myths and culture

8/8/2019 Myths and Culture

http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/myths-and-culture 1/4

Gregor Alfonsin C. Pondoyo, July 24, 2010

Myths

A myth is ³a traditional, typically ancient story dealing with supernatural beings,

ancestors, or heroes that serves as a fundamental type in the worldview of a people, as

by explaining aspects of the natural world or delineating the psychology, customs, or

ideals of society: the myth of Eros and Psyche; a creation myth´ (thefreedictionary.com).

Because of this definition, most people nowadays associate myths to false stories or



fantasy, fictitious set of events or unproved belief of certain phenomenon. Hence, it is

³an idea or story that many people believe, but that is not true«´ (Longman Dictionary,

2004). There is a negative connotation on myth and its importance in understanding

culture therefore is undermined.

Part of being human is the ability to communicate through language. We express

emotions through formed words that have meanings that we ourselves have set. Most

importantly we tell stories. In fact ³Human beings have told stories from time

immemorial, for stories are a natural product of spoken language, an outgrowth of the

imaginative power that most clearly separates us from other animals´ (Powell, 1998).

The word myth comes from the Greek word mythos which means ³speech´, ³story´, or

³plot´. Because it is a story it is understandable that it has therefore a beginning, a

middle part, and an ending, in short, a plot. Furthermore it has characters that are

mostly composed of gods/goddesses, supernatural beings, but also humans and

animals. Myths also have settings but what

distinguishes it from most novels or pocket

books nowadays is that myths¶ time

settings occur in the distant past. Thus,

³long, long time ago´ is common like in

native stories of Bikolanos, Tagalogs, and

even Maranaos here in the Philippines.

Places in myths can either be actual places or imaginative areas like ³the underworld´,

³limbo´, ³Mount Olympus´, or ³heaven´.

Previously, we have presented a definition of myth as being a traditional story.

Traditional comes from the Latin word trado which means ³hand over´. So, a myth is a

story that is told from one generation to the other by word of mouth. Therefore theypresent cultural realities for they promulgate values and concerns and ³describe

patterns of behavior that serve as models for members of society«´ (Powell, 1998).

Because myths are transmitted by mouth, their authors are not known or synonymous.

Additionally, their oral transmission makes them vulnerable to omissions and additions

or simply, changes. Variations will then occur like in the story of Oedipus which has



happy and tragic endings. Another example of variation is evident in the creation story

of Genesis there is a slight difference in the order of creation of man and other living

things in chapter 1 and 2.

Because myths contain in them distinct linguistic pattern in delivering (such as in the

different tribes here in the Philippines) and certain values which a group of people or

region hold dear, myths clearly opens up to its hearers (or readers) the cultural identity

of a group of people. It is a narrative of who a group of people think they are and their

belief of the origin of things, their philosophy in life, and their passion, commonly held

values and etiquettes, and their worldview. Myths should not be limited in their being a

story or their literal meaning but be understood in their historical and cultural

background in which they were propagated. Ergo, myths are in fact truths. They are

cultural truths that a group of people exhibit or hold.

Mythology or the study of myths is therefore relevant in studying cultures. Norsemen

valued physical features and so their gods and goddesses are described as very

muscular. Greek and Roman myths are reminiscent of battles and conflicts and

incidentally their history is also somewhat paralleled. The Bible¶s creation somewhat

emphasizes man¶s higher status than woman and in contrast, Philippine creation stories

centers upon man and woman coming from the same giant bamboo and so equality

egalitarian emphasis is clear. Furthermore, myths here in the Philippines also give

notice to the importance of families ³as the Foundation of Values´ (Menez, 1996).



Sources and Suggested Readings

Eugenio, Damiano L. (2001). P hilippine Folk Literature: The Myths. Quezon city,

Philippines. University of the Philippines Press.

Myth. (2004). Longman Dictionary of American English New Edition. USA. Pearson

Education Limited. Page 595

Menez, Herminia (1996). Explorations in P hilippine Folklore. Quezon city, Philippines.

Ateneo de Manila University.

Myth. (n.d.). In.The Free Dictionary . Retrieved from

http://www.thefreedictionary.com/myth

Mythology of the Ancient World. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.ancient-

mythology.com/

Powell, Barry B. (1998). Classical Myth. 2nd Edition. USA. Prentice-Hall, Inc.

Sison, Emmanuel S. (2005). Tales from the Land of Salt: A Glimpse into the History and

the Rich Folklore of P angasinan. Makati city, Philippines. ELMYRS Publishing House

Storm, Rachel (2000). Asian Mythology: Myths and Legends of China, Japan, Thailand,

Malaysia and Indonesia. New York. Annes Publishing Limited.

The Importance and Value of Myth and Mythology. (n.d.). Retrieved from

http://electricka.com/etaf/muses/mythology/mythology_popups/importance.htm

myths and culture

Documents