...The word myth is used popularly a lot when describing urban legends, urban myths, urban folk tales or current legends. Myth, from the Greek word mythos, originally meant word, news, message, event, or history. Myths present a cosmology, a picture of how the world and life in it began, how things in the world are related, what they mean, and the role of the gods. A myth uses its own time—mythic time—distinct from historical time, even though it influences historical time. A myth is a story made up from some real life events and from some imaginations of small town folk, story tellers. Myths I believe from different cultures all around the world address such similar or universal themes is because, all cultures ask and want to know answers to the same questions. Where did the human race come from? What is the meaning of life? It does not matter what part of the world you come from, every human being on earth would love to know the answer to these questions. Over time we as human beings have learned how to answer these questions for ourselves through myths and religion. Myths threw religion has answered those questions also given us something to believe in. The relationship between belief, knowledge, mythology and religion to me are they are created by man. Human beings feel they have more of a purpose in life and need something or someone to believe in, this is where myths such as Greek gods come in to play. I believe most myths could easily be explained by natural occurrences...
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...Good morning/afternoon ladies and gentlemen of the Tweed Heads Art Exhibition. My name is Ashlea Wharley, and I would like to take this opportunity and thank you for having me today. This morning/afternoon I will be explaining my interpretation of what a hero’s journey truly is. Along with that I will be showing you this extraordinary but yet, so very time consuming work of art I have created. As you see Ladies and Gentlemen in my opinion or understanding of what a hero’s journey is; it’s best described as a typical adventure of a hero, the person who sets out an adventure and accomplishes countless endeavours on behalf of a group, tribe or civilisation. The model I have created that you see before your eyes Ladies and Gentlemen is my understanding and explanation of a hero’s journey within my idea for my related text, The Vampire Diaries. I have intentionally created a 3D construction with using a white tree metal jewellery frame. I constructed it this way because the white metal tree itself symbolises a tree of life. A tree of life ladies and gentlemen have been used in the notion in science, religion, philosophy and mythology. In this case, the tree of life can be related back to my related text on how Elena in… The Vampire Diaries gets introduced into the mythological world. You will also see there is a silver necklace with an oval shaped locket in a pink jewellery box. This necklace symbolises a locket that Elena is given in the Vampire Diaries by Stefan her Vampire boyfriend...
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...certain beguiling visions, stories with the power to shape and control our lives, can inspire and, far too often, destroy us.” These “potent timeless tales” are the only ones he would consider true myths. What about these stories do you think would make them potent? What would make them timeless?--Answer below: What makes these stories potent are the lives these people had. Their journeys through trials, love, and adversity that brought them closer to the true understanding of themselves and the world around them. What makes these stories timeless is how they were told and how the characters were portrayed. They stir up something in us that give us a glimpse into ourselves and makes us want to share these stories fro generations to come.b. Campbell also said that, “Every myth . . . is symbolic. Its narratives and images are to be read, therefore, not literally, but as metaphors.” How would you define the difference between reading something literally as opposed to reading it as a metaphor? Then, as an example, explain the following sentence first literally and then metaphorically: As he spoke, he assaulted the crowd, stinging their ears and piercing their hearts. --Answer below: Reading something literally would be to take a story for its complete face value; everything read happened precisely the way it was told. Reading a story as a metaphor is to take the hidden meanings from the story that are there to be interpreted and used on the individual basis. For...
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...the orphan, the innocent, the magician, the wanderer, the warrior and the altruist. All of these archetypes can also have shadow sides, as described by author Pearson. In my opinion, the archetype that best fits Mrs. Mallard, the main character of “A Story of an Hour,” by Chopin and Miss Emily Grierson, the main character of “A Rose for Miss Emily,” by Faulkner, is the orphan archetype and its shadow side. Mrs. Mallard is a woman trapped in an unhappy marriage. To her, it almost feels like a prison. Characteristic of the orphan archetype, she has low expectations. The archetype of orphan begins with an initial wounding and the ensuing struggle to deal with that wounding. She is simply surviving her life, not living it. Joseph Campbell would say this orphan has heard the call to her journey for healing, but she is frozen. She has handed all her...
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...Foundations of Mythology Running Head: Foundations of Mythology Foundations of Mythology Short Answers Christina Wright University of Phoenix World Mythology Dr. Lawton November 2, 2011 Foundations of Mythology Short Answers How is the word myth used popularly? For example, what does the statement, “It’s a myth” mean? In contrast, how is the word myth used in the academic context? After considering the definition in your textbooks and course materials, write a definition in your own words. The word myth is used popularly in stories or tales that have been told over periods of time that are usually not completely true, but are told in way to be believed as true ("The white hat," 2010). The statement, “It’s a myth” means or refers to something that is not fully true, but it is claimed to be true. It’s basically like if some random person was to tell you a story that something happened to them that was seen as farfetched, in reality no one really knows if it actually happened or not. In contrast, the word myth in academic context is used as follows; Myths are ancient narratives that attempt to answer the enduring and fundamental human questions such as: How did the universe and 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 or not behave? What are the consequences of behaving and not behaving in such...
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...Week One Individual Assignment Individual Assignment: Foundations of Mythology Short Answers Write 150- to 200-word responses to each of the following: * How is the word myth used popularly? For example, what does the statement, “It’s a myth” mean? In contrast, how is the word myth used in the academic context? After considering the definition in your textbooks and course materials, write a definition in your own words. The word myth is used in popularly when someone is telling or speaking of something or someone that is not real or is not telling the truth. It does not matter if it is only a little or a lot. Stories that seem to be too be true. For example my mom used to tell me that I had it good. Back when she was growing up in South Philly, she had to walk 20 miles to school (10miles each way)in snow that came up to her chest with her big brother shoes with no hat or gloves. When she left out it was dark and when by time she got home it was dark. When I would complain about having to walk to the bus stop in the winter time, or how cold it was at the time. * Why do myths from different cultures around the world address such similar or universal themes? Think about how myths explain the unknown and the tribulations of mankind. Myths from different cultures around the world address such similar or universal themes because believe it or not everyone around the world goes thru some of the same things. They may be on different levels some more serious than others...
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...Foundations of Mythology What are myths? Myths are traditional stories in which may describe the origins of the world and of a people. Myths are an attempt to explain mysteries, supernatural events, and cultural traditions. Sometimes sacred in nature, a myth can involve gods or other creatures. And, a myth represents reality in dramatic ways. Many cultures have their versions of common myths. “Myths... 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 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 acting in such ways?” (Leonard & McClure, 2004, para 3). The English word “myth” comes from the Greek word mythos and has been esteemed from the Greek word logos, both terms translates into English as word or story (Leonard & McClure, 2004,para 7). People have long wondered how the world came into being. They have answered the question with stories that describe the origin of the universe or the world and usually of human life as well. Myths express people's understanding of the world and their place in it. The world's mythologies and religions offer an immense variety of stories. Scholars have discovered that the different cultures fall into broad categories and contain many shared themes. Myths grant continuity...
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...Archetypes in Die Linkshändige Frau Throughout history, humans have tried to explain the phenomena of this world. Whether through pure imagination or actual quantified observation, various explanations of why we are here, why things happen to us and where punishments and blessings are written in a culture’s story. Many of these explanations have passed into myths and legends, stored forever in the heroic epics of lore. They follow similar patterns that reverberate throughout the ages and across cultures. These archetypes help us to reflect on our own experience and sojourn here on Earth. As Erich Fromm stated: “Both dreams and myths are important communications from ourselves to ourselves. If we do not understand the language in which they are written, we miss a great deal of what we know and tell ourselves in those hours when we are not busy manipulating the outside world.” In his chapter on Mythic and Archetypal Criticism, Bruce W. Young explains how Carl Jung had a similar idea. Paraphrased, Jung believed that archetypes, or patterns in myths and legend, have distinctive character, something akin to a primordial figure. He postulates that as we study these archetypes or myths, “it is as though chords in us were struck” and we “feel a sense of realease” (Cowles 64). In short, Jung believes that myths help us resolve issues in our own life by experiencing the dreams, aspirations and answers found in myths. Humanity as a whole has similar dreams, aspirations, experiences...
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...The Ritual Use of Ayahuasca: The Healing Effects of Symbolic and Mythological Participation Biography Justin Panneck is a faculty member for Colorado Technical University and holds a PhD in Health Psychology from Walden University. He conducted a recent case study on the spiritual experience of practitioners in the Santo Daime Church. Based on his ayahuasca visions, Justin wrote and published a fictional book entitled The Knight of Dark Wood: The Last Tree Whisperer, which includes themes related to mythology and consciousness. He has spoken at several conferences in San Francisco on a topics related to Jungian psychology, archetypes, mythology and plant-based visionary states. He lives in Portland, OR. The Ritual Use of Ayahuasca: The Healing Effects of Symbolic and Mythological Participation Mythology and alchemy are significant aspects of humanity that have been lost in the modern world but carry important messages and tools for integrating various levels of the unconscious as well as engendering purpose and enhancing creativity and spirituality. Ayahuasca, and other entheogens (e.g., psilocybin, LSD, salvia divinorum, etc.) may serve as psycho-enrichment technologies (PETs) that enhance cognition, boost creativity and spirituality, and create harmonious relationships with others. The use of ayahuasca in a ritual setting has been found to stimulate optimal living through the integration of mythological, alchemical, and archetypal motifs into daily life. Ritual...
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...screenplay by Sherman Alexie, and later a film by Chris Eyre, two youths, Victor and Thomas, must journey to Phoenix Arizona to retrieve the ashes of Arnold, the father of Victor who left him and his mother years earlier. The journey of these two young men is, in a way, a metaphor for the identity search. Though “Smoke Signals” is a road movie, as claimed by Roger Ebert, an experienced film critic, the central theme of the film is the identity loss of Native American people. A documentary by Neil Diamond, called “Reel Injun”, is all about the identity loss of Native Americans. “Reel Injun” can be used as a lens to uncover the deeper meaning of the film “Smoke Signals.” The monomyth from “The Hero with a thousand faces”, a book by Joseph Campbell, can uncover even more of this film, which would be missed without the monomyth. In the documentary by Neil Diamond, “Reel Injun”, a remark is made that the fantasy of the “stoic warrior, and noble savage”, created by Hollywood, appears to be living on. The influence of Hollywood on the Native American identity has caused many Native Americans to embrace the labels that Hollywood has assigned to them. A scene from the film “Smoke Signals” illustrates this point clearly. In the scene where Victor and Thomas are on the bus to Phoenix, Victor tells Thomas that he should look mean and intimidating, as though he is coming from hunting buffalos. Thomas is a happy, childish type of youth. He always smiles and tells stories of the past. He...
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...Foundations of Mythology Short Answers HUM/105 Professor * How is the word myth used popularly? For example, what does the statement, “It’s a myth” mean? In contrast, how is the word myth used in the academic context? After considering the things in the definition in your textbooks and course materials, write a definition in your own words. The word myth is used in stories told people don’t know if the stories told are true or not. My personal belief is that a myths can be both true and not true tales. My reason for this because things in the area that happened more than fifty years ago or longer could be turned into false information after the years and years of being restated, no one knows because this area has happened so long ago in time. Myths are stories that were passed on from one generation to the next one its fiction and non -fiction. Myth is used in academic context as being an explanatory narrative, & illustrates how people should act and the existing social order. They are collectively authored and are created by people traditions and oral traditions are told and retold over time. My definition of myth is something that has reason for it could be true or untrue depending on the topic; you just have to use logic to determine the truth of the quote or statement. * Why do myths from different cultures around the world address such similar or universal themes? Think about how myths explain the unknown and the tribulations of mankind...
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...In narratology and comparative mythology, the monomyth, or the hero's journey, is the common template of a broad category of tales that involve a hero who goes on anadventure, and in a decisive crisis wins a victory, and then comes home changed or transformed.[1] The concept was introduced by Joseph Campbell in The Hero with a Thousand Faces (1949), who described the basic narrative pattern as follows: A hero ventures forth from the world of common day into a region of supernatural wonder: fabulous forces are there encountered and a decisive victory is won: the hero comes back from this mysterious adventure with the power to bestow boons on his fellow man.[2] Campbell and other scholars, such as Erich Neumann, describe narratives of Gautama Buddha, Moses, and Christ in terms of the monomyth. Critics argue that the concept is too broad or general to be of much usefulness in comparative mythology. Others say that the hero's journey is only a part of the Monomyth. The other part is a sort of different form, or color, of the hero's journey ------------------------------------------------- erminology[edit] Campbell borrowed the word monomyth from Joyce's Finnegans Wake (1939). Campbell was a notable scholar of James Joyce's...
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...Joseph Campbell’s 17-stage monomyth acts as the guide to literary works and films, influencing pop culture such as song lyrics and award-winning movies. The stages serve as a basis for a journey the hero or heroine encounters with a successful, world-gaining achievement. The path includes archetypes including the deceiving temptress, the nurturing goddess, and the mortal or immortal mentor. However, Campbell’s beneficial ending does not follow through in every plot. For example, George Orwell’s Nineteen Eighty-Four discusses a dystopian society containing oppression and dementia. The author’s socially-impacting novel regards the deterioration of language and intellectual decline of society. “[The English language]... becomes ugly and inaccurate...
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...Marisa Paris Humanities 220 Professor Cope 12/8/14 In 1949, American scholar Joseph Campbell, published what could possibly be one of the most influential non-fiction books of his time, The Hero With a Thousand Faces. (Joseph Campbell Foundation) After lifelong research, Joseph Campbell discovered as well as exposed, a number of common patterns linked between multiple myths and stories spread all over the world. Thus, giving way to the composition of his book. The “hero’s journey” can be described as the various stages or phases that pretty much every hero-quest experiences, with no regard to what culture the myth plays a part in. Put more explicitly, the “hero’s journey” is an adventure the person known as “the hero” takes on behalf of the...
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...Today’s culture, especially Western societies, loves a good hero story, whether it be a war hero, a revolutionary, or anything inbetween. A good character that people love to root for and fall in love with. Joseph Campbell recognized a pattern in these heroes: they may be different people, but they share the same underlying path. They follow the three stages of a hero’s journey, departure, initiation, and the inevitable return. Alongside this are characteristics and major plot points that all point to the same person, the hero with a thousand faces. The reimagined story, Tangled, follows the journey of Rapunzel on her way to see the lanterns that cloud the night sky every year on her birthday. The story follows Campbell’s pattern well, presenting yet another...
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