# data[].attributes.body
"THE POINT OF MYTHOLOGY OR MYTH IS TO POINT TO THE HORIZON AND TO POINT BACK TO OURSELVES: THIS IS WHO WE ARE; THIS IS WHERE WE CAME FROM; AND THIS IS WHERE WE'RE GOING."

- J. MICHAEL STRAZYNSKI

# data[].attributes.body
Mythology denotes both the study of myth and the body of myths belonging to a particular tradition.

It involves the collection of stories about a specific person, culture, religion, or any group with shared beliefs. Most people don’t consider mythology to be entirely true, but they still take it seriously.

Watch the video above to further understand the concept of Mythology!

# data[].attributes.body
Myth is defined as:
> a symbolic narrative
> has unknown origin
> distinguished from symbolic behavior (cult, ritual) and symbolic places or objects (temples, icons).
> specific accounts of gods or superhuman beings involved in extraordinary events or circumstances

Myth is derived from the Greek word mythos, which can mean “word", “saying”, “story,” and “fiction”.

# data[].attributes.body
Myth in nature:
> has existed in every society
> considered a basic constituent of human culture.
> difficult to generalize
> generally, it reflects, expresses, and explores people’s self-image.
> the central importance in the study both of individual societies and of human culture as a whole.

Watch the video above to further understand the nature of myths!

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
What are Myths? Simple and Concise Explanation of Mythology

# data[].attributes.headline
Relation of myths to other narrative forms

# data[].attributes.subject
Relation of myths to other narrative forms

# data[].attributes.body
FABLES

* Latin "fabula"
* Fables, like some myths, feature personified animals or natural objects as characters.

FAIRY TALES

*Like myths, fairy tales present extraordinary beings and events.

FOLKTALES
*Folktales are stories with people as main characters that sometimes include feats of strength. Myths are stories told to explain the world around us, from the origin of the world, to why there are seasons.

Sagas and epics

*The word saga is often used in a generalized and loose way to refer to any extended narrative re-creation of historical events.

*The word saga is Old Norse and means “what is said.”

*The relation between epic and myth is not easy to pin down, but it is in general true that epics characteristically incorporate mythical events and persons.

*Myth is thus a prime source of the material on which epic draws.

Legends

*In common usage the word legend usually characterizes a traditional tale thought to have a historical basis, as in the legends of King Arthur or Robin Hood.

*In this view, a distinction may be drawn between myth (which refers to the supernatural and the sacred) and legend (which is grounded in historical fact).

*Thus, some writers on the Iliad would distinguish between the legendary aspects (e.g., heroes performing actions possible for ordinary humans) and the mythical aspects (e.g., episodes involving the gods).

*But the distinction between myth and legend must be used with care.

*As in other cases, it must be remembered that the boundaries between terms for traditional narratives are fluid, and that different writers employ them in quite different ways.

Parables

*The term myth is not normally applied to narratives that have as their explicit purpose the illustration of a doctrine or standard of conduct.

*Instead, the term parable, or illustrative tale, is used.

*Familiar examples of such narratives are the parables of the New Testament.

Etiologic tales

*Etiologic tales are very close to myth, and some scholars regard them as a particular type of myth rather than as a separate category.

*In modern usage the term etiology is used to refer to the description or assignment of causes (Greek aitia).

*Accordingly, an etiologic tale explains the origin of a custom, state of affairs, or natural feature in the human or divine world.

# data[].attributes.headline
Approaches to the study of myth and mythology

# data[].attributes.subject
Approaches to the study of myth and mythology

# data[].attributes.body
The importance of studying myth to provide a key to a human society is a matter of historical record. A close study of myth has developed in the West, especially since the 18th century. The world of myth provides guidance for crucial elements in human existence, such as war, peace and life. Philosophy in ancient Greece furthered allegorical interpretations of myth. Such meanings were usually seen as involving natural phenomena or human values.

Of special and long-lasting influence in the interpretation of myth was Euhemerism. The Middle Ages did not develop new theoretical perspectives on myth, nor did the Renaissance. In early 18th-century Italy, Giambattista Vico built on traditional scholarship. Enlightenment philosophy, reports from voyages of discovery, and missionary reports contributed to scholarship. Bernhard Le Bovier de Fontenelle suggested there was a universal human predisposition toward mythology.

They saw them as allegorical stories about the workings of nature, in particular such features as the sun and the dawn. In modern terms, they meant to describe the activities of gods, heroes, nymphs, and others.

Allegorical

-An allegorical interpretation of a myth could be said to posit a one-to-one correspondence between mythical "clothing" and the ideas being so clothed. An example of such an interpretation would be that given by an ancient commentator for the Iliad, book 20, verse 67.

Romantic
-In the late 18th century artists and intellectuals came increasingly to emphasize the role of the emotions in human life. The Romantic movement had profound implications for the study of myth. Herder believed that the more "savage" a people was, the more alive and free its songs would be.

Comparative
-Since the Romantic movement, all study of myth has been comparative, although comparative attempts were made earlier. For there to be any inquiry into the nature and function of myth, there must exist a body of data about myths across a range of societies. Such data would not exist without a comparative approach.

Folkloric
-The classic folklore approach is that of Wilhelm Mannhardt, who attempted to collect data on the "lower mythology". Mannhardt saw sufficient analogies and similarities between ancient and modern data to permit use of the latter in interpreting the former. Other people who examined myth from a folklore standpoint included Sir James Frazer and the Grimms.

Functionalist
-One of the leading exponents of functionalism was Marcel Mauss, who used the phrase "total social facts" in reference to religious symbols and myths. Functionalism has had a wide appeal to anthropologists in Britain and the U.S., especially as an interpretation of myth as integrated with other aspects of society.

Structuralist
-In earlier anthropology, "primitive mentality" was characterized by an inability to make distinctions. Structuralists argue that the supposedly primitive human beings are, if anything, obsessed with making distinctions. Their taxonomies reveal a complexity and sophistication that rival those of modern humanity.

Formalist
-The 20th-century Russian folklorist Vladimir Propp investigated folktales by dividing the surface of their narratives into a number of basic elements. These elements correspond to different types of action that always occur in the same sequence. Burkert shows how certain Greek myths have a recurring pattern that he calls "the girl's tragedy".

# data[].attributes.body
1. Explanation

The imaginative power of the myth lends credibility to the explanation and crystallizes it into a memorable and enduring form.

2. Justification or Validation

In line with the explanation, this function aims to validate certain events or phenomena. While obviously, the explanation function is only directed in explaining, justification is more directed towards providing reasoning.

3. Description

Myths are capable of describing what people can never “see for themselves” however rational and observant they are. It may be that the educational value of myths is even more bound up with the descriptions they provide than with the explanations.

4. Healing, Renewal, and Inspiration

This function is more concerned with beliefs, renewing practices, and aesthetics. There are many instances where myths play a part in healing the sick through magical incantations, renewal of art by singing songs that celebrate its origins, or exerting aesthetic influence in more modern societies.

# data[].attributes.body
Main Reference:
Buxton, R. (2022). Myth. Retrieved from https://www.britannica.com/topic/myth/Relation-of-myths-to-other-narrative-forms

myth - Messianic and millenarian myths. (n.d.). Encyclopedia Britannica. Retrieved September 14, 2022, from https://www.britannica.com/topic/myth/Messianic-and-millenarian-myths

Youtube Links:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xlAdS7uWhLA
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cOa3RyMfSY8