A Defence of Romantic Love

with Dr Martin Shaw

From Inanna to Dermot & Grainne to Tristan & Isolde, romantic love has brought its voltage to the mythic traditions of antiquity, the middle ages and beyond. Combustible, mysterious and often unforgettable, we just can’t keep away from it. In this lecture Dr Shaw draws upon themes, motifs, and lessons from our greatest mythologies of love. Rather than suggesting we veer into more sober territory, Shaw claims knowledge of the full range of such encounters is what helps us deepen into the experience of being human. And through such deepening he asks quite what a 'Romanticism Come of Age' might look like?

Martin Shaw is an award-winning writer who lives on Dartmoor in the far west of Britain.His books include the Mythteller trilogy, The Night Wages, Courting the Wild Twin, and Bardskull. A deeply respected oral storyteller, Martin Shaw created the Oral Tradition and Mythic Life courses at Stanford University. He is director at the Westcountry School of Myth and a long-time wilderness rites of passage guide. The Irish Times described him as 'a Seanchai ... an interloper from the medieval.' Reader in Poetics at Dartington Arts School, he contributes regular essays and audio at his Substack subscription The House of Beasts & Vines.

For more on Martin Shaw’s work visit: cistamystica.com | schoolofmyth.com | martinshaw.substack.com

To book: E temenosacademy@myfastmail.com T 07513 883 335