4E - Mythical language (non-cognitive)

What is a myth?

• Use, symbols, metaphor and allegory.

• Story not literally true but explain truths.

• Some stories in Old Testament are examples

• Metaphors convey meaning behind story.

• Communicate truths - the values of a society.

• Myths are more significant than a fable (made up tale) or fictional story.

• Deal with ultimate questions about life, death, goodness and evil.

• E.g. Myth about Zeus or Hercules (Greek culture) or Creation Myths (Christianity or Pangu)

How are myths used to convey information?

• Preserve and hand down the cultural identity.

• Re-tellable and easy to communicate.

• It is recited, chanted, intoned, learned at scared places, ritual and re-enactments, rites of passage, healing ceremonies.

• Myth is not fixed and unchanging, but can adapt, transform, re-seed itself according to a community's needs and interpretations.

How have people typically understood the word ‘myth’?

• In the world today, the world 'myth' is often synonymous with 'falsehood'.

• For many, a myth is another type of story that has fantastical elements to it but bears no resemblance to the truths found within the empirical world.

• Myths, according to the view of many in contemporary society, are regarded as 'fairy-stories'.

• However, to reduce a myth to these elements is to fundamentally misunderstand the purpose of this language form.

What is the danger of deconstructing a myth only empirically?

• Within the field of religious studies, myth is actually a highly specialised term that refers to accounts that contain truths which are communicated in the form of picture imagery and symbolic text.

• To deconstruct a myth purely by empirically based methods is to miss the meaning of these accounts.

• To dismiss myths as simplistic is factually inaccurate.

• Myths do require interpretation, but they do so with care.

• Understanding the original context of the myth is important.

What does the German phrase ‘Sitz im Leben’ mean? How doe this apply to mythical language?

• German biblical scholars of the 20th century, when looking at the new testament within the Christian tradition, spoke of the need to understand the 'Sitz im Leben' (situation in life) of the New Testament writers, so that the meaning of those documents could be properly understood.

• They also cautioned against applying our own Sitz im Leben when interpreting them -  because to do so was to add perspectives that would not have been relevant to the time of the writers, and this would lead to a misunderstanding of the original meanings of such documents.

• Myths exist in all human cultures.

• This very fact demonstrates the value that they have for all societies.

What key elements to do you think are present in mythical language e.g. good over evil

• Supernatural.

• Archetypal characters.

• Element of struggle.

• Have to make a difficult decision.

• Death and rebirth.

What could have a symbolic, that could be interpreted in a non-literal way in ‘the fall of man’?

• The serpent - Temptation, the devil, evil, mischief, chaos.

• Eve - Could be symbolic of all women, doesn’t give the woman a name.

• Fruit - Sin, temptation, desire,

• Die - Could symbolise being banished, exiled

• Your eyes will be opened - consciousness, self-awareness, realisation

• Realised they were naked - Vulnerability, humiliating, embarrassment

• Made covering for themselves - Cover shame, hide their wrongdoing, make up for their mistakes

• God called to the man, ''Where are you?'' - God is asking for honesty, see if they own up

• Afraid - punishment and consequences, judgement, disappointment

What is an aetiological myth?

Myth about how things came about and were caused - origin of universe and components.

What are 4 common features found in different aetiological myths?

1. Chaotic formless state existed before the creation of the universe (body of water).

2. A God who exists in a void performs some action which results in the universe coming into being.

3. Human appear, usually in the final stage.

4. This appearance reflects a link between humans and the supernatural creative force.

What types of symbolism do we see in Aetiological myths?

• Water would have presented a great mystery.

• The seas and oceans also were uncontrollable.

• Both signifying chaos.

• Light is symbolic.

• Order vs chaos.

In which religious traditions do we see similar stories?

• In his 1964 work, Myths of Creation, Phillip Freund notes the similarity between this and other myths that start in the waters and, through the actions of an agent of order, creation is brought about.

 

• Myths that belong to Egypt - Where the Morning Sun God, Khepri lifts himself from the waters in order to bring about creation.

 

• In the Zuni tribe of America, there is a creation myth that tells how the Sun-Father brings about creation from the waters through his divine actions, before eventually creating humankind.

 

• In the 19th century Finnish epic poem, based on the myths of the country's peaks of primordial water where the virgin daughter of the air descends in order to become the water-mother.

• Through her interaction with these chaotic waters she ends up giving birth to the first man, Vanamonien, after an immaculate conception.

What is a key quote about what myths can tell us?

• ‘‘Myths alone can tell stories about primordial time because history relies on knowledge gleaned from records, preferably records on contemporary with the events described. No records of the beginning of time exist, except in mythology'‘ - Hoffman

What is the main narrative of the ‘good over evil’ myth?

• Other types of myths can reveal different insights.

• One such example is the category of myths described as 'heroic'.

• Inevitable these tend to focus on either one or a small number of individuals and recount stories of how the individual is able to conquer great adversity and be triumphant as a result.

• Such myths provide insight into the daily struggle of human existence and provide inspiration.

• Such myths have existed throughout human history and exist even today in retellings found in the world of cinema, comic book heroes and videogames.

In what examples do we see this myth continuing today?

• Superman

• Batman

What is the myth of the solar hero?

• Sun worship was common in many ancient societies.

• The sun, in purely scientific terms, is the source of all life on earth - being the prime requisite for the process of photosynthesis.

• However, long before the scientific age, the suns life-giving properties were well known and their importance became enshrined in the myths of a myriad of different cultures and religions.

• Perhaps one of the best known 'Sun Gods' is the Ancient Egyptian Sun God Ra.

Give 3 examples in different religious traditions where we see this myth represented?

Egyptian story:

• travels across the sky during the day, bringing warmth to the whole world, then at night, travelling through the underworld to do the same for those that dwelt there.

• His heroic deeds are centred around his ability to provide the life-giving properties of the sun and to battle the forces of chaos and darkness that threaten to overrun the ordered world.

 

• The resurrection myth, most often associated with the notion of the solar hero (a direct evolution of the prominence of the Sun God) as an archetype, exists in many cultures and details how the agent of order is destroyed by the agents of chaos, only to be brought back to life again in a victory against their enemies.

Why does the non-cognitive nature of myths present a challenge?

• If it cannot be verified or falsified then it is meaningless.

• We don’t know if there is a God.

How can competing myths challenge each other?

• What happens when another myth stakes a claim to competing truths or competing values?

• Does this challenge the meaningfulness of the original myth or is it that the competing myth should be disregarded.

• A particular example of this, it could be argued, is the idea that creation and evolution are competing myths.

• Since the publication of Darwin's origin of the species in 1859, a fiercely contested debate has been held as to who has the claim of truth with regards to the question 'Where did humankind come from?'

What are some other challenges to the nature of mythical language in terms of uniqueness

• Lack of uniqueness.

• What happens then, when a very similar account can be found in a culture that predated Judeo-Christian tradition by several hundred years?

• If the myth is not unique does that therefore mean that the faith-based truth claims from the myth are likewise not unique?

• Does this therefore weaken them?

• Similarly, the central claim of Christianity that Jesus' resurrection was a unique event in history, if treated as mythical literature, seems to have several parallels in other cultures, suggesting it may not be as unique an event as is claimed within the Christian tradition.

• Of course, this is based on the assumption that the resurrection of Jesus is a mythical event, which it may not have been.

What are some other challenges to the nature of mythical language in terms of changing?

• The value of mythical language and therefore its meaning, will inevitably change as the values of societies change.

• The meaning of a myth may alter to fit the prevailing intellectual mood of the day or it may change as we better understand the ancient cultures from where the myth originated.

What does Bultmann mean by ‘demythologisation’

• That we should take out all forms of mythical language as they don’t have an impact on our modern world.

• He thinks that the mythical language in the new testament stops people from taking it seriously, it undermines the seriousness.

Why does Bultmann think the New Testament needs to be ‘demythologised’? + key quote

• He thinks that the mythical language in the new testament stops people from taking it seriously, it undermines the seriousness.

• Bultmann considered that much of the literature in the New Testament, particularly the literature of the four canonical gospels, should be reinterpreted as it was primarily mythical language.

• He then set about deconstructing or 'demythologising' these texts in order to make sense of them in a more literal way.

• As such, Bultmann's work echoed the approach of the logical positivists in attempting to find a kind of empirical meaning behind the Christian texts.

• Bultmann rejected the mythological language of the New Testament as unhelpful to the modern mind.

 

• '‘Can Christian preaching expect modern man to accept the mythical view of the world as true? To do so would be both senseless and impossible’' - Bultmann

What is an A03 critique of Bultmann’s view?

• However if you did this you wouldn’t be left with the important things from the religion.

What is an additional challenge of mythological language in terms of whether a story is a myth or an accurate account of history?

• Writers do not make explicit whether a story is meant to be a myth of an accurate account of history.

• Stories within sacred writings are presented without introduction, leaving it to the reader to understand how to interpret them.

• Some readers, therefore, hold the belief that stories are directly inspired by God and are to be accepted as entirely true (e.g. the Creation stories and Noah’s Ark) and argue that viewing these stories as ‘myths’ comes to close to suggesting that the words of the Bible are false.

What is an additional challenge in terms of mythological imagery has a tendency to be culturally determined

• Mythological imagery has a tendency to be culturally determined and some of the elements contained might be ‘lost in translation.’

• They might also take on a meaning the original author never intended.

• This lead to the meaning of myths changing over time.

What is an additional challenge?

• If some stories are ‘myths’, why should other stories retain factual significance?

• In response to popular scientific theories e.g. Evolutionary, whilst some Christians chose to reaffirm the infallible literal truth of the scripture, others began to suggest that parts of the Bible were never meant to be taken literally.

• Many could accept that the Old Testament was full of myths and were a different kind of truth based on the fact that there were still gaps in our understanding as the writers had not yet received the revelation of God in Christ.

• BUT this raises questions as to the extent of ‘myth’ in the New Testament, which many Christians found much more difficult to accept. 

What is supporting evidence for myths in terms of religious belief?

• To reject mythological language is to reject many religious beliefs underlying it.

• Gilkey argues for the continued use of myth in the modern scientific world and the continued relevance of symbols and myths in the modern world - can convey God's power e.g. creation.

• Through the language of myth we see how our thinking has evolved.

• Even people who are not religious are still influenced by myths and symbols and they help us to interpret the world.

• It is an easy way to understand abstract ideas.

What is supporting evidence of myths in terms of attitudes?

• It might be intended to encourage a particular kind of attitude in the people who hear or read it, perhaps a greater appreciation of the greatness of God or the need for moral behaviour.

What is additional support in terms of visual ways of understanding?

It gives people a visual way of understanding of what are often abstract ideas, so that they can be more easily understood.

More additional support for myths?

• Stories are remembered and passed on.

 

• They can communicate ideas which are difficult to communicate in other ways.

• Different meanings and layers of meaning can be conveyed within one story.

 

• They can provide aetiological explanations for puzzling features of the world.