Myth
Traditional and contemporary
approaches
Defining myth
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The term ‘myth’ is defined in widely differing
ways
The most narrow definitions treat myths as false
narratives about the origin of the world and of
humans
The widest say that myths are commonly held
beliefs about pretty much anything that are not
dependent upon factual proof for people to
believe them
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“the word mythology is used to refer to stories
that, while they may or may not be strictly
factual, reveal fundamental truths and insights
about human nature, often through the use of
archetypes. Also, the stories discussed express
the viewpoints and beliefs of the country, time
period, culture, and/or religion which gave birth
to them. One can speak of . . . the mythic
elements within these faiths without speaking to
the veracity of the faith's tenets or claims about
its history.”
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Although myths are often considered to be
accounts of events that have not happened, many
historians consider that myths can also be
accounts of actual events that have become
highly imbued with symbolic meaning, or that
have been transformed, shifted in time or place,
or even reversed. One way of conceptualizing
this process is to view 'myths' as lying at the far
end of a continuum ranging from a 'dispassionate
account' to 'legendary occurrence' to 'mythical
status'.
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As an event progresses towards the mythical end
of this continuum, what people think, feel and
say about the event takes on progressively
greater historical significance while the facts
become less important. By the time one reaches
the mythical end of the spectrum the story has
taken on a life of its own and the facts of the
original event have become almost irrelevant.
Features of myth
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Stark contrasts among characters
Mystical/religious qualities
Focus on heroic/villainous individuals
Extreme conflict, no compromise or
cooperation between camps
Shallow characters
Often isolated in time and space
Mythic narratives
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We’ll look at grand narratives that can be
found in pretty much any culture
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Heroes/heroic quests
Foundation myths/stories
Mythic narratives
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Predictable
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Limited set of recurrent actions
Archetypes
Does not need ‘proof’ for cultural acceptance
Propp’s analysis
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Vladimir Propp reviewed thousands of Russian
folk tales
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Morphology of the Folk Tale
Identified 39 common (simple) actions (Structuralist
theory)
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Many actions found in large portions of the stories
Regular order of actions
However, not all stories have all acts in the prescribed order
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Room for a certain amount of originality
Propp’s 8 character types
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The villain (struggles against the hero)
The donor (prepares the hero or gives the hero some magical object)
The (magical) helper (helps the hero in the quest)
The princess (person the hero marries, often sought for during the
narrative)
Her father
The dispatcher (character who makes the lack known and sends the
hero off)
The hero or victim/seeker hero, reacts to the donor, weds the
princess
False hero/anti-hero/usurper — (takes credit for the hero’s
actions/tries to marry the princess)
Villains
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Darth Vader
Sauron
Blofeld
Evil queen/stepmother
Dark knight/Mordred
Kahn
Heroes
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King Arthur
Neo
Aragorn
James Bond
James T. Kirk
Mulan
How do we know heroes from
villains?
Donor
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Chronicles of Narnia
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Lord of the Rings
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Galadriel
James Bond
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Saint Nicholas
Q
XXX
Beauty and the Beast
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Enchantress plays opposing roles (enchantment and
provision of the mirror)
Princess and her father
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Beauty/father
Nala/father missing
Princess Leia/Darth Vader
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Confusion between heroes at first
Princess Jasmine/the sultan
Pocahontas/Powhattan
Sleeping Beauty/king
The Dispatcher
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M
Mission Impossible voice
Charlie
False Hero
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Balto
Functions of dramatic personnel
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Conjunctive elements (ex machina,
announcement of misfortune, chance disclosure
– mother calls hero loudly, etc.)
Motivations (reasons and aims of personages)
Forms of appearance of dramatis personae (the
flying arrival of dragon, chance meeting with
donor)
Attributive elements or accessories (witch’s hut
or her clay leg)
After the initial situation is depicted, the
tale takes the following sequence:
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Somehow a hero is chosen or accidentally
enters into the scene:
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A member of a family leaves home (the hero
is introduced);
An interdiction is addressed to the hero ('don't
go there', 'go to this place');
Hero may be reluctant or unwitting
Enter the villain
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The interdiction is violated (villain enters
the tale);
The villain makes an attempt at
reconnaissance (either villain tries to find
the children/jewels etc; or intended victim
questions the villain);
The villain gains information about the
victim;
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The villain attempts to deceive the victim
to take possession of victim or victim's
belongings (trickery; villain disguised,
tries to win confidence of victim);
Victim taken in by deception, unwittingly
helping the enemy;
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The villain acts
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Villain causes harm/injury to family member (by
abduction, theft of magical agent, spoiling crops,
plunders in other forms, causes a disappearance, expels
someone, casts spell on someone, substitutes child etc,
commits murder, imprisons/detains someone, threatens
forced marriage, provides nightly torments);
Alternatively, a member of family lacks something or
desires something (magical potion etc);
Note: In many cases, this is the act that precipitates the
quest (original disruption)
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Misfortune or lack is made known, (hero is
dispatched, hears call for help etc/
alternative is that victimized hero is sent
away, freed from imprisonment);
Seeker agrees to, or decides upon, counteraction;
Hero leaves home;
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Hero is tested, interrogated, attacked etc,
preparing the way for his/her receiving
magical agent or helper (donor);
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Hero reacts to actions of future donor
(withstands/fails the test, frees captive,
reconciles disputants, performs service, uses
adversary's powers against them);
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Frodo and Galadriel at the pool
Hero acquires use of a magical agent (directly
transferred, located, purchased, prepared,
spontaneously appears, eaten/drunk, help offered
by other characters);
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Hero is transferred, delivered or led to
whereabouts of an object of the search;
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Holy Grail
Mount Doom
Arc of the Covenant
Lost City of Atlantis
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Hero and villain join in direct combat;
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E.g., final gun battle between Dirty Harry and
Scorpio
Hero is branded (wounded/marked,
receives ring or scarf);
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Villain is defeated (killed in combat, defeated in
contest, killed while asleep, banished);
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Rambo destroys Vietnamese prison village
Frodo and Gollum struggle, Gollum falls into Mount
Doom
Gaston and the Beast struggle, Gaston falls to his
death
Dr. No drowns in his own reactor core
Arthur kills Mordred with Excalibur
Jack shoots Mina
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Initial misfortune or lack is resolved (object of
search distributed, spell broken, slain person
revived, captive freed);
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e.g. spring comes to Narnia; Buttercup is released
from the evil prince; the men from the nuclear sub are
released; the nuclear warhead is disarmed;
Hero returns;
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E.g., Bond returns from his fight with the villain;
Frodo and Samwise return from Mount Doom;
Galahad returns;
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Hero is pursued (pursuer tries to kill, eat,
undermine the hero);
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e.g., the evil queen tries to kill the prince;
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Hero is rescued from pursuit (obstacles delay
pursuer, hero hides or is hidden, hero transforms
unrecognizably, hero saved from attempt on
his/her life);
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E.g., the good fairies cast spells to protect the prince;
fish attempt to prevent Ursula from killing Ariel and
the prince; Simba escapes through the briar patch
Jaws is delayed by Russian agent so Bond can escape
New Yorkers on bridge throw objects at Green
Goblin allowing Spidey to save Mary Jane and
resume battle
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Hero unrecognized, arrives home or in
another country;
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Odysseus returns to Ithaca and is not
recognized
Simba leaves to live in jungle, thought dead,
returns and is mistaken for Mufasa
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False hero presents unfounded claims;
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Difficult task proposed to the hero (trial by ordeal,
riddles, test of strength/ endurance, other tasks);
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(Balto)
Must pull sword from stone; must steal information from CIA
headquarters; twelve tasks of Hercules;
Task is resolved;
Hero is recognized (by mark, brand, or thing given to
him/her);
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Neo is recognized as The One
Baby is recognized by birthmark/Court Jester
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False hero or villain is exposed;
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Hero is given a new appearance (is made whole,
handsome, new garments etc);
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Scar is unmasked as murderer of Mufasa, forced to
confess before pride; Steed? found out when Balto
returns; false king revealed when true king returns
Beast is transformed; Count of Monte Cristo
Villain is punished;
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Scar is attacked, killed by hyenas;
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Hero marries and ascends the throne (is
rewarded/promoted)
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Bond has woman (only once married)
Ariel and prince are married
Pocahontas and John Smith united
Prince and Sleeping Beauty betrothed
Mulan and general’s son have dinner
Aladdin is chosen by Jasmine, sultan changes law so he can be
prince
Simba and Nala have cub who is slated to be next king
Pilot and computer programmer return from space mission and
are greeted by their respective women
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However, in a number of stories the hero dies or
sacrifices himself so that others may live
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Spock in Wrath of Khan
Frodo in Lord of the Rings
Jesus Christ
Aslan the Lion in Chronicles of Narnia
Kirk in Star Trek ?
Boromir in Fellowship of the Ring
Anakin Skywalker in Return of the Jedi/redeems himself
Robert E. Lee Pruitt in From Here to Eternity
Jim Brown in the Dirty Dozen
Arthur dies in final battle with Mordred
Joseph Campbell
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The most popular mythologist in recent
times has been Campbell
He attempted to develop a theory of a
monomyth—a basic story that underlies
myths from throughout the world
Controversial
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Not seen as rigorous scholarship
Validity of monomyth questioned
Hero’s journey
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Campbell was especially interested in the
archetypal character
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Followed teachings of Jung
The hero’s quest was a spiritual journey as well
as a physical one
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Left the seeker forever changed—for the better
Leaving home symbolic representation of leaving
childhood, becoming aware/adult—going through a
transformation
Campbell
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Sees the search as mystical/transformative
and argues that the quest is a crucial part
of a well-lived life
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If the quest is not truly transformative, not a
true heroic myth
Sources of concern
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Teach people to think in terms of either-or
approach to conflict/competition
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Inability to thoughtfully consider context, ambiguity
Little consideration given to compromise
Preach violence and brinkmanship as a strategy
of dealing with conflict/competition
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Demonization of other side leads to escalation
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Strengthens position of extremists
No actions are mutually beneficial
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Life as a ‘zero-sum game’
Sources for concern
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Portrayal of a world split into warring
factions
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Archetypal good and bad groups lead to a
portrayal of those who are different in
extremely negative terms
Archetypes applied in the real world can
quickly lead to harsh stereotyping or
demonization of groups or individuals
Sources for concern
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Can promote a ‘great man’ vision of the
appropriate form of social control
Authoritarian if not monarchic
implications
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Lose patience with debaters, lily-livered
liberals
Star Wars as a heroic myth
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Star Wars is an influential science fantasy saga
and fictional universe created by
writer/producer/director George Lucas in the
early 1970s. The saga began with the film Star
Wars, which was released on May 25, 1977. The
film, later retitled Star Wars Episode IV: A New
Hope, became a pop culture phenomenon,
spawning five more feature films and an
extensive collection of licensed books, comics,
video games, spin-off films, television series,
toys, et al.
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Star Wars story employs archetypal motifs
common to both modern science fiction and
ancient mythology, as well as the romantic music
motifs of those genres.
In 2005, Forbes Magazine estimated the overall
revenue generated by the entire Star Wars
franchise (over the course of its 28-year history)
at nearly US $20 billion, easily making it one of
the most successful film franchises of all time.
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Star Wars began with a 13-page treatment
for a space adventure movie that George
Lucas drafted in 1973, inspired by
multiple myths and classic stories.
Influences on Lucas
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Many different influences have been suggested for the Star Wars
films by fans, critics, and George Lucas himself.
Lucas acknowledges that the plot and characters in the 1958
Japanese film The Hidden Fortress, directed by Akira Kurosawa,
were a major inspiration. Lucas has said in an interview, which is
included on the DVD edition of The Hidden Fortress, that the movie
influenced him to tell the story of Star Wars from the viewpoint of
the humble droids, rather than a major player. It also played a role in
the conception of Darth Vader whose trademark black helmet
intentionally resembles a samurai helmet. More particularly, the
arch-villain in Kurosawa's The Seven Samurai wears a black samurai
helmet to which Vader's helmet bears a remarkable resemblance.
The Jedi, nearly extinct futuristic knights of the former republic also
have a high influence from the Samurai as spiritual warriors and
duelists with a strong sense of honor and devotion to their duty.
Their traditional clothing even resembles kimonos.
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Prior to writing the script for Star Wars,
George Lucas originally wanted to make a
film of Flash Gordon. The rights for Flash
Gordon, however, were held by Dino De
Laurentiis, and Lucas decided to work on
his own science fiction project instead.
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Another influence in Lucas's creation of Star
Wars were the writings of Joseph Campbell.
Campbell's work explored the common
meanings, structures, and purposes of the world's
mythologies. Lucas has stated that his intention
was to create in Star Wars a modern mythology
based on Campbell's work. The original Star
Wars film, for example, closely followed the
archetypal "hero's journey", as described in
Campbell's The Hero with a Thousand Faces.
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It is also thought that the setting for the Star Wars
universe came from Isaac Asimov's Foundation Trilogy,
published in the early 1950s. This saga also involves a
galaxy teeming with inhabited worlds held together by a
collapsing galactic empire using hyperdrives (for longdistance transportation). It also features the planet
Trantor, which is entirely covered by the galaxy's capital,
similar to Coruscant, and the protagonist of Foundation
and Empire is Lathan Devers, a character resembling
Han Solo. Even lightsabers have precursors in the The
Foundation Trilogy as force field penknives.
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It is also often argued that Star Wars was greatly influenced by Frank
Herbert's classic science fiction book Dune. Many elements of Star Wars are
often also evident in Dune. There are so many similarities, in fact, some
Dune devotees consider Star Wars little more than a campy film adaptation
of Herbert's work. While this is likely an exaggeration, many of the
similarities are striking. For example, both Dune and Star Wars are set on
desert planets. Both stories feature a mystical knighthood of sorts--the Jedi
in Star Wars and the Bene Gesserit of Dune. In both stories the hero uses
mystical powers, exhibits mind control (Jedi mind trick/the Voice), and
duels opponents with sword-like weapons. Finally, both stories describe a
corrupt empire and the hero's efforts to overcome it.
An excellent comparison of the most often cited similarities between Star
Wars and Dune can be found at the official Dune website:
http://www.jitterbug.com/origins/dune.html.
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Some comic book fans have also drawn parallels
between Star Wars and Jack Kirby’s epic Fourth World
series, published by DC Comics. The cosmos-spanning
series of titles was never completed: DC canceled it,
ostensibly due to low sales. At the heart of the series was
the battle between Orion of the New Gods and his
villainous father, Darkseid (pronounced “dark side.”)
Orion called upon the mystical force known as “the
source” to aid him in this struggle. The Death Star is
somewhat reminiscent of Apokolips, Darkseid’s home
planet. It is also worth noting that Darth Vader shares
some visual similarities with Kirby’s armored ubervillain Dr. Doom, co-created with editor/scripter Stan
Lee at Marvel Comics.
Why are heroic journeys so
appealing?
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Simple, stark contrasts easy to comprehend,
powerful and compelling
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Echo deeply-held feelings and beliefs that may
not be conscious
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Simple dialogue
Personalization/individuation
Good and evil
Spirituality
Exciting action, often violence
Emotion rather than reason drives the action
Sources of concern
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Emotional rather than rational goals and
reasoning
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“Words that succeed while policies fail”
Irrational traditionalism
Conflict based in religion, klan, nation
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Can easily slide into some rather unpleasant
representations
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Nazi use of Wagner’s epic heroic opera
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Teaches to make decisions, etc. based on
tribal loyalties, heated passions rather than
dispassionate, rational debate
Can justify extreme, uncompromising
actions
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brutality
War
Enslavement
torture