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Mythology

Spoon · Nov 19, 2010 03:54 38 700
Spoon OP
Nov 19, 2010 03:54
The term mythology can refer to either the study of myths, or to a body of myths. For example, comparative mythology is the study of connections between myths from different cultures, whereas Greek mythology is the body of myths from ancient Greece. The term "myth" is often used colloquially to refer to a false story, but academic use of the term generally does not pass judgment on truth or falsity. In the study of folklore, a myth is a sacred narrative explaining how the world and humankind came to be in their present form. Many scholars in other fields use the term "myth" in somewhat different ways. In a very broad sense, the word can refer to any traditional story.
38 replies
Spoon OP
Nov 19, 2010 04:27
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Joseph Campbell believed that there were two different orders of mythology: that there are myths that, "are metaphorical of spiritual potentiality in the human being", and that there are myths, "that have to do with specific societies". Claude Lévi-Strauss believed that myths reflect patterns in the mind and interpreted those patterns more as fixed mental structures — specifically, pairs of opposites (i.e. good/evil, compassionate/callous) — than as unconscious feelings or urges. In his appendix to Myths, Dreams and Mysteries, and in The Myth of the Eternal Return, Mircea Eliade attributed modern man’s anxieties to his rejection of myths and the sense of the sacred. In the 1950s, Roland Barthes published a series of essays examining modern myths and the process of their creation in his book Mythologies.
Spoon OP
Nov 19, 2010 04:30
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Comparative Mythology: Comparative mythology is the systematic comparison of myths from different cultures. It seeks to discover underlying themes that are common to the myths of multiple cultures. In some cases, comparative mythologists use the similarities between different mythologies to argue that those mythologies have a common source. This common source may be a common source of inspiration (e.g. a certain natural phenomenon that inspired similar myths in different cultures) or a common "protomythology" that diverged into the various mythologies we see today.
Spoon OP
Nov 19, 2010 04:31
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Nineteenth-century interpretations of myth were often highly comparative, seeking a common origin for all myths. However, modern-day scholars tend to be more suspicious of comparative approaches, avoiding overly general or universal statements about mythology. One exception to this modern trend is Joseph Campbell's book The Hero With a Thousand Faces (1949), which claims that all hero myths follow the same underlying pattern. This theory of a "monomyth" is out of favor with the mainstream study of mythology
chocolate.boy
Nov 19, 2010 05:44
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Pretty usefull info!
Dashman
Nov 20, 2010 02:28
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U write whole history of mythology..... Wat is mystory behind dat ... smiley gd stuff hr
Spoon OP
Nov 20, 2010 02:33
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Dashman: U write whole history of mythology..... Wat is mystory behind dat ... smiley gd stuff hr
lol that will come with the different regions of the mythology and fokelores lol
EloraM23
Nov 22, 2010 02:13
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Excellent and useful information. smiley
6Mike9
Dec 10, 2010 13:52
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Spoon: Origins of Myth: Euhemerism (One theory claims that myths are distorted accounts of real historical events.) According to this theory, storytellers repeatedly elaborated upon historical accounts until the figures in those accounts gained the status of gods. For example, one might argue that the myth of the wind-god Aeolus evolved from a historical account of a king who taught his people to use sails and interpret the winds. Herodotus (5th century BC) and Prodicus made claims of this kind. This theory is named "euhemerism" after the mythologist Euhemerus (c.320 BC), who suggested that the Greek gods developed from legends about human beings
CORRECT! They r DISTORTED ACOUNTS of historical events. Like theory of wind-god who thaught his ppl to use sails to interpret d winds. a flying-goddess wil b showing off her skills flying off skyscraper. smiley jokes aside. dont try that when drunk.
Spoon OP
Dec 10, 2010 22:20
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6Mike9: CORRECT! They r DISTORTED ACOUNTS of historical events. Like theory of wind-god who thaught his ppl to use sails to interpret d winds. a flying-goddess wil b showing off her skills flying off skyscraper. smiley jokes aside. dont try that when drunk.
i guess u didnt read it properly or only took in the bits u wanted to, as i have put in the very first post myths r tradittional stories, and they cover many things. the bible and book of Allah r also traditional stories and also change at times, australian dreamtime for the aboriginals r true stories for them that have bn passed on thru generations yet there isnt a book for them to follow, just as egyptian/kemetic have hieroglyphics to tell there stories so do the aboriginals. Just because they aint written in writting as we know today doesnt make them any less true to objects like the bible and other religious books
Buchi
Dec 13, 2010 06:44
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useful info
Jude80
Dec 22, 2010 21:28
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Good 1
Alebi
Mar 8, 2011 01:55
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interesting info
Leo-J
Sep 28, 2011 08:30
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Cul......!
Chiedozie
Feb 5, 2012 22:54
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Chie great topic
Niksbits
Feb 21, 2012 15:20
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Hi spoon I believe bats are mystic animals I would like to know your thoughts if you wouldn't mind sharing with me x cheers nik
aprillia
Apr 3, 2012 19:33
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have a lot of mythology in my country n now to b come story telling. n i like to listen that 4m my mam.
Trax
Apr 11, 2012 17:00
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nice info
Bumpex
Jul 17, 2018 21:23
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I HEAR UNKOME PARANORMAL TINGS.EWERY ONE DOES.