Myth, legend, folklore, fables

• creation myths are the most common myths

• the main point of myths is to explain how do different things in the universe come to be

• myths start with oral literature, original cultures did not have written languages

• universal themes: even from different cultures, we can relate

• myths feature powerful gods and goddesses.

• every civilization we know believes in gods (or something superior to the human being)

• sometimes these gods have characteristic that resemble human qualities.

• either physically or personality-wise

• gods and goddesses can feel emotions

• people can be granted special powers or abilities

• heroes, they encounter a problem. enemies, or struggle with their own emotions or encounter monsters or dangerous magical creatures

legend: a story that is beleived to be about real people and are based (to some degree) on real life

• we dont know if its true or if its not

• legendary heroes, legend about heroes that we know historically had existed

• they struggle to defeat a powerful force (army, dragon, enemy)

folktales: set in the past, involve imaginary characters and supernatural events

• main characters human or animals personifies

• lessons about nature

talltale: impossible stories

• completely fiction

• character that is larger than life

fable: brief story that teaches a lesson about human nature

• they have moral teaching

• animal characters with human qualities

• there are myths with charactristis of fables

• fables distinguish a teaching and whta its teaching has to do with human nature

• fables use a lot of allegories (like an extended metaphor)

• the allegorical meaning that we give to animals to show that human behavior

they all have in common that they posses cultural values of their region