2007-10-14 23:47:04 · 13 answers · asked by Anonymous in Society & Culture ➔ Mythology & Folklore
A legend, as the others imply, is a story that has been handed down through tradition. A myth is a story that is accepted as religious dogma. A myth may be true or false, and it may be history or fiction.
Example - The crucifixion of Jesus was (as far as scholars maintain) an event that actually took place. Nevertheless, it is technically a part of Christian mythology. Theseus killing the Minotaur is fiction, but it is a part of ancient Pagan Greek mythology. The stories about Paul Bunyon and Pecos Bill, on the other hand, are legends. They are traditional stories that cannot be confirmed, but they are not a part of any religious tradition.
2007-10-15 01:50:23 · answer #1 · answered by NONAME 7 · 2⤊ 1⤋
Mythology and religion are the same thing, really. Some will see that as insulting, but they're just two different words for the same thing. Mythology (religion) is how a culture explains the origin of the world and its people and usually sets out the basic rules of behavior. Often fictional characters are involved: a god or gods and other characters such as saints or lesser gods and other magical beings. Folklore is a bit different. It's sort of an oral tradition; it was how people passed along wisdom from one generation to another before things were written down. Spirituality--I don't really know what to do with that. It's not really like the other three terms. It's rather vague and somewhat meaningless.
2016-05-22 16:56:58 · answer #2 · answered by antoinette 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
In the academic fields of mythology, mythography, or folkloristics, a myth (mythos) is a sacred story concerning the origins of the world or how the world and the creatures in it came to have their present form. The active beings in myths are generally gods and heroes. Myths often are said to take place before recorded history begins. In saying that a myth is a sacred narrative, what is meant is that a myth is believed to be true by people who attach religious or spiritual significance to it. Use of the term by scholars does not imply that the narrative is either true or false. See also legend and tale.
A myth in popular use is something that is widely believed to be false. This usage, which is often pejorative, arose from labeling the religious myths and beliefs of other cultures as being incorrect, but it has spread to cover non-religious beliefs as well. Because of this usage, many people take offense when the religious narratives they believe to be true are called myths. This usage is frequently confused with fiction, legend, fairy tale, folklore, fable, and urban legend, each of which has a distinct meaning in academia.
A legend (Latin, legenda, "things to be read") is a narrative of human actions that are perceived both by teller and listeners to take place within human history and to possess certain qualities that give the tale verisimilitude. Legend, for its active and passive participants, includes no happenings that are outside the realm of "possibility", defined by a highly flexible set of parameters, which may include miracles that are perceived as actually having happened, within the specific tradition of indoctrination where the legend arises, and within which it may be transformed over time, in order to keep it fresh and vital, and realistic.
2007-10-15 06:05:30 · answer #3 · answered by leomcholwer 3 · 1⤊ 0⤋
A legend is a popular story that has been handed down through the generations the truth of which has not been ascertained.
A myth is generally a story about superhuman beings of an earlier age taken by pre-literate society to be true. These are also stores of a natural event, occurrence or social customs.
Hope this helps. Jo.
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2007-10-14 23:57:45 · answer #4 · answered by Anonymous · 2⤊ 1⤋
Legend is a story handed down form the past- it may or may not be based on actual past events.
Myth is commonly used to imply that a legend-type story is untue, e.g. it may be that from one's own culture such stories are seen as legends, i.e. possibly true or based on fact, while using hte owrk "myth" in common use might imply that it is a story defintely not true, only because it is a story from another culture, which you don't belive in.
In more technical use, however, myth is used to mean legends, stories, etc that sum up many years of wisdom, or help to explain the culture of a people or group of peoples. There is no judgement in its more technical use about whether the legend is according to facts or not - just an acknowledgement of its importance in the culture it belongs to.
2007-10-15 00:02:44 · answer #5 · answered by Ergot W 4 · 1⤊ 1⤋
A myth involves gods or demi-gods and often tells how something originated, e.g. a creation myth. It may have some rituals associated with it. Legends are less lofty and involve more ordinary men or other animals. There are several types of tales handed down, e.g. folk tales, fables, fairy tales, urban legends, etc.
2007-10-15 02:59:36 · answer #6 · answered by miyuki & kyojin 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
A legend is a story that is based in reality that over time has had items attributed to it that may not be strictly true. Whereas a myth is a fictitious, untrue, story or event.
2007-10-14 23:54:34 · answer #7 · answered by A-chan 4 · 0⤊ 2⤋
a legend is a tall story
a myth is a short woman.lol
2007-10-15 04:04:21 · answer #8 · answered by HaSiCiT Bust A Tie A1 TieBusters 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋
A legend is a story which is handed down over the ages - most likely not true.
A myth is something which is definitely NOT true.
2007-10-14 23:52:58 · answer #9 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 3⤋
A legend is something or someone that really existed or happened and a myth is something that is not proven, therefor unreal.
2007-10-14 23:53:15 · answer #10 · answered by sissy 3 · 1⤊ 3⤋