Myth and Our Modern Western Culture - Case Study Example

MYTH AND OUR MODERN WESTERN CULTURE Over the years the western culture has been very influential to other cultures, this is because most of the technological and social patterns that make up modernization were found or developed in the western world. But then again many critics have argued that many of these western norms and beliefs appose the norms and beliefs of other cultures. For example, music is a main part of the western culture but as for the cultures with Islamic believes tend to go against the western cultures because music is a topic of dispute in Islam. As Islamic followers believe that music is a useless activity which in fact, is a state of passiveness and the benefit and also the pleasure taken from music involves a meaning of deep slavery in passion, since Islam is the only enemy of passiveness and slavery in passion. Even with some religious barriers the western cultures are spreading all around the world. Along with the routine growth, the western countries themselves are trying to influence other countries to spread their culture1. One attempt to spread their culture can be seen through the media and many literary figures. But before getting into the details of these attempts there is one unanswered question, what exactly can be understood by the word "myth" and what are the theories that create a "myth"' Myth can be described as a folktale, a legend, a traditional tale. A main feature that a myth has is that myths are stories that a particular culture believes to be true and that use the supernatural to interpret natural events and to explain the nature of the universe and humanity. Myths are basically created to teach the upcoming generation what to expect from the world and possibly how to protect them selves (Greek mythology on the other hand are based on religious believes which helps them create a more religious approach in the young's)2. Myths are created on the basis of four basic theories: the rational myth theory, functional myth theory, structural myth theory, and the psychological myth theory. The rational myth theory states that myths are created so that people could have a better understanding of the natural events and events that occur in our every day lives. The rational theory also keeps god and goddesses under consideration (keeping religious belief in mind). The type of myths that keep god in consideration are called creation myths, these myths tend to discuss religious believes and try to explain the facts of existence. Rational myth theory explains the understanding of natural and every day events, as for the functional myth theory, it talks about the lessons taught to people about morality and social behaviors. In other words it means that it teaches people what is right and what is wrong. These types of myths are created in order to form a more controlled and a stable society. If these types of myths were not exposed to the people then that will cause feuds between people due to different norms and believes of people. An example of this type myth would be the story of the Mahatma Gandhi; his acts of non-violence and ignorance have taught people not to fight and be patient about every step they take in their lives, this has helped the people to create a non-violent society. The third theory of myth is called the structural myth theory, this theory is based on human emotions and how the human mind has two sides, the good side and the bad side. The Chinese yin and yang symbol also explain the structural behavior of the human mind, it shows that within every good there is evil and within every evil there is good present. The structural myth theory also explains the same thing; these types of myths are called structural myths. An example of these structural myths could be the story of Romeo and Juliet. The story shows that how Romeo feels guilty about Juliet's death that he decides to punish himself by attempting suicide. This act shows that every human being has guilt inside (termed as legitimate conscience) of them for every wrong thing they have done, and to remove this guilt they attempt mindless acts which makes them get rid of this guilt. This might be the reason why there are criminals present in the society. Just like the structural myth theory, the psychological myth theory is also based on human emotions but it takes into consideration the subconscious human mind. There many different cultures present in the world and every culture has a different way of doing things depending upon what there culture expects them to do but cultures all around the world had similar fears, questions, and wishes which, to them, were unexplainable. For this reason it is imperative that psychological myths were made; and that is why there are archetypes common between cultures. Archetypes are general forms and characters used by all cultures. Every theory of myth has its own unique way to teach people something or another, out of these theories it can be said that myths are created to explain the unknown, natural events and forces, to show the duality and pureness of human nature and the human mind, and to help society maintain order and remain stable3. We now understand why myths are created and what are the theories behind creating a myth' But in our modern days myths are still being created but now they are being created through the media and books. As discussed before that the west is trying to spread the culture all around the world through media. One of many example of this could be found in the film Borat. In the film Sacha Barron Cohen (also know as Ali G) stars as a Kazakh reporter who travels to the United States in order to learn the western culture. The movie could be described as a myth where as it tries to teach the viewers the real American culture (western culture) the movie explores the ways of speaking, the humor, the ways of dining, the extent of religious beliefs in Americans, the level of freedom, the types of cloth people wear, different types of people present in the US and some more cultural facts of the United States. As known from the myth theories that the myths explain the unknown, natural events and forces. Not being a creation myth Borat doesn't discuss the fact of existence but it does discuss the fact of destiny, as Borat travels to Hollywood to find Pamela Anderson (who Borat thinks is in love with), but actually he discovers that that was not his true love but his true love was the prostitute he meets during his journey. The film considers the functional myth theories as it teaches people how the westerners dine, the types of jokes they might find funny, the way the people talk in the US and also the type of discipline westerners have (the film teaches the people about the morality and social behaviors present in the United States). The film Borat also follows the structural myth theory as it shows the good and the bad side of human mind. The two sides of the human mind can be seen in Borat's colleague Azamat, as he turns against Borat and leaves him all alone, also he steals his bear pet and eats him. But then as Azamat and Borat meet again, Azamat feels guilty for what he did and helps him in finding Pamela Anderson (he helps Borat to remove his guilt of hurting him). Now as for the psychological myth theory, the film also shows that even though every culture is different in its own way, there are still some things that every person needs, i.e. to love someone and to be loved, also the fear of being alone and the feeling of not being loved. Comparing to the ancient myths the film has similar content (not clearly shown but have almost same meanings), for example the myth of "Oedipus Rex". The myth of Oedipus Rex tell a story of a king how he kills his own father and marries his own mother, even though he tries to avoid his destiny but it turns out that destiny can never be avoided and hurts himself and others by trying to do so. The movie has a slightly similar approach, as Borat looks for his true love and it turns out that his true love was some one else. In conclusion, it can be said that most film produced show the myth of their originating cultures. Like every Indian movie shows more or less of the Indian culture and every Chinese movie shows more or less of their Chinese culture. In our modern world there are many myths being born in the form of films and books each describing there originating culture. Bibliography Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan 2006 "Movie" Mark Huband, Brutal Truths, Fragile Myths: Power Politics and Western Adventurism in the Arab, World Westview Press, 2004 Mircea Eliade, Myth and Reality (Religious Traditions of the World) Waveland Press, 1998 Northrop Frye , Jay Macpherson, Biblical and Classical Myths: The Mythological Framework of Western Culture, University of Toronto Press, 2004 Read More