Understanding mythopoesis (van Leeuwen 2008) as a form of legitimation through history, in this lecture I argue that myths are second order objectivations that integrate existing socially constructed objectivations into a cohesive story (Bennett 2022). Their taken-for-grantedness relies upon a ‘sanctioned ignorance’ (Spivak (1988) of other potential histories, a form of epistemic violence limiting what is considered valid knowledge. Myths can thus be understood as a “purposeful silencing through the dismissing of a particular context as being irrelevant” (Mayblin 2020). In this way, they form one part of a much wider web of interdiscursivly and intertextually connected texts that serve to symbolically construct a community. Through a critically discursive analysis it is possible to glimpse and demystify the covert mythopoetic legitimation strategies contained within them.
This event will be taking place in a hybrid manner, if you wish to attend on campus the venue is Campus Hub Block O Room 211, whilst if you are unable to attend physically this can be accessed for this event.
