English Deutsch Français Italiano Español Português 繁體中文 Bahasa Indonesia Tiếng Việt ภาษาไทย
All categories

Explain why mythology is or is not relevant to the modern reader?

I need some ideas, please help. thanks. =)

2007-08-06 12:49:10 · 6 answers · asked by kid 2 in Society & Culture Mythology & Folklore

6 answers

Mythology is as important to the modern reader as Latin is to a scholar learning the origin of the English language: they are the roots, the source, the inspiration.

Almost all modern classics have some degree of influence from mythology, and understanding those roots heightens the enjoyment and understanding of the modern story.

Romeo and Juliet came from the story of Pyramus and Thisbe. Frankenstein comes from Prometheus. George Lucas has credited mythology as his inspiration for Star Wars. And we never would have had Harry Potter if not for Mythology: everything from invisibility cloaks (Hades' helmet of invisibility) to Centaurs to Unicorns to Sybil Trelawny (Sybil was a class of prophetic women who lived near Delphi) to giants to werewolves to dragons to you-name--it originated in mythology.

Even Jesus Christ has precessors in ancient mythologies: dozens of figures from Attis to Dionysus share many similiarities with the messiah.

Can you read Harry Potter or Lord of the Rings or Star Wars without knowing the mythology behind it all? Of course. But you'll miss half the fun.

2007-08-06 13:11:36 · answer #1 · answered by Michelle 4 · 1 1

OK PEOPLE HERE HAVE ANSWERED A DIFFERENT QUESTION 'WHERE AND IF WE CAN FIND MYTHOLOGY IN MODERN DAYS' THE ANSWER TO YOUR QUETION IS THE REASON WHY AND HOW MYTHOLOGY IS RELEVANT TO THE MODERN READER IS BECASUE THERE IS SOME TRUTH IN IT. FIRST TO UNDERSTAND THIS WE NEED TO EXPLAIN WHAT A MYTH OR MYTHOS IS IN SIMPLE WORDS NOT JUST A DEFINITION PEOPLE COPY FROM A WEBSITE. MYTHOS WAS USED ON THE BALKANS AND EVERYWHERE ELSE TO PASS ON TO GENERATIONS WHAT HAS HAPPENED BEFORE THEM IN A SONG FORMAT OR STORIES OR EVEN POEMS. THE REASON MYTHS ARE HALF TRUE HALF FALSE IS THAT THEY WERE MOSTLY PASSED BY 'MOUTH' OR A 'WORD OF MOUTH' THROUGH GENERATIONS SO HERE AND THERE PEOPLE HAVE ADDED AND HAVE TAKEN FROM THE REAL STORY. MYTHOLOGY IS RELEVAT TO THE MODERN READER BECAUSE THE PARTS OF A MYTH THAT ARE TRUE AND HELP US ASSIMILATE A PICTURE OR AN UNDERSTANDING OF HOW ANCIENT PEOPLE USED TO THINK TO LIVE SURVIVE AND MAINTAIN THEIR HYSTORY ALIVE AND BE REMEMBERED.WE CAN ALSO IN NUMBER OF OCCASIONS IDENTIFY OURSELVES WITH SOME OF THE CHARACHTERS IN THE MYTHS. PLEASE ALSO BARE IN MIND THAT MOST MYTHS TURN OUT TO BE TRUE. E.G. THEY FOUND THE BURRIED VILLAGE/TOWN OF TROY-SO IT WAS NOT A MYTH!!SOMETIMES MYTHOLOGY IS NOT RELEVANT BECAUSE THE PEOPLE OR CHARACHTERS IN THE MYTHS HAVE BEEN GIVEN SUPERNATURAL ABILITIES WHICH ARE DENIED BY MODERN AGE AND ARE IMMEDIATELY DISGARDED-BUT WHO IS TO SAY THAT THESE ABILITIES WERE NOT A FACT-AND MODERN PEOPLE SAY THAT ANCIENT PEOPLE WERE NOT EDUCATED AND THEY EXPLAINED EVERY UNFAMILIAR THING WITH GOD OR ABILITIES-HOWEVER DON'T YOU THINK THAT THIS GOES FOR MODERN PEOPLE TOO? THEY DO NOT UNDERSTAND THE SUPERNATURAL AND THE GOD-LIKE ABILITIES IN MYTHS AND THEY JUST DISGARD THEM COZ THEY CAN'T EXPLAIN THEM-PEOPLE ARE JUST IGNORANT.BUT IN CONCLUSION IF MYTHOLOGY WAS NOT THERE OR PRESENT WE WOULD NOT KNOW OF THE PAST-BECAUSE BEFORE ANY EXCAVATIONS AND ARCHAEOLOGICAL WORKS TAKE PLACE THE MYTHS HAVE BEEN READ AND TRANSLATED FIRST AND THEN THEY DIG TO BACK IT UP.

2007-08-06 22:24:33 · answer #2 · answered by daisy 3 · 0 0

The term 'Myth' has be incorrectly given the meaning of being fictional. Its actually the pre-patriarchal word for History (His-Story; attributing everything to the Xian Deity)
Whether the Mythologies are in straightforward or metaphorical tales, they're not to be dismissed as fictional. More accurate versions of our past are found in Mythology than in the re-written and bias Histories.

2007-08-06 13:39:03 · answer #3 · answered by Anonymous · 0 0

wheter you know it or not? most films book and modern day childrens stories are taken from myths and old storys. there just stealing an idea and turning it in to some thing which people think is there creation.

for example lord of the ring is a rip off of norse mytholagy and parts of world war 2 plus the seige of constantinople.
i can think of hundreds but i don't want to spoil the fun of seeing for yourself, why not see if you can find any?

i find the viking sagas to be very relavant and correct to today, were still human, the message is the same, we may be more advanced in technolagy and better in health, but are we in the mind? if you ask me they understood more about it than we do now? i feel it's all these other modern stories that are leading to drugs, crimes and al kinds of social problems today.

back then they may have savaged lands and killed each other with swords but it was for love and believe and glory of ones nation. now adays it's about revenge, hatered, envoy, money, greed or insanity from drugs.

p.s. read the read the sagas!!

2007-08-06 14:19:27 · answer #4 · answered by Anonymous · 1 1

Romeo and Juliet is a tragedy of human nature , each and every person separately believes she or he is doing whats correct however a loss of expertise places each and every and everybody of them within the unsuitable , and consequently everybody loses . It's as central at present because it ever used to be considering this can be a research of human nature and human nature has no longer modified when you consider that the tale used to be written .

2016-09-05 09:38:49 · answer #5 · answered by cronican 4 · 0 0

Anyone That is superstitious do have their lives govern around things as to what they believe........................................

2007-08-06 14:03:58 · answer #6 · answered by kilroymaster 7 · 0 1

fedest.com, questions and answers