Mythcon 44: Day 1
Looking for folks exploring the creation of myth and fantasy? Try the Mythopoeic Society, which as I write this is holding its 44th annual gathering, Mythcon, a fertile mix of scholarship and fun. Intensely curious as to what such a gathering might be like, I decided to travel to the convention and report back…
First of all, the participants are friendly; I’d been made welcome by a professor of English from Nova Scotia before I’d even reached the graceful campus of Michigan State University in East Lansing, where Mythcon is unfolding over this weekend. Though the attendees are overwhelmingly white, I haven’t sensed any exclusionary impulses. People with disabilities mingle easily with everyone else, and a variety of ages are here, though understandably in a crowd littered with so many established academics, it skews a bit older.
The Society focuses on the works of Lord of the Rings author J.R.R. Tolkien—the master of all mythmakers—and his contemporaries, but not to the detriment of other mythic efforts. For example, my favorite presentation of this shortened first day came from Vicki Ronn of Friends University; her intriguing “Witches in the Wild: Old Women on the Boundaries” illuminated the economic and misogynistic origins of the ‘wicked old witch in the woods’ archetype and examined how it persists and has evolved in fantastical literature to this day.
But the best part of Mythcon came last. I’d read that a “Bardic Circle” took place in the evenings, and hoped for an engaging exchange of storytelling over the conceptual campfire; it turned into so much more. An unassuming hotel hospitality suite came alive as one by one folks fearlessly offered whatever moved them: some sang a song unexpectedly lovely from untrained voices; others read from their own work, while still others recited a favorite famous poem. With a ferocious honesty and openness, everyone in that room brought it, whatever “it” meant to them. I entered that room exhausted from a long day of travel and thought-provoking discussions; I left inspired.
I’m glad you’re having a good experience. I’m enjoying my first taste of Mythcon as well.
Anna, your presentation this morning gave me the tools I need at a crucial moment in my own mythmaking efforts to make sure my prose reaches its best level. I should be cursing your name (because I was about to embark on revisions on my newly completed myth cycle, and now I’ll have to eye every passage even more critically than before), but instead I can only sing your praises.
Sounds like a blast, unfortunately my wife Jessica and I could not attend this year, however we will be at Wheaton next year. As a recovering MythCon Chair, MythCon 38, I can first welcome you with open arms and wish you the best of experiences. Yet, take full advantage of everything the con has to offer, especially playing with your food 😉
Cheers,
Anthony
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Hey, Grey Havens folks, I remember seeing your banner at Mythcon. Nice to have you here!