Mythology - Essay Example

Download file to see previous pages... The single most important fact that springs out from Mythology is that in all ages and times, men have always tried to seek a superhuman if not noble vision of human existence, a vision that irrespective of appearing larger than life, happened to be essentially human and somewhat approachable. Maybe the contemporary humanity may think that myths happen to be ancient, fanciful and untrue stories. Yet, the irony is that this is very true. Myths stand viable evidence to the fact that there are many aspects of human nature and the nature at large that stand beyond the grasp of human comprehension, which could be felt, but perhaps not verbalized. Hence, the humanity took recourse to preserving such phenomenon and facts, by humanizing and characterizing them as the performers in seemingly fanciful tales. I t may sound amazing, but even the modern day humans are not above myths. For instance the contemporary myths regarding aliens, Unidentified Flying Objects (UFOs), life on Mars, or Dinosaurs are some of the standing examples of the fact that the human urge to imagine beyond what is visible or accessible is as much alive and kicking today as it was in the Roman or Greek times. In that context it would be really interesting to dissect some of the myths mentioned in Mythology. For instance, consider the Myth of Medea, who is presented as a willful, jealous and unremorseful character. The other thing is that Medea is a character that had been grievously wronged. The things done by Medea to seek revenge from her estranged husband could readily be resorted to be a modern day women if placed in such circumstances and situation. It may seem abnormal and strange, but even a cursory perusal of the crime files at any local police station would be sufficient to allay the doubts of any cynical disbeliever. There is one more practical facet to this myth of Medea. Medea is shown to be a sorceress or a witch. Perhaps the sorceresses were considered to be deviant as per the Greek religious beliefs and hence the demonization of the character of Medea in the Greek mythology has a socio-political angle to it. Is not the presentation of the character of Media, a sorceress, as a hard hearted and unremorseful individual, somewhat akin to the demonization and burning of the so called witches at Harlem in the American history? Also, for instance, the Oracle of Delphi may sound superstitious and fanciful to a modern person, but it goes without saying that the urge to have a control over future and the desire to be able to predict future is a concept that is as relevant today as it was in the past. The multinational corporations around the world pay millions to the experts to harness their ability to predict the consumer trends in the future, to ascertain whether the stock markets will be bullish or bearish in the future or to predict the feasibility of initiating ventures in a foreign market. The scientists resort to digital models to predict weather, to track the progression of global warming or to predict the future changes in the migration patterns of sea creatures. No wonder the modern day man is contemptuous of the Oracles; yet, one has devised multiple high tech oracles of one’s own. On the other side the myth of Oedipus constitutes the cornerstone of ...Download file to see next pagesRead More