- For the computer game, see Myth (computer
game).
A myth is a lesson in story form which has deep explanatory or
symbolic resonance for preliterate cultures, who preserve and cherish the wisdom of their elders through oral traditions by the
use of skilled story tellers. Its truth is larger than the advent of critical history which may, or may not exist as in an
authoritive written form which becomes "the story".(Preliterate oral traditions vanish as the written word becomes "the story"
and the literate become "the authority"). Myth is simultaneously true at more than one level, for those who tell it, hear and
delight in it, and understand it within their culture. Most often the term refers specifically to ancient tales from very old
cultures, such as Greek mythology or Roman mythology. Some myths descended originally as part of an oral tradition and were only later
written down, and many of them exist in multiple versions.
All cultures have developed over time their own mythology, consisting of
legends of their history, their religions, and their heroes. The great power of the
symbolic meaning of these stories for the culture is a major reason why they survive as long as they do, sometimes for thousands
of years.
A collection of myths is called a mythos, e.g. 'the Roman mythos.' A collection of those is called a mythoi, e.g. 'the Greek and Roman mythoi.'
One notable type is the creation myth, which describes how that
culture believes the universe was created. There is talk now within the scientific community about the time before the Big Bang.
To those have been comfortable with the Big Bang as the ultimate solution and refuse to put it aside as new information may
appear, the Big Bang has become a sacred myth. Not so long ago the Milky Way was the one and only galaxy; to suggest otherwise
was almost unheard of sacrilege within the world of astronomy. Myths are often authoritative final answers with emotional ties.
Another is the Trickster myth, which concerns itself with the pranks or
tricks played by gods or heroes.
Joseph Campbell was considered by some people to be the world's
leading authority on myth and the history of spirituality.
Historians' views on myths
Although myths are often considered to be accounts of events that have not happened, many historians consider that myths can
also be accounts of actual events that have become highly imbued with symbolic meaning, or that have been transformed, shifted in
time or place, or even reversed. One way of conceptualizing this process is to view 'myths' as lying at the far end of a
continuum ranging from a 'dispassionate account' to 'legendary occurrence' to 'mythical status'. As an event progresses towards
the mythical end of this continuum, what people think, feel and say about the event takes on progressively greater historical
significance while the facts become less important. By the time one reaches the mythical end of the spectrum the story has taken
on a life of its own and the facts of the original event have become almost irrelevant.
This process occurs in part because the events described become detached from their original context and new context is
substituted, often through analogy with current or recent events. Some Greek myths originated in Classical times to provide
explanations for inexplicable features of local cult practices, to account for the local epithet of one of the Olympian gods, to interpret depictions of half-remembered figures, events, or account for the
deities' attributes or entheogens, even to make sense of ancient icons, much as
myths are invented to "explain" heraldic charges, the origins of which has become arcane with the passing of time. Conversely,
descriptions of recent events are re-emphasised to make them seem to be analogous with the commonly known story. This technique
has been used by Right-wing conservatives in America with text from the Bible (e.g.
Revelation), and was used in the Russian Communist era in propaganda about political situations with misleading references to
class struggles. Even today the fitness of the Emperor of Japan is based partly on his distant descent from the Goddess of the
Sun.
Other uses
Myths are not the same as fables, folktales, fairy tales, anecdotes, or simple fiction, but sloppy usage has blurred the distinctions in many people's minds. The term
"myth" is sometimes used pejoratively in reference to common beliefs of a culture or for the beliefs of a religion to imply that the story is both fanciful and fictional.
Myth is often used to refer to a commonly held but erroneous belief. Compare urban myth, the secular mythology of modern culture.
The terms urban myth and urban legend are sometimes used to describe something that is false, but, strictly speaking, those can be
either true or false as well.
See also
Reference
- Charles H. Long, Alpha: The Myths of Creation, George Braziller Inc., 1963
- Kees W. Bolle, The Freedom of Man in Myth, Vanderbilt University Press, 1968
- Elliot Aronson, Timothy D. Wilson, Robin M. Akert, Social Psychology, Addison-Wesley Educational Publishers Inc.
1997
- John Gribbin, The Birth of Time: How Astronomers Measured the Age of the Universe, Yale Univ Press, 2000
- Timothy Ferris, Red Limit: Search for the Edge of the Universe, William Morrow, 2002
External links
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