The Nature of Myth:
Creation myths:
- basic
questions for the initial creation (not applicable to all):
- Who are the original beings
and what
is the
primary matter in the account?
- How or by
what mechanism does
creation occur?
- Who is the
creator and what is the
nature of
the world that was created?
- How are
the other deities created?
- What
questions does the story answer
and on
what occasions is the story told or retold?
- basic questions for the
creation of mortals (not applicable to all):
- Who is the creator of humans?
- How or by what mechanism does
creation occur?
- Why are humans created (i.e.
what role/purpose do they play in creation)?
- What questions does the story
answer?
- know the
following:
- Dogon: Amma,
Jackal, Nummo, 8 ancestors, 1st-3rd words & Lebe
- Norse: places:
Niflheim, Muspell, Ginnungagap Jotunheim, Midgard, Asgard.
"people/things": Ymir, Audulma, Buri, Odin, Vili, Ve, Aesir, Ask,
Embla, dwarves, Yggdrasill
- Greek: go to Powell's web site for
Ch 4 (click
here) & Ch 5 (click
here):
- Iroquois: Sky woman, the
sorcerer, tree of light, Waterfowl & Beaver, Turtle, Sky woman's
daughter, Bud, Sapling
- Sumerian: Ulligara & Zalgarra
(Leonard) & go to
Powell's web site for Ch 4 (click
here)
- Hittite: go to Powell's web site for Ch 4 (click
here)
- Hindu: Brahma, Narayana, Heri,
water, earth, boar
- Hebrew: Who are God, the physical
world (in contrast to Sumerian), Adam, Eve, & the Serpent,
and what role do they play in the myth?
- Mayan: Maker/Modeler/.../Sovereign
Plumed Serpent, Heart of the Sky/Hurricane/..., 3 types of 'humanity'
Myths of
the Olympian Gods: Zeus and Hera
Myths of the Olympian Gods:
The
Male Deities
Myths of "The Male Divine" (Leonard &
McClure, Ch. 4)
- Hindu: Bhagavad Gita, Arjuna, Krishna
- Sumerian:
Enki, Ninhursaja (the Anuna), fox
- Yoruba:
Olorun, Orunmila, Eshu, orishas
- Norse:
Odin, Thor, Hrungnir, Mist Calf, Mjollnir, Magni, Groa
- Aztec:
Quetzalcoatl
Myths
of "The Trickster" (Leonard &
McClure, Ch. 5)
- Yoruba: Ajapa, Aja, oba
- N.
American: Coyote, 5 wolves, Saucy Duckfeather, Magpie Woman, 2
crows, Coyote Woman
- Norse:
Thor, Sif, Loki, Odin, Gungnir, dwarves (sons of Ivaldi), dwarves
(Brokk & Eitri), Mjollnir
- Greek: see Powell, Ch 5 (click
here)
- Others:
save for later
Possible
Essay Questions:
Short
Essay
(150-200 words long). We have seen how the
Greeks came up with various theories of myth
interpretation as a way of dealing with what they perceived to be
problems with their mythology. In your essay, use either
Xenophanes' philosophical approach or
one of the allegorical approaches -- physical, psychological, moral, or
historical -- to
evaluate one myth from Africa, India, or Sumeria in Leonard, Ch 4.
Start the essay with a brief but sufficient definition of the theory
and conclude with a brief evaluation of how effective the theory
is in interpreting the myth.
1.
The audience a story is
directed to affects the shape and tenor of the story, e.g. a recent NYTimes article
[reg. req'd.] about the upcoming national presidental election noted:
'A ... tactician ... told me, ''The big question is: What is the
information that I have that indicates someone is a Democrat or
Republican? And then it's all about talking to those people and giving
them information packaged in
a way to get them to buy your brand''' (italics mine). Examine how
the audience of one of the following has helped shape the stories:
Hesiod's audience (using the selections in Powell, Ch 4 & 5),
Homer's audience (using the selections in Powell, Ch 6-7), and the
Viking bard's audience (using 2-3 of the myths in Leonard, Ch 2, 4,
& 5). In preparing for this essay check out the following:
Leonard's introductions to the Norse myths and Powell, pp. 24-26,
30-34, and 62-65.
2.
We have seen that many of the myths reveals information about how
their respective cultures view females--their tasks, their relationship
with males, and their place in society. Discuss with regard to two of
the following: the Greek myths relating to Apollo in Powell, Ch 7, the
Norse myths in
Leonard, Ch 4 or 5, the Native American myths in Leonard, Ch 2 or
5.