Why the Stories Endure 5

Chapter 1: The Truth About Myths 7

Chapter 2: Ancient Myths in Modern Culture: The Legacy 19

Part 2: Thunder and Lightning: Greek Mythology 29

Chapter 3: Greek Creation Myths and Really Ancient Greek Gods 31

Chapter 4: Taller, Younger, and Better Looking Than You: The Olympian Gods 45

Chapter 5: The Fairest and Meanest of Them All: The Greek Goddesses 61

Chapter 6: So Fine and Half Divine: Heroes 77

Chapter 7: The Trojan War, the Iliad, and the Odyssey 95

Chapter 8: Of Chorus They’re so Dramatic: Greek Tragedy 115

Part 3: The Cultural Spoils of an Empire: Roman Mythology 131

Chapter 9: Will the Real Roman Mythology Please Stand Up? 133

Chapter 10: Virgil’s Aeneid and the Founding of Rome 149

Chapter 11: Time to Change Things Up: Ovid’s Metamorphoses 159

Part 4: One Big Family Feud: Norse and Northern European Mythology 169

Chapter 12: Snow, Ice, and Not Very Nice: Norse Deities 171

Chapter 13: Heroes and Monsters: The Big Northern European Sagas 189

Chapter 14: A Seat at the Round Table: King Arthur and His Court 201

Chapter 15: Myths from the Emerald Isle: Ireland and Celtic Mythology 217

Part 5: The Cradle(s) of Civilization: African and Near-Eastern Mythology 225

Chapter 16: Central and Southern Africa: The Bantu’s Eternal Earth and Sly Animals 227

Chapter 17: Floods, Mud, and Gods: Mesopotamian and Hebrew Mythology 235

Chapter 18: Three Cheers for Egypt: Ra, Ra, Ra! 249

Chapter 19: North African Mythology: A Real Melting Pot 261

Chapter 20: One Thousand Tales: Persian Mythology 269

Part 6: Kashmir to Kyoto, and a Lot in Between: South- and East Asian Mythology 279

Chapter 21: Land of a Thousand Gods: India 281

Chapter 22: Get out the Fine China: Early Chinese Myth and the Three Teachings 293

Chapter 23: Japan: Myths from the Land of the Rising Sun 305

Part 7: “New World”? Says Who? Mythology of the Americas 317

Chapter 24: Central and South American Mythology: Civilizations, Cities, and Ball Games 319

Chapter 25: Sea to Sea, and Lots of Animals in Between: Indigenous Myths of North America 333

Part 8: The Part of Tens 349

Chapter 26: Ten Mythological Monsters 351

Chapter 27: Ten (Plus One) Mythological Places 357

Index 365