Classical Myth Essay

I’ve always thought myths were fascinating, but they’re also important. They provide insight into what people of a different time believed and valued, while influencing the world we live in today, making it necessary to learn classical mythology since that is what our society is based on.

Myths, Classical or not, are an interesting constant throughout history and so long as people have perspectives that are different from each other or have the ability to stretch the truth myths will continue to develop and grow. Take for instance some of America’s early “heroes” and their myths. George Washington’s chopping down of his father’s apple tree and then telling the truth about it is a story most school children hear, but does anyone really know

Lets use the George Washington myth and pair it with another myth: The American Dream. Which can be summed as; If you work hard and are a good person you can elevate your social and economic status to create a better life for yourself in America. Some would say that the purpose for the myth of George Washington and his father’s apple tree could be to show that George Washington got to his powerful position in The Revolutionary War due to his morality and character, themes taken directly from The American Dream. In Classical Mythology heros needed only to be strong and tough. Take for instance Hercules and Achilles. Hercules worked for his sworn enemy after Hera’s endowed temporary madness caused him to kill his family, even though The Oracle of Delphi told him he was not to blame and therefore, had no penance to pay. Achilles was a bit of a momma’s boy and the only admirable trait either really had going for them was that they were stronger than anyone else they knew, yet these are the names history remembers. My husband’s family are second generation Americans from Greece. All he ever heard growing up, like many other young men in Western Culture, was to be a strong, tough man. Perhaps this is a small trace of his ancestors values passed down, or this is just a result of these values being taught to us through Classical Mythology. These values, themes, and symbols from Classical Myths have

That is, if one has any intention in understanding what they are looking at most of the time. Be it the brand of shoes Nike, the signifcance of the name Morpheus in the movie The Matrix, or the names Minerva, Remus, and Sybil in the Harry Potter series, classical mythology is everywhere. In order to understand Shakespeare at all one should know the basic myths in The Bible and in Classical Mythology. Therefore, in order to know what one is truly looking at in our age it is necessary to be familiar with Classsical Myths. Which is why it is just as important to learn myths from other cultures. If anyone intends to familiarize themselves with a culture, they ought to look at the myths they’ve surrounded themselves