Download or read book The Modern Construction of Myth written by Andrew Von Hendy and published by . This book was released on 2002-01-30 with total page 1108 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: ". . . one of the richest, clearest, and acutest surveys to date of the course of theorizing about myth from the eighteenth century on. I know of no more useful volume on the topic. Despite the postmodern connotations of the title, Von Hendy is writing not to expose the concept of myth but simply to show the array of ways in which it has been used from time to time and from place to place. A superb work." —Robert A. Segal, University of Lancaster, author of Theorizing about Myth Andrew Von Hendy offers an integrated critical account of the career of myth in modernity. He takes as its starting point some crucial moments in the 18th-century reinvention of the concept and then follows the major branches of theorizing as they appear in the work of theologians, philosophers, literary artists, political thinkers, folklorists, anthropologists, psychologists, and others. Von Hendy pursues each of these four fundamental strains of theory through the 20th century: the rise of neo-romantic theories in depth psychology, modernist literature, and later in religious phenomenology, philosophy, and literary criticism; the establishment of folkloristic theory in ethnological fieldwork and in classical studies; the growth of ideological theories from Sorel to Barthes and Derrida; and the recent ascent of constitutive theories of myth as necessary fiction. Finally, Von Hendy examines the work of five theorists who attempt to come to terms with the lessons of the ideological critique, yet regard myth as a constructive phenomenon.

Download or read book Modern Mythology written by Andrew Lang and published by Good Press. This book was released on 2019-11-20 with total page 178 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book, written by Andrew Lang, on the study of modern mythology is a captivating exploration of the ways in which myths are created in the wake of significant events. He discusses the process of mythmaking, examining how the stories and symbols that emerge out of a time of upheaval or trauma can shape our understanding of the world and provide a powerful source of meaning and connection.

Download or read book Myth in the Modern Novel written by Liisa Steinby and published by Walter de Gruyter GmbH & Co KG. This book was released on 2023-03-20 with total page 558 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Myth in the Modern Novel: Imagining the Absolute posits a twofold thesis. First, although Modernity is regarded as an era dominated by science and rational thought, it has in fact not relinquished the hold of myth, a more "primitive" form of thought which is difficult to reconcile with modern rationality. Second, some of the most important statements as to the reconcilability of myth and Modernity are found in the work of certain prominent novelists. This book offers a close examination of the work of eleven writers from the late eighteenth century to the beginning of the twenty-first, representing German, French, American, Czech and Swedish literature. The analyses of individual novels reveal a variety of intriguing views of myth in Modernity, and offer an insight into the "modernizing" transformations myth has undergone when applied in the modern novel. The study shows the presence of the "subconscious", the mythic layer, in modern western culture and how this has been dealt with in novelistic literature.

Download or read book Modern Mythology written by Andrew Lang and published by . This book was released on 2021-03-05 with total page 218 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The ugly scars were the problem! A civilised fancy is not puzzled for a moment by abeautiful beneficent Sun-god, or even by his beholding the daughters of men thatthey are fair. But a civilised fancy is puzzled when the beautiful Sun-god makes lovein the shape of a dog. {5} To me, and indeed to Mr. Max Müller, the ugly scars werethe problem.He has written-'What makes mythology mythological, in the true sense of theword, is what is utterly unintelligible, absurd, strange, or miraculous.' But heexplained these blots on the mythology of Greece, for example, as the resultpractically of old words and popular sayings surviving in languages after theoriginal, harmless, symbolical meanings of the words and sayings were lost. Whathad been a poetical remark about an aspect of nature became an obscene, or brutal, or vulgar myth, a stumbling block to Greek piety and to Greek philosophy.To myself, on the other hand, it seemed that the ugly scars were remains of thatkind of taste, fancy, customary law, and incoherent speculation which everywhere, as far as we know, prevails to various degrees in savagery and barbarism. Attachedto the 'hideous idols, ' as Mr. Max Müller calls them, of early Greece, and implicatedin a ritual which religious conservatism dared not abandon, the fables of perhapsneolithic ancestors of the Hellenes remained in the religion and the legends knownto Plato and Socrates. That this process of 'survival' is a vera causa, illustrated inevery phase of evolution, perhaps nobody denies.Thus the phenomena which the philological school of mythology explains by adisease of language we would explain by survival from a savage state of society andfrom the mental peculiarities observed among savages in all ages and countries. Ofcourse there is nothing new in this: I was delighted to discover the idea in Eusebiusas in Fontenelle; while, for general application to singular institutions, it was acommonplace of the last century. {6a} Moreover, the idea had been widely used byDr. E. B. Tylor in Primitive Culture, and by Mr. McLennan in his Primitive Marriageand essays on Totemism.

Download or read book Narrative Social Myth and Reality in Contemporary Scottish and Irish Women s Writing written by Tudor Balinisteanu and published by Cambridge Scholars Publishing. This book was released on 2009-10-02 with total page 330 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book offers an original interdisciplinary analysis of the relations between myth, identity and social reality, involving elements of narratology theory, linguistics, philosophy, anthropology and social theory, harnessed to support an argument firmly located in the area of literary criticism. This analysis yields a fairly extensive reinterpretation of the concept of myth, which is applied to the examination of the relationship between narrative and social reality as represented in texts by contemporary Scottish and Irish women writers. The main theoretical sources are Mikhail Bakhtin’s theories of heteroglossia, Jacques Derrida’s theories of citationality and Judith Butler’s theories of subjectivity. The analysis framework developed in the book uses these theories to create a new way of understanding how literary texts change readers’ worldviews by enticing them to accept alternative possibilities of cultural expression of identity and social order. The texts analysed in this book reconfigure naturalised stories that have become normative and constraining in conveying identities and visions of legitimate social orders. The book’s focus on feminine identities places it alongside feminist analyses of reconstructions of fairy tales, myths or canonical stories that establish what counts as legitimate feminine identity. Studied here for the first time together, the writers whose texts form the interest of this book continue the revisionist work begun by other women writers who engage with the male generated literary, philosophical and humanist tradition. They share a view of narratives as tools for continually negotiating our identities, social worlds and socialisation scenarios. While the high-level theoretical discourse of the first part of the book requires specialised knowledge, the second part of the book, offering close readings of the texts, is both lively and accessible and should engage the interest of the general reader and academic alike. This book is written for all those who are interested in the power words have to hold sway over our inner and outer (social) worlds.

Download or read book Belonging to the West Geopolitical Myths and Identity in Modern Greece written by Antonios Nestoras and published by BRILL. This book was released on 2023-11-13 with total page 246 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Uncover the fascinating story of Greece's unwavering quest for European belonging. This thought-provoking book explores the intersection of geopolitics and political myth, tracing Greece's enduring determination to align with Europe and the West. From the early days of European integration to the challenges of the Eurocrisis, Greece's commitment remains steadfast. By analyzing the geopolitical myths that shape its identity, the book illuminates the multifaceted factors driving Greece's pro-European strategy and foreign policy. By introducing and using Analytical Geopolitics as a pioneering approach, the book provides a historical-structural framework and expands the role of myth in understanding international relations.

Download or read book The Metamorphoses of Myth in Fiction since 1960 written by Kathryn Hume and published by Bloomsbury Publishing USA. This book was released on 2020-02-20 with total page 215 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Why do contemporary writers use myths from ancient Greece and Rome, Pharaonic Egypt, the Viking north, Africa's west coast, and Hebrew and Christian traditions? What do these stories from premodern cultures have to offer us? The Metamorphoses of Myth in Fiction since 1960 examines how myth has shaped writings by Kathy Acker, Margaret Atwood, William S. Burroughs, A. S. Byatt, Neil Gaiman, Norman Mailer, Toni Morrison, Thomas Pynchon, Kurt Vonnegut, Jeanette Winterson, and others, and contrasts such canonical texts with fantasy, speculative fiction, post-singularity fiction, pornography, horror, and graphic narratives. These artistic practices produce a feeling of meaning that doesn't need to be defined in scientific or materialist terms. Myth provides a sense of rightness, a recognition of matching a pattern, a feeling of something missing, a feeling of connection. It not only allows poetic density but also manipulates our moral judgments, or at least stimulates us to exercise them. Working across genres, populations, and critical perspectives, Kathryn Hume elicits an understanding of the current uses of mythology in fiction.

Download or read book Religion and Myth in the Marvel Cinematic Universe written by Michael D. Nichols and published by McFarland. This book was released on 2021-02-11 with total page 209 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Breaking box office records, the Marvel Cinematic Universe has achieved an unparalleled level of success with fans across the world, raising the films to a higher level of narrative: myth. This is the first book to analyze the Marvel output as modern myth, comparing it to epics, symbols, rituals, and stories from world religious traditions. This book places the exploits of Iron Man, Captain America, Black Panther, and the other stars of the Marvel films alongside the legends of Achilles, Gilgamesh, Arjuna, the Buddha, and many others. It examines their origin stories and rites of passage, the monsters, shadow-selves, and familial conflicts they contend with, and the symbols of death and the battle against it that stalk them at every turn. The films deal with timeless human dilemmas and questions, evoking an enduring sense of adventure and wonder common across world mythic traditions.

Download or read book Myth Building in Modern Media written by A.J. Black and published by McFarland. This book was released on 2020-06-22 with total page 214 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Mythology for centuries has served as humanity's window into understanding its distant past. In our modern world, storytelling creates its own myths and legends, in media ranging from the world of television and cinema to literature and comic books, that help us make sense of the world we live in today. What is the "Mytharc"? How did it arise? How does it inform modern long-form storytelling? How does the classical hero's journey intersect with modern myths and narratives? And where might the storytelling of tomorrow take readers and viewers as we imagine our future? From The X-Files to H.P. Lovecraft, from Lost to the Marvel cinematic universe and many worlds beyond, this study explores our modern storytelling mythology and where it may lead us.

Download or read book Classical Mythology The Basics written by Richard Martin and published by Taylor & Francis. This book was released on 2022-10-21 with total page 184 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This new edition introduces the core elements of ancient Greek and Roman narratives about immortal gods and heroic humans. It explains how myths once shaped ancient ways of thinking, and how they have fascinated and inspired artists, writers, musicians, scientists, and scholars since. In six clear and concise chapters, this book explains what myths are, sketches the main stories about divinities, heroes and heroines, and explores through specific case studies the ways in which they influenced modern culture, from Renaissance opera to contemporary video games and social movements. The second edition also features a new chapter analyzing how myths have been used in politics from antiquity to the present day. More than two dozen illustrations, maps, and charts complement the text. No prior knowledge of mythology is assumed, and the book incorporates the latest scholarship on classical mythology, providing annotated lists of further readings. Anyone who has encountered Greek or Roman myths in literature, art, or pop culture and wants to know more about the cultural contexts for the stories will benefit from this compact book. Intended for a wide readership, the second edition of Classical Mythology: The Basics continues to off er a clear introduction to the subject for undergraduates, scholars, and the general reader.

Download or read book Myth and Narrative in International Politics written by Berit Bliesemann de Guevara and published by Springer. This book was released on 2016-06-13 with total page 313 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book systematically explores how different theoretical concepts of myth can be utilised to interpretively explore contemporary international politics. From the international community to warlords, from participation to effectiveness – international politics is replete with powerful narratives and commonly held beliefs that qualify as myths. Rebutting the understanding of myth-as-lie, this collection of essays unearths the ideological, naturalising, and depoliticising effect of myths. Myth and Narrative in International Politics: Interpretive Approaches to the Study of IR offers conceptual and methodological guidance on how to make sense of different myth theories and how to employ them in order to explore the powerful collective imaginations and ambiguities that underpin international politics today. Further, it assembles case studies of specific myths in different fields of International Relations, including warfare, global governance, interventionism, development aid, and statebuilding. The findings challenge conventional assumptions in International Relations, encouraging academics in IR and across a range of different fields and disciplines, including development studies, global governance studies, strategic and military studies, intervention and statebuilding studies, and peace and conflict studies, to rethink ideas that are widely unquestioned by policy and academic communities.

Download or read book Myth and Scripture written by Dexter E. Callender, Jr. and published by Society of Biblical Lit. This book was released on 2014-07-02 with total page 325 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: !DOCTYPE HTML PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD HTML 4.0 Transitional//EN" html meta content="text/html; charset=ISO-8859-1" http-equiv="content-type" body An interdisciplinary collection for scholars and students interested in the connections between myth and scripture In this collection scholars suggest that using “myth” creates a framework within which to set biblical writings in both cultural and literary comparative contexts. Reading biblical accounts alongside the religious narratives of other ancient civilizations reveals what is commonplace and shared among them. The fruit of such work widens and enriches our understanding of the nature and character of biblical texts, and the results provide fresh evidence for how biblical writings became “scripture.” Features: Essays that explore how myth sheds light on the emergence of scripture Examples drawn from the Ancient Near East, Hebrew Bible, New Testament, and Greco-Roman world Articles by experts from a range of disciplines

Download or read book Superman in Myth and Folklore written by Daniel Peretti and published by Univ. Press of Mississippi. This book was released on 2017-10-05 with total page 208 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Superman rose from popular culture--comic books, newspaper strips, radio, television, novels, and movies" but people have so embraced the character that he has now become part of folklore. This transition from popular to folk culture signals the importance of Superman to fans and to a larger American populace. Superman's story has become a myth dramatizing identity, morality, and politics. Many studies have examined the ways in which folklore has provided inspiration for other forms of culture, especially literature and cinema. In Superman in Myth and Folklore, Daniel Peretti explores the meaning of folklore inspired by popular culture, focusing not on the Man of Steel's origins but on the culture he has helped create. Superman provides a way to approach fundamental questions of human nature, a means of exploring humanity's relationship with divinity, an exemplar for debate about the type of hero society needs, and an articulation of the tension between the individual and the community. Through examinations of tattoos, humor, costuming, and festivals, Peretti portrays Superman as a corporate-owned intellectual property and a model for behavior, a means for expression and performance of individual identity, and the focal point for disparate members of fan communities. As fans apply Superman stories to their lives, they elevate him to a mythical status. Peretti focuses on the way these fans have internalized various aspects of the character. In doing so, he delves into the meaning of Superman and his place in American culture and demonstrates the character's staying power.

Download or read book Greek Myth written by Lowell Edmunds and published by Walter de Gruyter GmbH & Co KG. This book was released on 2021-04-06 with total page 284 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This new series aims to provide state of the art guides to research in Classical Studies (across the fields of Language and Literature, Ancient History, Archaeology, and Ancient Philosophy and Science) that explore the key themes and ideas shaping previous scholarship on individual authors, genres, and topics. Each volume is authored by a prominent scholar in the respective field and offers a critical reappraisal of research conducted in recent decades that illuminates the state of contemporary scholarship. With its paperback volumes, the series is perfectly designed to offer students and scholars reliable, stimulating guides to what really matters in important fields of classical research today, as well as suggestions for future lines of study.

Download or read book The Creation of Modern Athens written by Eleni Bastéa and published by Cambridge University Press. This book was released on 1999-10-13 with total page 304 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The Creation of Modern Athens: Planning the Myth is the first book to examine the urban development of Athens in the nineteenth century. Analyzing the process of architectural and urban design, Eleni Bastea reveals the multiple and often conflicting interpretations of the new city. By following two parallel processes--the building of the new capital and the construction of a new national Greek identity--Bastea demonstrates that Athens' elaborate urban design and civic architecture reflected both international neoclassical ideals as well as the national aspirations of the modern Greek nation.

Download or read book Approaches to Greek Myth written by Lowell Edmunds and published by Johns Hopkins University Press+ORM. This book was released on 2014-09-11 with total page 659 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: “A handy introduction to some of the more useful methodological approaches to and the previous scholarship on the subject of Greek myths.” —Phoenix Since the first edition of Approaches to Greek Myth was published in 1990, interest in Greek mythology has surged. There was no simple agreement on the subject of “myth” in classical antiquity, and there remains none today. Is myth a narrative or a performance? Can myth be separated from its context? What did myths mean to ancient Greeks and what do they mean today? Here, Lowell Edmunds brings together practitioners of eight of the most important contemporary approaches to the subject. Whether exploring myth from a historical, comparative, or theoretical perspective, each contributor lucidly describes a particular approach, applies it to one or more myths, and reflects on what the approach yields that others do not. Edmunds’s new general and chapter-level introductions recontextualize these essays and also touch on recent developments in scholarship in the interpretation of Greek myth. Contributors are Jordi Pàmias, on the reception of Greek myth through history; H. S. Versnel, on the intersections of myth and ritual; Carolina López-Ruiz, on the near Eastern contexts; Joseph Falaky Nagy, on Indo-European structure in Greek myth; William Hansen, on myth and folklore; Claude Calame, on the application of semiotic theory of narrative; Christiane Sourvinou-Inwood, on reading visual sources such as vase paintings; and Robert A. Segal, on psychoanalytic interpretations. “A valuable collection of eight essays . . . Edmunds’s book provides a convenient opportunity to grapple with the current methodologies used in the analysis of literature and myth.” —New England Classical Newsletter and Journal

Download or read book Violence Narrative and Myth in Joyce and Yeats written by T. Balinisteanu and published by Springer. This book was released on 2012-11-14 with total page 242 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: How can we use art to reconstruct ourselves and the material world? Is every individual an art object? Is the material world an art text? This book answers these questions by examining modernist literature, especially James Joyce and W.B. Yeats, in the context of anarchist intellectual thought and Georges Sorel's theory of social myth.