Date of Award

6-2024

Document Type

Thesis (Master's)

Department or Program

Master of Arts in Liberal Studies

First Advisor

Barbara Kreiger

Second Advisor

Kate Leach

Third Advisor

Anna Minardi

Abstract

My project, “Medieval and Modern: Celtic Mythology Through the Lens of Urban Fantasy” is the result of my interest and investment in Celtic mythology, and more specifically Irish mythology, most of our knowledge of which comes from records in the medieval period, made by Christian monks. I pursued research into Medieval Celtic myth and folklore to gain a deeper understanding of those stories of mythological figures and heroes. With that knowledge and genuine love for the source material, in this thesis, I have crafted three individual and distinct stories that capture mythological elements, such as a prominent Folk Hero or Deity from the Irish Pantheon and have woven them into our modern day world. Using our reality as a backdrop and layering fantasy elements atop it, the fantastical elements of the story provide a safety net that allows us to examine our own world with a critical eye in order to grasp a deeper understanding of human nature. These three stories examine characters who are struggling with relationships, either to themselves, or to others, or both, and while the idea of the Otherworld, or magic, or deific ancestry may not feel familiar, the struggles and emotions of the characters will. Each story is introduced with a page or two describing the process in which the story was written, and any background information that may be relevant to the enjoyment of the story, be it information regarding the myth or hero I am drawing from, or simply vocabulary and concepts familiar to readers of the urban fantasy genre. But ultimately my goal with this project was to write well informed, enjoyable fiction.

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