Myth
The word myth comes from Ancient Greek, meaning speech or narrative. In turn, Ancient Greek combines the word with the suffix study. Accordingly, Plato used as a general term for fiction or story-telling of any kind. This word was adapted into other European languages in the early 19th century, in a much narrower sense, as a scholarly term for traditional stories about early history. The Greek term was then borrowed into Late Latin, occurring in the title of Latin author Fabius Planciades Fulgentius' fifth-century Mythologiæ to denote what is now referred to as classical mythology. Fulgentius's Mythologiæ explicitly treated its subject matter as allegories requiring interpretation and not as true events. The Latin term was then adopted in Middle French as . Whether from French or Latin usage, English adopted the word mythology in the 15th century, initially meaning the exposition of a myth or myths. The word is first attested in John Lydgate's Troy Book. From Lydgate until the 17th or 18th century, mythology meant a moral, fable, allegory or a parable, or collection of traditional stories, understood to be false. It came eventually to be applied to similar bodies of traditional stories among other polytheistic cultures around the world. Thus mythology entered the English language before myth. Johnson's Dictionary, for example, has an entry for mythology, but not for myth. Indeed, the Greek loanword mythos and Latinate both appeared in English before the first example of myth in 1830.
The main characters in myths are usually non-humans, such as gods, demigods, and other supernatural figures. Others include humans, animals, or combinations in their classification of myth. Stories of everyday humans, although often of leaders of some type, are usually contained in legends, as opposed to myths. Myths are sometimes distinguished from legends in that myths deal with gods, usually have no historical basis, and are set in a world of the remote past, very different from that of the present. Definitions of myth vary to some extent among scholars, though Finnish folklorist Lauri Honko offers a widely-cited definition. Another definition of myth comes from myth criticism theorist and professor José Manuel Losada. According to Cultural Myth Criticism, the studies of myth must explain and understand myth from inside, that is, only as a myth. Losada defines myth as a functional, symbolic and thematic narrative of one or several extraordinary events with a transcendent, sacred and supernatural referent; that lacks, in principle, historical testimony; and that refers to an individual or collective, but always absolute, cosmogony or eschatology. Though myth and other folklore genres may overlap, myth is often thought to differ from genres such as legend and folktale in that neither are considered to be sacred narratives. Some kinds of folktales, such as fairy stories, are not considered true by anyone, and may be seen as distinct from myths for this reason. Main characters in myths are usually gods, demigods or supernatural humans, while legends generally feature humans as their main characters. Many exceptions and combinations exist, as in the Iliad, Odyssey and Aeneid. Moreover, as stories spread between cultures or as faiths change, myths can come to be considered folktales, their divine characters recast as either as humans or demihumans such as giants, elves and faeries. Conversely, historical and literary material may acquire mythological qualities over time. For example, the Matter of Britain seems distantly to originate in historical events of the 5th century, respectively, and became mythologised over the following centuries.
One theory claims that myths are distorted accounts of historical events. According to this theory, storytellers repeatedly elaborate upon historical accounts until the figures in those accounts gain the status of gods. For example, the myth of the wind-god Aeolus may have evolved from a historical account of a king who taught his people to use sails and interpret the winds. Herodotus and Prodicus made claims of this kind. This theory is named euhemerism after mythologist Euhemerus, who suggested that Greek gods developed from legends about humans. Some theories propose that myths began as allegories for natural phenomena: Apollo represents the sun, Poseidon represents water, and so on. Müller supported an allegorical theory of myth. He believed myths began as allegorical descriptions of nature and gradually came to be interpreted literally. For example, a poetic description of the sea as raging was eventually taken literally and the sea was then thought of as a raging god. Personification thinkers claimed that myths result from the personification of objects and forces. According to these thinkers, the ancients worshiped natural phenomena, such as fire and air, gradually deifying them. Thus, they described natural events as acts of personal gods, giving rise to myths. According to the myth-ritual theory, myth is tied to ritual. In its most extreme form, this theory claims myths arose to explain rituals. This claim was first put forward by Smith, who argued that people begin performing rituals for reasons not related to myth. James George Frazer, author of The Golden Bough, a book on the comparative study of mythology and religion, argued that humans started out with a belief in magical rituals; later, they began to lose faith in magic and invented myths about gods, reinterpreting their rituals as religious rituals intended to appease the gods.
The critical interpretation of myth began with the Presocratics. Euhemerus was one of the most important pre-modern mythologists. He interpreted myths as accounts of actual historical events, though distorted over many retellings. Sallustius divided myths into five categories: theological, physical or concerning natural law, animistic or concerning soul, material, and mixed, which concerns myths that show the interaction between two or more of the previous categories and are particularly used in initiations. Plato condemned poetic myth when discussing education in the Republic. His critique was primarily on the grounds that the uneducated might take the stories of gods and heroes literally. Nevertheless, he constantly referred to myths throughout his writings. As Platonism developed in the phases commonly called Middle Platonism and neoplatonism, writers such as Plutarch, Porphyry, Proclus, Olympiodorus, and Damascius wrote explicitly about the symbolic interpretation of traditional and Orphic myths. Interest in polytheistic mythology revived during the Renaissance, with early works of mythography appearing in the sixteenth century, among them the Theologia Mythologica (1532). The first modern, Western scholarly theories of myth appeared during the second half of the 19th century, at the same time as myth was adopted as a scholarly term in European languages. They were driven partly by a new interest in Europe's ancient past and vernacular culture, associated with Romantic Nationalism and epitomised by the research of Jacob Grimm (1785, 1863). This movement drew European scholars' attention not only to Classical myths, but also material now associated with Norse mythology, Finnish mythology, and so forth.
Scholars in the field of cultural studies research how myth has worked itself into modern discourses. Mythological discourse can reach greater audiences than ever before via digital media. Various mythic elements appear in popular culture, as well as television, cinema and video games. Although myth was traditionally transmitted through the oral tradition on a small scale, the film industry has enabled filmmakers to transmit myths to large audiences via film. In Jungian psychology, myths are the expression of a culture or society's goals, fears, ambitions and dreams. The basis of modern visual storytelling is rooted in the mythological tradition. Many contemporary films rely on ancient myths to construct narratives. The Walt Disney Company is well known among cultural study scholars for reinventing traditional childhood myths. While few films are as obvious as Disney fairy tales, the plots of many films are based on the rough structure of myths. Mythological archetypes, such as the cautionary tale regarding the abuse of technology, battles between gods and creation stories, are often the subject of major film productions. These films are often created under the guise of cyberpunk action films, fantasy, dramas and apocalyptic tales. 21st-century films such as Clash of the Titans, Immortals and Thor continue the trend of using traditional mythology to frame modern plots. Authors use mythology as a basis for their books, such as Rick Riordan, whose Percy Jackson and the Olympians series is situated in a modern-day world where the Greek deities are manifest.
Common questions
What is the origin of the word myth?
The word myth comes from Ancient Greek, meaning speech or narrative. It was adapted into other European languages in the early 19th century as a scholarly term for traditional stories about early history.
When did English adopt the word mythology?
English adopted the word mythology in the 15th century, initially meaning the exposition of a myth or myths. The word is first attested in John Lydgate's Troy Book during that period.
Who defined myth as a functional symbolic and thematic narrative?
José Manuel Losada defines myth as a functional, symbolic and thematic narrative of one or several extraordinary events with a transcendent, sacred and supernatural referent. This definition states that myth lacks historical testimony and refers to an absolute cosmogony or eschatology.
Which theory claims myths are distorted accounts of historical events?
Euhemerism is the theory that myths are distorted accounts of historical events where figures gain the status of gods through repeated elaboration. Mythologist Euhemerus suggested that Greek gods developed from legends about humans.
When did modern Western scholarly theories of myth appear?
The first modern Western scholarly theories of myth appeared during the second half of the 19th century. These theories emerged at the same time as myth was adopted as a scholarly term in European languages.