This course originated in a reflection on the Humanities that focused particularly on the area of Modern Literatures and Cultures, its emergence throughout the 19th century, its rapid evolution in recent decades and its role in the contemporary world. Two fundamental ideas arised from this reflection, which were decisive for the design and setting of the course structure of the present course: (1) first, it was found that there was a need to update and adapt these areas to new themes and realities that have undoubtedly marked contemporaneity; (2) second, there was a desire to not lose sight of the paths already travelled by these areas nor of the classical, historical and methodological references of Modern Literatures and Cultures.

In this context, and while facing the challenges posed by these two conditioning factors, a broad notion of myth was considered to have all the conditions to constitute the central thematic core of the course, particularly because it is a transversal concept in relation to the old national philologies, but also because, from the disciplinary point of view, it is involved in many cultural, literary and artistic representations.