What Is Mythology?

WHAT IS MYTHOLOGY?

I. Definition µυθος - word, speech, story (origin of the word myth)

A) Definition Proper
"A myth is a story...which has "proven itself worthy of becoming traditional." M & LI. Definition
"A myth is a traditional tale with secondary, partial reference to something of collective importance" (W. Burkert)
"Myths are traditional tales, which maintain contact with the past and hand on inherited wisdom to the future. Traditional tales explain a society to itself, promulgating its concerns and values. They describe patterns of behaviour as models for members of a society, especially in times of crisis." B. Powell

B) Essence of myth
1. Traditional (handed down)
2. Resonant/Useful
3. Flexible/Adaptable (Spiderman example)

C) Myth and Truth
1. In ancient times:
Xenophanes criticized anthropomorphic (human-like appearance) gods
-didn’t believe in myths, thought that there was only one god who was not human-like
Plato would expel poets from his ideal city (but made up new myths)
Aristotle- poetry (myth) is more serious than history because it give general truth (not specific truth)

II. Classification

A) Myth Proper -functions like science
-deals with mainly relations between humans and gods gods explains nature (eg. Mt. Etna(a volcano on Sicily, story of Typhon)), society (eg. Athena v. Poseidon)

B) Legend/Saga -functions like history
-heroes (humans)=protagonist heroes, explain the past (eg. Trojan war), to inspire noble behaviour (e.g. Alexander the Great had the Iliad to teach him how to be noble)

C) Folktales powerless hero, to entertain (eg. Jack and beanstalk), Cinderella , Perseus (son of Zeus)

III. Interpretation

A) Ancient
-Greeks sometimes questioned them, what do they mean?
-rationalists (Xenophanes)
-maybe not communicating truth

1. Physical Allegory: -teaching things on a different level
a) Theagenes -525 BCE, influenced by early physiological ideas about the cosmos (Poseidon vs. Athena= water vs. fire on earth)
b) Stoics (eg. Cronus = Chronus) Cronus: Zeus’s father, a titan, devoured children, Chronus: means time time devours all things on Earth
2. Historical Allegory: (eg. Euhemerus) -300 BCE
-story of golden pillars, gods based on past humans, exaggerated things about human kings

3. Moral Allegory: (eg. Judgement of Paris (Trojan Prince) - who is most beautiful: Hera (active), Athena (scholar), Aphrodite (desire)?( a choice man by every man in his life)), Neoplatonists -two tiered ides (real life and myths)
-Greek myths hide moral feelings
Uranus = unity of all things, Cronus = intellect (changing plurality), Zeus = soul (subject to change)

B) Medieval (church in power)
-Odysseus and Sirens (only one to hear the siren’s songs and live) = avoiding tempting sins

C) Enlightenment
-emphasis on rationality
-myths took a step back, people saying they were irrational approaches to analysing the world
Cf. Romantic Reaction

D) Modern

1. Psychological
a) Freud (interest in dreams and sexual conflicts) - Oedipus complex-desire deep in psyche, every male child sees mother as sexual object, rivalry with father (female version = Electra Complex)
b) Jung (student of Freud) - collective unconscious-rites of passage -descendent of underworld myths society dealing with death

2. Anthropological-myths reflect primitive society
a) Ritual (performed myth, myth=narrative of a ritual) (J.G. Frazer (wrote “Golden Bough”)) esp. fertility -all primitive societies had fertility rituals
b) Social Charter (B.Malinowski (classical scholar)) Eg. Cadmus and the Boeotians (ground people that sprung up from soil that descendants inhabited)
-Boeotian’s right to own land
-why Athena is dominant over Poseidon

3. Structural-structure of stories, e.g. myths
a) C. Levi-Strauss-structure that reoccur in myths
-reflect basic structure in society (based on structure of human mind (binary (looks at life by opposite things, e.g. gods going into underworld= down in death, comes back alive opposites)))
b) V. Propp
-quest tales are standardized
c) W. Burkert
-known as scholar of ancient Greek religion
-developed sophisticated structural approach to myths
-said structures reflect societal concerns
-complexity explained by evolution of myths as society evolves/changes

4. Feminist
-used a lot of binary opposites (mainly male vs. female)
-how myths reflect dominance of males and position of women
-violence, negative impression of women
-rapes in ancient Greek myths not portrayed in negative ways (women don’t come across as victims)
-story of Aphrodite seducing shepherd is strange from this view