Sunday Evening Lecture – David Leeming – “Medusa: A Biography”

Emeritus Professor of English and Comparative Literature at the University of Connecticut, David Leeming is the author of over 20 books on world mythology and three biographies, including the internationally recognized James Baldwin. He will speak on “Medusa: A Biography.”

Writing a biography presents challenges whether the subject is living or deceased. Writing a biography about one of the most enduring and terrifying mythical figures of history is downright foolhardy. Nevertheless, Leeming defies Medusa’s gaze. He traces her origins in global cultures more disparate and ancient than the classical Greek. He follows her path from a dangerous female monster to the noble victim of a patriarchal society to a contemporary power player in the fashion house of Versace.

Finally, he confronts the questions of who Medusa is and what the Medusa myth as a cultural dream says about us.

This event is free and open to the public.