Mythology, Folk Tales, and Fables

Introduction

Definitions

Notes

INTRODUCTIONAncient myths were told by people to explain their history and the natural world around them.Ancient myths originated in the area around the Mediterranean Sea: Greece and Rome.Ancient myths were passed on orally from generation to generation

NOTES

A.Myths teach us about great GREEK & ROMAN civilizations

B. Modern Day Influences:

1. Art or law

2. Architecture

3. Astronomy

4. Mathematics5. Philosophy6. Medicine7. Monetary systems8. Government

C. DemocracyD. Reveal truths about ourselves

II. What is a myth?

Religious

Explains mysteries of the universe

Explains the creation

Explains a person’s role in the world

III. Collectors of the Myths

A.Originated around the Mediterranean Sea

B. Passed by word of mouthC. Famous Greek poets were:1. Homer who wrote The Iliad &

The Odyssey2. Hesiod who wrote Theogony &

Works and Days

D. Famous Roman poets were:1. Less serious about religion2. Ovid who wrote Metamorphoses3. Virgil who wrote Aeneid

IV. Uses of Mythology

A.Never merely silly or superstitiousB. Used for these purposes:1. To explain the creation of the

world2. To explain natural phenomena3. To give story form to ancient

religious practices

4. To teach moral lessons5. To explain history6. To express, as dreams do, the deepest fears & hopes of the human race

V. Myths of Creation

A.There were many storiesB. Hesiod wrote a creation storyC. Patriarchal means male-dominatedD. The story begins with Chaos & birth

of Earth (Gaea – Earth Mother & Sky (Uranus – Earth Father)

E. Golden Age followsF. Rise of Zeus

VI. Gods and GoddessesA. Myths tell about gods &

goddessesB. Divinities lived on Mount

OlympusC. Spend time with ordinary

peopleD. Represent good & evil

MYTHOLOGY DEFINITIONS

MYTH: a story that explains something about the world and typically involves gods or other super human beings

ORIGIN MYTH: stories that explain how something in the world came to be

FABLE: a brief story in prose or verse that teaches a moral or gives a practical lesson about how to get along in life

MYTHOLOGY DEFINITIONS

QUEST: a long and perilous journey taken in search of something of great value

PARTS OF A QUEST: a hero, villains representing evil, obstacles to overcome, riddles or puzzling questions to answer, a reward at the end

MYHTOLOGY DEFINITIONS

FOLK TALE: a story, with no known author, that originally was passed on from one generation to another by word of mouth

TALL TALE: an exaggerated, fanciful story that gets “taller & taller” & more far-fetched, the more it is told and retold