Chris Emlyn-Jones, Valerie Hope and Paula James reveal the enduring importance of myth.

Why study myth?

The popular American TV series "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" spanned seven seasons and gained a cult following. But how is it linked to the culture of ancient Greece and Rome? On closer inspection, its characters and narratives are revealed to be new incarnations of ancient classical myths that have filtered down into modern media. This album explores one episode, "I Was Made to Love You", in which Warren creates an artificial perfect girlfriend, just as Pygmalion sculpts an ivory statue to be his partner in Ovid's Metamorphoses. Many interesting parallels demonstrate the way in which universal human anxieties about gender identity, femininity, control and sexuality are continuously being re-examined through myth. This material forms part of The Open University course A330 Myth in the Greek and Roman worlds.

Share Why study myth?

Sign up to save your podcasts

Why study myth?

Why study myth?

More shows like Pygmalion meets Buffy the Vampire Slayer - for iPad/Mac/PC

Bon départ: beginners' French - Audio

Origins of The Cold War - for iPod/iPhone

Reading Political Philosophy: From Machiavelli to Mill - Audio

Re-assessing the Marquis de Sade - Audio

Beginners’ Chinese - Audio

Cognitive Psychology - Audio

Space, Time and Consciousness - for iPod/iPhone

Andante: beginners' Italian - Audio

Bon départ: beginners’ French second edition - for iPod/iPhone

60-Second Adventures in Economics - for iPad/Mac/PC