Mythologies as we understand it is the study of myth and mythos. Many cultures have their own mythology, from the Greeks and Romans who share similar mythologies, to Ancient Babylon and Egypt. Mythology influences nearly every aspect of our lives. It can be found on our day to day currency, to the way companies present themselves with their logos and iconography. It comes as no surprise then, that the fastest growing form of the entertainment industry has deep roots in mythology. Some of the earliest games are built on and around mythologies. The Battle of Olympus is a 1988 side-scrolling action adventure game for the Nintendo Entertainment System. The plot of the game revolves around a Greek named Orpheus. His love, Helene, was poisoned by a snake and died. Later Orpheus learns that Helene was actually taken by Hades, god of the underworld, to become his bride. Upon hearing this, Orpheus begins his journey to save Helene. The pretext of Orpheus's quest is the story of Orpheus and Eurydice. Elements of the quest are drawn from the stories of Heracles, Theseus and Perseus. Many characters, enemies, locations, and items are also based on Greek mythology. A more recent example of mythology showing its influence on the video game industry is the 2008 action-role-playing game Too Human. The game is a science-fictional futuristic retelling of Norse mythology that portrays the Æsir, the Norse gods, as cybernetically enhanced humans, tasked with protecting mankind from the onslaught of Loki's army of machines. The player takes the role of the Norse god Baldur, who is less cybernetic than the other gods, thus being "too human". Mythology’s influence on games runs the gamut, from role-playing games to first-person shooters. Yet, mythology... ... middle of paper ... ...tagonist throughout the majority of the Zelda series. Like Mordred, Ganondorf gains control of Hyrule in Link’s absence and plunges the land into chaos on strife. Unlike Mordred, Ganondorf is defeated and Link is usually spared Arthur’s fate. However, Arthur and Link share a similar destiny in that Arthur will rise again when the land needs him most, and with each entry into the Zelda series a new Link arises to battle the evil that threatens to engulf Hyrule. As time passes and more games are created, it is easy to see that mythology will always hold a strong relationship with the industry. Each year more games are created by people who want to tell interesting stories and by people who want to share the histories of cultures many have forgotten. Games are a part of our culture and through them mythology will always have an influence on future generations cultures.
“The Odyssey” is an epic written by Homer between 750 and 650 B.C. It is the tale of the main hero’s, Odysseus’s, journey home to Ithaca from Troy. It takes place after the Trojan War and is the sequel to “The Iliad.” Odysseus and his men set sail from Troy and come across the lair of the lotus eaters. After escaping, they run into the cyclops,
Mythology has existed since the stone age, and with it came classical archetypal characters and mythological elements which have influenced and continue to influence the work of modern writers. Classical archetypes and mythological elements allow readers and watchers to relate their own personal experiences to the story by connecting to their primal thoughts and feelings. Classical archetypes are used in all writings and especially can be seen in James Cameron's hit film Avatar.
From before the dawn of civilization as we know it, humanity has formed myths and legends to explain the natural world around them. Whether it is of Zeus and Hera or Izanami-no-Mikoto and Izanagi-no-mikoto, every civilization and culture upon this world has its own mythos. However, the age of myth is waning as it is overshadowed in this modern era by fundamental religion and empirical science. The word myth has come to connote blatant falsehood; however, it was not always so. Our myths have reflected both the society and values of the culture they are from. We have also reflected our inner psyche, conscious and unconscious, unto the fabric of our myths. This reflection allows us to understand ourselves and other cultures better. Throughout the eons of humanity’s existence, the myths explain natural phenomena and the cultural legends of the epic hero have reflected the foundations and the inner turmoil of the human psyche.
Mythology is the study of a compiled group of stories that describe the culture’s practices and past experiences. Mythology is a valuable aspect of every culture. It communicates the culture’s truthful everyday experiences or fabricated details of past events, roles, and traditions such as family, sexuality, art, religion, philosophy, laws and marriage. A culture’s collective group of stories help communicate loyalty, ethical and rational teachings, and social models. Ancient Greece and Egypt are two cultures that we’ve studied in this course so far that I will discuss the Creation Myth associated with each culture.
Myths relate to events, conditions, and deeds of gods or superhuman beings that are outside ordinary human life and yet basics to it” ("Myth," 2012). Mythology is said to have two particular meanings, “the corpus of myths, and the study of the myths, of a particular area: Amerindian mythology, Egyptian mythology, and so on as well as the study of myth itself” ("Mythology," 1993). In contrast, while the term myth can be used in a variety of academic settings, its main purpose is to analyze different cultures and their ways of thinking. Within the academic setting, a myth is known as a fact and over time has been changed through the many different views within a society as an effort to answer the questions of human existence. The word myth in an academic context is used as “ancient narratives that attempt to answer the enduring and fundamental human questions: How did the universe and the world come to be? How did we come to be here? Who are we? What are our proper, necessary, or inescapable roles as we relate to one another and to the world at large? What should our values be? How should we behave? How should we not behave? What are the consequences of behaving and not behaving in such ways” (Leonard, 2004 p.1)? My definition of a myth is a collection of false ideas put together to create
Mythology is constantly being reincarnated into new mediums. It began centuries ago as oral stories being passed from generation to generation and has weathered the test of time to present day. Mythology influences current day literature, movies, and even video games. One video game that heavily draws on mythological themes is The Legend of Zelda created by Japanese video game designer and producer Shingeru Miyamoto. Through Zelda, gamers are exposed to and are able to play through a hero’s journey filled with mythological motifs such as the idea of creation and destruction, the struggle between light versus darkness, the subconscious in relation to reality, and the idea and distortion of time.
The origin of the word myth seems to be a myth in itself. Myths have generally originated from a Greek history that used an oral tradition to explain events that occurred before the written word. Often supernatural beings or fictitious characters were used to explain popular ideas concerning phenomena's of nature or the history of people. The myths that were carried on from generation to generation were often very imaginative in an attempt to spark the interest of young listeners. These would be told at social gatherings. The main purpose of a myth was to relay historical information among groups. Early myths often dealt with the origin of man, customs, religious rights, incidents involving the lives of gods, stories of culture heroes, adaptations of old world myths, or the retelling of biblical stories.
The word myth derives from the Greek mythos, which has a range of meanings from "word," through "saying" and "story," to "fiction"; the unquestioned validity of mythos can be contrasted with logos, the word whose validity or truth can be argued and demonstrated. Because myths narrate fantastic events with no attempt at proof, it is sometimes assumed that they are simply stories with no factual basis, and the word has become a synonym for falsehood or, at best, misconception. In the study of religion, however, it is important to distinguish between myths and stories that are merely untrue. The term mythology denotes both the study of myth and the body of myths belonging to a particular religious tradition. The first part of this article discusses the nature, study, functions, cultural impact, and types of myth, taking into account the various approaches to the subject offered by modern branches of knowledge. In the second part, the specialized topic of the role of animals and plants in myth is examined in some detail. Some say that in Ancient Greece, Greek myths evolved over many years like history, passed down for generations. They were stories of human kings and heroes with supernatural powers, or various prayers and rituals for specific gods. The Greeks believed their gods were a lot like humans. They believed their gods were able to have children, feelings, and live their lives the way humans did every day. However, each god had a specific duty. They each were in charge of a different aspect of life. Aphrodite was placed in charge of love, beauty, marriage, and vegetation. Many temples were built in honor of her and other gods, and each city was usually a patron to a particular god. Ceremonies were performed for the worship of the gods, and the people of the towns distributed gifts to shrines. Aphrodite had many statues carved in worship of her.
Essentially, there are three typical characteristics of mythology. Classic myths often include gods or supernatural heroes, are “closely linked to religion,” and “generally take place in a primordial age, when the world had not yet achieved its current form” (“Mythology” Wikipedia). Furthermore, myths provide an explanation for the existence of life and how the world came to be.
From the beginning of time, mythology has appeared to be one key method of understanding life’s confusions and battles. Within these myths lies a hero. From myth to myth and story to story, heroes experience what may be called a struggle or a journey, which lays down their plot line. Bearing tremendous strength, talent, and significant admiration, a hero holds what is precious to their audience, heroism. Over time however, no matter the hero, the hero’s role remains indistinguishable and identical to the position of every other hero.
Mythology meaning the study of Myths. Myth comes form the Greek word Mythos meaning speech or discourse later meaning fable. Myth is defined as a story of forgotten origin, it is religious or supernatural. It seeks to explain the creation of the universe, everyday phenomena and everything in it. The different regions of the world all have a different story and set of characters they use to explain this. Now that you know what exactly what mythology is we will look at the different categories of mythology.
Mythology is defined as a collection of interrelated stories of a given culture. Myths are intended to explain and describe the mysteries of nature and give understanding about the world that surrounds us. Each culture has their own mythology that reflects their values and beliefs. Myths were also generated to tell the story of the first people to inhabit the earth. The Egyptian mythology elevated these people to the level of Gods and Goddesses by giving them supernatural and special powers. These myths of creation were passed from one generation to the next, either orally or by hieroglyphs painted in sacred temples, pyramids, and sanctuaries.
Mythology is the basis of human nature. From the beginning of literature, mythology has defined what has been seen as the “unexplainable” or “unnatural”. Around the world, mythology has a strong impact on the beliefs of other cultures and affects their view of the world around them. Babylonian mythology and its themes of friendship and mortality explain the natural phenomenon that occurred in everyday life, the creation of the world and the creation of humankind.
Mythology: used in numerous religions to rationalize the unexplainable. The creation of the universe remains unknown to this day. Greek and Norse mythology concluded their own philosophy of how the earth came into existence. The creation of gods allows people to identify with their religion through shared characteristics. Brave tales of heroes represent the best qualities of man-kind: courage, wisdom, and devotion. Mythology allows people to feel a sense of belonging while also describing the creation, origin of gods and goddesses, and the heroic deeds of mankind.
middle of paper ... ... The violence and stray ideals that are portrayed in mythology continue to thrive through literary works read by children. In the end, these ideals and violent ideas influence the younger generation the more they read, even in books as simple as Fairy Tales and Narnia. Works Cited Bakay, Graig.