Mythopoetics and Faerie Stories: Theory and Practice of Mythmaking with Martin Shaw

Martin Shaw on February 4, 2026 at the Lumen Christi Institute. In his newly published "Liturgies of the Wild," acclaimed mythographer and storyteller Martin Shaw argues that we live in a myth-impoverished age and that such poverty has left us vulnerable to stories that may not wish us well. Drawing on the “ancient technologies” of myths and initiatory rites, Shaw provides a road to wholeness, maturity and connection. In this event for UChicago students, Dr. Shaw explores both the theory and practice of mythmaking. In the first section Shaw guides us through myth’s relationship to initiation rites and oral storytelling, explaining these “ancient technologies.” In the second we tilt directly into the telling of an Irish fairy tale, The Birth of Ossian. Drawing on his experience as a professor and widely respected storyteller, Shaw locates us in the deeper dimensions of how a modern person approaches an ancient story.

You can listen to Mythopoetics and Faerie Stories: Theory and Practice of Mythmaking with Martin Shaw online on Radio and Podcast. Open the player on this page to stream the available audio.

Mythopoetics and Faerie Stories: Theory and Practice of Mythmaking with Martin Shaw is an episode from The Lumen Christi Institute by The Lumen Christi Institute.

This episode is 01:04:59 long.

This episode was published on Feb 23, 2026.

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