The role of myth in societies is an interesting one. It piques my curiosity and your essay illuminates an aspect of it that I hadn't thought of before. There is a lot of romanticism around myth making and is perhaps another of those words/phrases that you begin with.
From what I read, indigenous societies' whole way of life was predicated on myth - creation stories and meaning-making that referenced the natural world. These would seem to have been a pretty much unalloyed benefit producing a relatively stable and, in today's language, sustainable way of life. Reverence for symbols of power helped to contain actions that could have upset the balance achieved.
In more modern times we have belittled such beliefs (much more modern to believe in a bearded guy living above the clouds...) and chosen to pursue a rather meaningless scientific description of the world.
Yet, as you point out, we continue to create myths of our own, only now they are more individual myths parts of which align with others about the same thing. It seems we need myth to explain what we don't understand but that myth is not always a helpful thing.
This is a bit a stream of consciousness as I often think through writing but it occurs to me that the impulse to mythologise may be protective and in a world that is slow and thoughtful such stories can crystallise into useful and productive frameworks for living. In our modern and increasingly frenetic pace of life today that has atomised our societies and left us all to fend for ourselves myth-making has become an individualistic activity that is thrust on us as more and more complex structures materialise as part of our lives and these personal myths, influenced by countless different narratives, clump together where some confluence is found.
They have become a life raft rather than a sea-worthy craft fit for the long voyage. We have created much to fear and that is such a poor basis for anything. For one thing, it tends to send people fleeing from reality and technology is only too happy to provide the refuge.
It would be interesting to know if older societies believed literally in their myths or whether they appreciated that they were just stories that served a function.
There is then a question of power, of course, and who benefits from the myth but also the related matter of trust without which societies would never operate.
Yes - I was riffing somewhat on the general concept but I agree with your point and wondering if the ability to invoke that flexibility is potentially a function of the deeper myth people tell themselves about life in general. A hierarchy of myths perhaps that are progressively more difficult to challenge the deeper you go.
The role of myth in societies is an interesting one. It piques my curiosity and your essay illuminates an aspect of it that I hadn't thought of before. There is a lot of romanticism around myth making and is perhaps another of those words/phrases that you begin with.
From what I read, indigenous societies' whole way of life was predicated on myth - creation stories and meaning-making that referenced the natural world. These would seem to have been a pretty much unalloyed benefit producing a relatively stable and, in today's language, sustainable way of life. Reverence for symbols of power helped to contain actions that could have upset the balance achieved.
In more modern times we have belittled such beliefs (much more modern to believe in a bearded guy living above the clouds...) and chosen to pursue a rather meaningless scientific description of the world.
Yet, as you point out, we continue to create myths of our own, only now they are more individual myths parts of which align with others about the same thing. It seems we need myth to explain what we don't understand but that myth is not always a helpful thing.
This is a bit a stream of consciousness as I often think through writing but it occurs to me that the impulse to mythologise may be protective and in a world that is slow and thoughtful such stories can crystallise into useful and productive frameworks for living. In our modern and increasingly frenetic pace of life today that has atomised our societies and left us all to fend for ourselves myth-making has become an individualistic activity that is thrust on us as more and more complex structures materialise as part of our lives and these personal myths, influenced by countless different narratives, clump together where some confluence is found.
They have become a life raft rather than a sea-worthy craft fit for the long voyage. We have created much to fear and that is such a poor basis for anything. For one thing, it tends to send people fleeing from reality and technology is only too happy to provide the refuge.
It would be interesting to know if older societies believed literally in their myths or whether they appreciated that they were just stories that served a function.
There is then a question of power, of course, and who benefits from the myth but also the related matter of trust without which societies would never operate.
So many questions!
I think my point, such as it is, is that we ALL live by myths that we don’t see…and it’s is this awareness that offers us some flexibility…
Yes - I was riffing somewhat on the general concept but I agree with your point and wondering if the ability to invoke that flexibility is potentially a function of the deeper myth people tell themselves about life in general. A hierarchy of myths perhaps that are progressively more difficult to challenge the deeper you go.
It is myths all the way down...which is also a myth...
Ahh!