If you came from my website, you may have noticed the picture that is a part of the link to this blog site. It is of Andromeda as she faced the sea monster that she was being sacrificed to. It is moments before Perseus, as he was passing by, swooped in and saved her. The image is of the artwork of Boris Vallejo. He did a lot of fantasy art for many book covers during the eighties and nineties. His work is colorful, sensual and incredible.
I like the image for another reason. I love the story of Perseus. And I enjoy the two Hollywood adaptations of the myth: Clash of the Titans. Both the 1981 version and the 2010 version, although they take liberties with the myth-proper, are entertaining cinema for the time they were created. They are fun, mythical romps of adventure, humor and heroism.
If you want to take a look at the myth-proper in an understandable presentation instead of actual Greek. Go to mythweb.com and select "Heroes." There you can find Perseus and his link to his story. It is an easy to read, animated capsulation of the myth. And, of course, you can rent Clash of the Titans. You can choose either version or both. I won't require you to write an essay, but you can come back and post your thoughts here in this blog.
Being a bonafide science fiction and fantasy fan and teacher (I love my job), I get to enlighten today's youth in the enjoyment of classic literature, classic films that predate CGI and modern advances in film and story telling. I try to keep the class fun yet thought provoking like you would when you are sitting around a campfire or hanging out with friends just talking about things. Some discussions may poke fun, and some may get as heated as the arguments of the boys on the Big Bang Theory.
The written responses may have needed some more attention to grammar and punctuation, but they also told me that the students get some of what I am saying and maybe have gained some insight into my love and fascination with the genres. If they don't, they will just think I am weird, and I am okay with that too.
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