A mythographer, or a mythologist, according to a strict dictionary definition, is a compiler of myths. The word mythology (from the Greek grc μυθολογία mythología, meaning "a story-telling a legendary lore" Mythography (from Greek μυθογραφία - mythografia, "writing of fables"[1], from μύθος - mythos,"speech, word, fact, story, narrative" + γράφω - graphō, "to write, to inscribe") is then the rendering of myths in the arts. Greek (el ελληνική γλώσσα or simply el ελληνικά — "Hellenic" is an Indo-European language, spoken today by 15-22 million people mainly These are rather restrictive definitions, which can be said to fail to take into account the large body of twentieth century work on myth from many angles. The twentieth century of the Common Era began on The compilation of myths assumes some field work; and the aim may be to produce something of value to cultural anthropology, religious studies, or a myth theory, rather than simply as raw material for transformation into artistic productions. This article is about the scientific method For the military term see Field fortifications under Fortification. Cultural anthropology is one of four fields of Anthropology (the holistic study of humanity) as it developed in the United States. Religious studies, or Religious education, is the academic field of multi-disciplinary Secular study of religious beliefs behaviors and institutions
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Myth theories
Already in the nineteenth century there was a tendency to produce large-scale myth theories, such as those of Max Müller, Andrew Lang, Wilhelm Mannhardt, and James Frazer. The 19th century of the Common Era began on January 1, 1801 and ended on December 31, 1900, according to the Gregorian calendar For the Danish Colonel Max Müller see Second War of Schleswig. For the former National Basketball Association player see Andrew Lang (basketball. Wilhelm Mannhardt ( March 26, 1831, Friedrichstadt - December 25, 1880, Danzig) was a German scholar and Folklorist Scholars such as Carl Jung, Georges Dumezil, and Claude Levi-Strauss have continued this tradition in the twentieth century. Georges Dumézil ( March 4, 1898 – October 11, 1986) was a French comparative Philologist best known for his analysis of Sovereignty Claude Lévi-Strauss (klod levi stʁos born 28 November 1908 is a French Anthropologist.
It has been a consistent strand of Romanticism, to insist on a level of validity of myth, and these arguments have often connected myth with the creative imagination. Romanticism is a complex artistic literary and intellectual movement that originated in the second half of the 18th century in Western Europe, and gained strength during the These notions come together in the concept of mythopoeic imagination, which has been articulated in the anthropological work of Jadran Mimica (Intimations of Infinity, 1988), among others. Theories with an academic basis which support this thinking have been popular, in the sense of receiving much attention; without ever being able to support claims of reliability acceptable to more rationalistic perspectives.
Mythography is the study of the study of myths (the study of myths itself being mythology), as well. In examining how mythology has been studied, one can see the differences and similarities readily, as evidenced by William Doty's Mythography: The Study of Myths and Rituals. For the former mayor of Ann Arbor Michigan named William G Doty see William G
Myth criticism
Besides the anthropologist's reason — better understanding of a particular culture in its own terms, that is, for the purposes of cultural anthropology — there are very varied reasons behind the interest of the mythographer. Cultural anthropology is one of four fields of Anthropology (the holistic study of humanity) as it developed in the United States. The origins of Greek drama were the immediate cause of the rise of the myth-ritual school, of Jane Harrison, Gilbert Murray and others. The theatre of ancient Greece, or ancient Greek drama, is a theatrical Culture that flourished in ancient Greece between c The Cambridge Ritualists were a recognised group of Classical scholars mostly in Cambridge, England including Jane Ellen Harrison, Gilbert Murray Jane Harrison is an Indigenous Australian writer and Playwright. George Gilbert Aimé Murray ( January 2, 1866 &ndash May 20 1957) was a British classical scholar and Public intellectual Karl Kerenyi, also involved in Greek mythology, was an associate of Carl Jung, who adopted mythological material in his psychological theories. One of the founders of modern studies in Greek mythology, Károly (Carl Karl Kerényi ( January 19, 1897 &ndash April 14 1973 Greek mythology is the body of stories belonging to the ancient Greeks concerning their gods and Heroes the nature of the world and the origins and significance
In general literary criticism, myth criticism was put forward by Maud Bodkin, Philip Wheelwright, and others such as Francis Fergusson, Leslie Fiedler, and G. Wilson Knight. Literary criticism is the study discussion evaluation and interpretation of Literature. Amy Maud Bodkin (1875–1967 was a British Classical scholar, writer on Mythology, and Literary critic. Philip Ellis Wheelwright ( 1901 - 1970) was an American philosopher classical scholar and literary theorist See Frances Fergusson for the architectural historian and current president of Vassar College. Leslie Aaron Fiedler ( March 8, 1917 &ndash January 29, 2003) was an American literary critic known for his interest in Mythography George Richard Wilson Knight (1897-1985 was an English literary critic and academic known particularly for his interpretation of mythic content in literature and his The critic Northrop Frye, working from Blake and the Bible as fundamental, always wished to distinguish himself from the myth-ritual school, but is often seen as in some sense having summed up the whole tendency. Herman Northrop Frye, CC, MA (Oxon, DD, DLitt, FRSC ( July 14, 1912 &ndash January 23, 1991 William Blake (28 November 1757 – 12 August 1827 was an English poet, painter, and Printmaker. Etymology According to the Online Etymology Dictionary, the word bible is from Latin biblia, traced from the same word through Medieval Latin and Late Latin Robert Graves was interested in poetic theory, and supported his celebrated White Goddess with analysis harking back to Müller and Frazer, as well as the myth-ritual tendency. Robert Graves (24 July 1895 &ndash 7 December 1985 was an English Poet, Translator and Novelist. The White Goddess is a book-length essay upon the nature of poetic myth-making by author and poet Robert Graves.
Mythographic schools
There were numerous other mythographic 'schools' in the first half of the twentieth century. Ernst Cassirer's approach was through philosophy, specifically the so-called Marburg School of Kantian thought; it had a direct influence on Susanne Langer, and has been traced as an influence on Mikhail Bakhtin. Ernst Cassirer ( July 28, 1874 &ndash April 13, 1945) was a German Jewish Philosopher. Philosophy is the study of general problems concerning matters such as existence knowledge truth beauty justice validity mind and language Neo-Kantianism means a revived or modified type of Philosophy along the lines of that laid down by Immanuel Kant in the Eighteenth century or (sometimes Kantianism is the philosophy of Immanuel Kant, a German philosopher born in Königsberg, Germany (now Kaliningrad, Russia Susanne Langer ( December 20, 1895 - July 17, 1985) was an American Philosopher of art, a follower of Ernst Cassirer Mikhail Mikhailovich Bakhtin ( Russian: Михаил Михайлович Бахти́н mʲɪxʌˈil mʲɪˈxajləvʲɪʨ bʌxˈtʲin ( November 17, 1895
The direction of comparative religion is represented by Mircea Eliade, and also to some extent by the literary critic René Girard. Comparative religion is a field of Religious study that analyzes the similarities and differences of themes myths rituals and concepts among the world's religions Mircea Eliade ( – April 22, 1986) was a Romanian historian of religion fiction writer philosopher and professor at the University of Chicago René Girard (born December 25, 1923, Avignon, France) is a world-renowned French Historian, Literary critic The French sociological school has argued in terms of myths having social function.
Universal myth theories
The old idea of a universal myth theory, derided by Voltaire, is in modern times most famously represented by Joseph Campbell. François-Marie Arouet ( 21 November 1694 30 May 1778) better known by the Pen name Voltaire, was a French Joseph John Campbell ( March 26, 1904 – October 30, 1987) was an American Mythology Professor, Writer There were many books written in the seventeenth century purporting to explain all myths. As a means of recording the passage of Time, the 17th Century was that Century which lasted from 1601 - 1700 in the Gregorian calendar But Voltaire was deriding a Christian myth theory, while Campbell proposes a psychological one.
The philosophes, such as Voltaire, were interested in dispelling myths, not explaining their existence. The philosophes ( French for Philosophers ' were a group of intellectuals of the 18th century Enlightenment. While the basic understandings of the Western world were informed by Christianity in all areas of study, the term mythographer referred to someone who attempted to explain pagan myths in terms of misremembering the events of the Old Testament or wilfully altering them. Christianity ( Greek Χριστιανισμός from the word Xριστός ( Christ)is a monotheistic Religion centered on the life and teachings Paganism (from Latin paganus, meaning "country dweller rustic" is a word used to refer to various religions and religious beliefs from across the world In Western Christianity, the Old Testament refers to the books that form the first of the two-part Christian Biblical canon. Some of the theories of explanation from classical times were also used, such as the apotheosis of a local hero. This was before the Enlightenment, or, speaking more precisely, before the arrival of historicism. The Age of Enlightenment or The Enlightenment is a term used to describe a phase in Western philosophy and cultural life centered upon the eighteenth century Historicism refers to philosophical theories that include one or both of two claims that there is an organic succession of developments a notion also
With the arrival of social science, and the understanding that the thought patterns of human beings can change over historical time, this interest faded. The social sciences comprise academic disciplines concerned with the study of the social life of human groups and individuals including Anthropology, Communication studies It is still possible to think such thoughts; and believers might elaborate them somewhat. They could not expect to be taken seriously, in today's marketplace of ideas.
Perhaps the last work which employed this earlier use of the term mythography was George Eliot's novel Middlemarch. Mary Ann (Marian Evans ( 22 November 1819 – 22 December 1880) better known by her Pen name George Eliot, was an Middlemarch is a Novel by George Eliot, the pen name of Mary Anne Evans later Marian Evans Its character Casaubon was involved in such a project in the mid-nineteenth century. The 19th century of the Common Era began on January 1, 1801 and ended on December 31, 1900, according to the Gregorian calendar The story tells of a woman who proved unable to finish the project after his death and abandoned it. Casaubon's character is a satire on academic pedantry and hubris.
See also
- Religion and mythology
- Comparative mythology
- Allegory in the Middle Ages
- Myth and ritual
- Folkloristics
External links
Religion and mythology differ but have overlapping aspects Both terms refer to systems of concepts that are of high importance to a certain community making statements concerning the Comparative mythology is the comparison of Myths from different cultures in an attempt to identify shared themes and characteristics Allegory in the Middle Ages was a vital element in the Synthesis of Biblical and Classical traditions into what would become recognizable as Medieval culture In traditional societies myth and ritual are two central components of religious practice Folkloristics is the formal academic study of Folklore. What actually constitutes folklore is disputed even within the discipline but generally folklore focuses on theDapyx Software network: MP3 Explorer | Ebook Manager | Zenithic