RE: Are Myths Valuable?
July 27, 2019 at 7:27 am
(This post was last modified: July 27, 2019 at 7:29 am by Alan V.)
In A Week on the Concord and Merrimack Rivers, Henry Thoreau wrote:
"To some extent, mythology is only the most ancient history and biography. So far from being false or fabulous in the common sense, it contains only enduring and essential truth, the I and you, the here and there, the now and then, being omitted. Either time or rare wisdom writes it."
But then again, Thoreau did have a tendency to confuse what is poetic with what is truthful.
I can't think of a single example of a myth which could stand for a truth, independent of humanity. Does anyone have any examples?
Instead, certain bits of mythology can make good metaphors for human psychology: flying too close to the sun, falling in love with one's own reflection, being held prisoner in a maze, and so on. Myths are not about the world, they are about us -- when they are not just pure storytelling.
"To some extent, mythology is only the most ancient history and biography. So far from being false or fabulous in the common sense, it contains only enduring and essential truth, the I and you, the here and there, the now and then, being omitted. Either time or rare wisdom writes it."
But then again, Thoreau did have a tendency to confuse what is poetic with what is truthful.
I can't think of a single example of a myth which could stand for a truth, independent of humanity. Does anyone have any examples?
Instead, certain bits of mythology can make good metaphors for human psychology: flying too close to the sun, falling in love with one's own reflection, being held prisoner in a maze, and so on. Myths are not about the world, they are about us -- when they are not just pure storytelling.
