Some people fear spiders so much they can barely stand to read the word. For others, these secretive eight-legged hunters are a source of fascination and mythic wonder. Why do some cultures loathe spiders and others love and revere them, even crediting them with creating the world? Harvard language professor and folklore and mythology expert Maria Tatar dives into the Spider-Verse with her book Arachnomania: Spiders and the Cultural Work They Do for Us.
She tells confirmed arachnophile Andrew Harrison how Arachne, the original main spider-character, got a raw deal; what spider stars like Charlotte, Shelob and the one who discomfited Miss Muffet mean; and why Peter Parker is oddly detached from the great web of spider-stories. “Are spiders our significant others,” she asks, “our second selves or sworn enemies?”
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Written and presented by Producer: Andrew Harrison. Audio production: Jade Bailey. Music by Kenny Dickinson. Artwork by James Parrett. Managing Editor: Jacob Jarvis. Group Editor: Andrew Harrison. THE BUNKER is a Podmasters Production.
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