What do you think of myths?
Myth today often has a bad name. A story that is untrue, belonging to the infancy of the human race; we have now outgrown such a stage in our development. So it goes.
However, two great 20th century thinkers have thought deeply on the subject of myth/mythology. Carl Jung and Joseph Campbell.
Mr Campbell sees myth as having four functions:-
The first is the mystical or metaphysical function. Myth, Campbell proposes, should serve "to reconcile the waking consciousness to the universe as it is."
The second function of mythology Campbell terms the cosmological function, which "is that of formulating and rendering an image of the universe, a cosmological image in keeping with the science of our time."
The third function is sociological, that of supporting and maintaining a functioning social moral order.
Finally, the fourth function of mythology, which Campbell calls the pedagogical or psychological function, "is to initiate the individual into the order of realities of their own psyche, guiding them toward their own spiritual enrichment and realization."
(This list drawn from "The Archetypal Cosmos" by Keiron Le Grice)
Carl Jung has spoken of the need for "modern man" to regain some sort of overriding outlook to counter the prevailing sense of dislocation felt by many, the need for a "spiritual" outlook ( not "religion/religious" )
How do others see Myth?
However, two great 20th century thinkers have thought deeply on the subject of myth/mythology. Carl Jung and Joseph Campbell.
Mr Campbell sees myth as having four functions:-
The first is the mystical or metaphysical function. Myth, Campbell proposes, should serve "to reconcile the waking consciousness to the universe as it is."
The second function of mythology Campbell terms the cosmological function, which "is that of formulating and rendering an image of the universe, a cosmological image in keeping with the science of our time."
The third function is sociological, that of supporting and maintaining a functioning social moral order.
Finally, the fourth function of mythology, which Campbell calls the pedagogical or psychological function, "is to initiate the individual into the order of realities of their own psyche, guiding them toward their own spiritual enrichment and realization."
(This list drawn from "The Archetypal Cosmos" by Keiron Le Grice)
Carl Jung has spoken of the need for "modern man" to regain some sort of overriding outlook to counter the prevailing sense of dislocation felt by many, the need for a "spiritual" outlook ( not "religion/religious" )
How do others see Myth?
