The discipline of anthropology at Miskatonic University is, in its truest sense, an ongoing meditation upon the riddle of humanity’s place amongst the unfathomable procession of ages. Here, inquiry is directed not merely toward cataloging the observable characteristics of our species, but rather toward unearthing those veiled forces and ancient patterns which, shrouded in the labyrinth of history and legend, have shaped the human condition.

Physical anthropology, through hands trembling with scientific caution, sifts the soil for remnants of primordial kin, while cultural anthropology endeavors to decipher the rites, beliefs, and forgotten customs that echo faintly through the corridors of time. Each newly exhumed fragment, each shattered cranial vault or cryptic petroglyph, presses upon the mind’s boundaries, opening corridors into the horrid vastness of our unknown origins.

The curriculum—ever-evolving, as the morbid tides of discovery refuse stillness—draws its faculty and students alike toward revelations that erode the comforting illusion of human singularity. Disquieting findings in distant, shadowed lands disrupt accepted histories, leaving the academic soul poised between wonder and trepidation. Those who seek wisdom here should be prepared for their own certainties to fracture; for the anthropology of Miskatonic entertains no comforting assurances, but instead demands a meticulous regard for both ancient bones and the silent, implacable void from which humanity once emerged.

Introduction to Anthropology

Within this foundational inquiry, students are summoned to confront the obscure chronicle of mankind’s emergence and transformation. The course, anchored in sobriety and skepticism, examines the physical evolution of the human form and surveys the labyrinthine theories surrounding humanity’s genesis, epoch, and location within the vast, indifferent sweep of natural history. Through a synthesis of anatomical study and speculative discourse, participants will ponder humankind’s fraught relationship to the natural order—considering not only alliances with other animal species, but also the subtle estrangement and restless striving that have marked our species across both history and prehistory. What is revealed beneath the disciplines of fossil, sinew, and mind, students may discover, are questions rather than answers: the persistent murmur of mysteries that quietly elude definitive classification.

Comparative mythology

Comparative mythology is the comparison of myths from different cultures in an attempt to identify shared themes and characteristics. Comparative mythology has served a variety of academic purposes. For example, scholars have used the relationships between different myths to trace the development of religions and cultures, to propose common origins for myths from different cultures, and to support various psychological theories. Comparative mythologists come from various fields, including folklore, anthropology, history, linguistics, and religious studies, and they have used a variety of methods to compare myths.

*This course was contributed and is conducted by Dr. James Riot

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