The Anthropology of Religion, Magic, and Witchcraft

Chapter 3: Mythology 

Chapter Summary

Oral Storytelling Video Activities 

  1. “The Power of Storytelling”: Humans have been called “storytelling animals.” We are constantly surrounded by stories from more obvious sources like books, movies, and television shows to less obvious ones like daydreams, songs, gossip, and commercials. Politics and jury trials are often about who can tell the better story.  

    We have discussed in this chapter how sacred stories shape meaning for cultures. In the same way the stories we tell about ourselves and our lives shape our personal worldviews and the way we see ourselves in that world. Can you tell a coherent story about yourself and your life experiences?  

    New research is exploring if we can reframe our lives by changing how we tell our own stories. For example, an intervention with Duke University students who were struggling academically focused on getting them to reframe their stories from not being cut out for college to just needing time to adjust. Students who received this intervention raised their overall grade point averages and were less likely to drop out than a control group.

    Reflect on your own story, especially as it relates to education. How did the family you grew up in feel about education? What were your early experiences in school like and what impact did that have on you? What characterizes you as a student? What are your educational goals and why? How does learning about religion fit into your overall story? 
  1. “Dreams from Endangered Cultures” – Dr. Wade Davis (2003, ca. 20 minutes) https://www.ted.com/talks/wade_davis_dreams_from_endangered_cultures?language=en  

    Wade Davis is an anthropologist and extraordinary storyteller. Through this selection of myths and stories, Davis emphasizes the critical role of cultural diversity in the survival of our species and this world as a whole. What does he mean by the term ethnosphere? Why is it so important that we value and preserve the ethnosphere? 
  1. “The Power of Sharing History through Storytelling” (2020, ca. 15 minutes) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YfNAXpn-czw&list=RDLVYfNAXpn-czw&start_radio=1&t=185s  

    Listen to the power of storytelling through Indigenous myths shared by Indigenous educator, Dan Nanamkin, from the Pacific Northwest. What social truths are being taught and passed on through these myths?  

Multiple Choice Questions 

Which of the following is not a common element in origin myths?

Oral and written traditions differ in many ways. Which of the following is a primary difference between these two different traditions?

Monomyths are associated with all of the following characteristics except:

This theoretical approach looks at the universal elements within myth, focusing on binary oppositions as forces and counter-forces within the story. Which theory is this?

A myth cycle that involves a series of creations and destructions is referred to as:

Case Studies 

The following are a diverse selection of animated stories. Using what you have learned about myths, legends, and folktales in Ch. 3, analyze the following using a functional, structural, or physiological approach: 

  • Functional approach: consider what purpose or meaning these stories have for the society? What lessons are being conveyed to the audience?  
  • Structural approach: what binary oppositions can you find in each of these stories? What are the primary “conflicts” within the story? How are nature and culture being portrayed (and contrasted) in these stories? 
  • Psychological approach: what social issues and social conflicts are embedded in these stories? What do these topics reveal about the society? 

Legend: “Savitri and Satyavan” (2021, TED-Ed, Iseult Gillespie, ca. 5 minutes) https://www.ted.com/talks/iseult_gillespie_savitri_and_satyavan_the_legend_of_the_princess_who_outwitted_death  

Folktale: “The Japanese Folktale of the Selfish Scholar” (2020, TED-Ed, Iseult Gillespie, ca. 4 minutes) https://www.ted.com/talks/iseult_gillespie_the_japanese_folktale_of_the_selfish_scholar  

Myth: “The Egyptian Myth of the Death of Osiris” (2020. TED-Ed, Alex Gendler) https://www.ted.com/talks/alex_gendler_the_egyptian_myth_of_the_death_of_osiris  

Study Questions

  1. A society’s worldview is the way it perceives and interprets its reality. Often, this worldview is shaped by religious beliefs and values. Compare the creation stories of the Judeo-Christian religion (Box 3.1) and the Navajos (Box 3.4). How might the worldviews differ between these two populations based upon their different creation stories? 
  1. In our society, a religious organization might set up a table on a college campus and distribute copies of the Bible. In a small-scale society, a storyteller might set up a “stage” at a local market and offer to tell stories. How are these two activities similar and how are they different? How does the transmission of religious stories differ in these two societies?  
  1. What are the different theoretical approaches to the study of mythology? Choose one of the myths discussed in the chapter and apply two different theoretical lens to interpret it. Does it change the meanings within the myth? 
  1. Why do we label the movies Star Wars, The Wizard of Oz, The Matrix, The Lord of the Rings, and Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone monomyths? What are some other movies or television shows that are monomyths?  
  1. How do apocalyptic myths serve as social charters for a society? Consider what we learned about socialization and enculturation in Chapter 1. What role does apocalyptic myth play in teaching individuals about their culture? 
  1. Why do you think that commonalities exist in myths found in different cultures? 

Suggested Readings  

Armstrong, Karen. A Short History of Myth (Edinburgh: Canongate Canons, 2022). An examination of the evolution of storytelling from Neandertals to the present. 

Campbell, Joseph. The Hero with a Thousand Faces (Princeton: Princeton Univ. Press, 1972, 2nd, ed.). A description of the hero myth in societies around the world. 

Erdoes, Richard and Alfonso Ortiz, eds. American Indian Myths and Legends (New York: Pantheon Books, 1984). A collection of stories about creation, monster slayers, tricksters, warriors, and lovers. 

Kalakaua, David. The Legends and Myths of Hawaii (Kindle Scribe, Books on Demand, 2018). A re-published collection of myths and legends first assembled in 1888 by King David Kalakaua. 

Leeming, David A. The World of Myth (Oxford: Oxford Univ. Press, 2018, 3rd ed.). An extensive collection of world myths that can be read comparatively by topic (creation myths, apocalyptic myths, etc.). 

Leonard, Scott and Michael McClure. Myth and Knowing: An Introduction to World Mythology (New York: McGraw-Hill, 2003). An in-depth mythology textbook. 

Lévi-Strauss, Claude. The Raw and the Cooked: Mythologiques, Vol. 1 (Chicago: Univ. of Chicago, 1983). A structural study and analysis of Amerindian mythologies. 

Suggested Websites  

http://pantheon.org/mythica.html (Encyclopedia Mythica is an encyclopedia of mythology, folklore, and legend) 

www.pitt.edu/~dash/folktexts.html (an extensive collection of folk and mythology texts) 

www.sacred-texts.com (archive of sacred texts across multiple traditions) 

www.jcf.org (The Joseph Campbell Foundation) 

www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/apocalypse/revelation/white.html (understanding the Book of Revelation) 

http://www.native-languages.org/legends.htm  (an extensive collection of Native American folklore by tribe) 

Suggested Video 

Dreams from Endangered Cultures, TED Talk, 2003 – https://www.ted.com/talks/wade_davis_dreams_from_endangered_cultures?language=en – anthropologist Dr. Wade Davis, usually extremely evocative storytelling, shares the importance of cultural storytelling and cultural diversity 

(mythic versions) Myth of Naro, as Told by Dedeheiwa, DER, 1975 and Myth of Naro, as Told by Kąobawä, DER, 1975 – the myth of Naro is told by two different Yanomamo shamans, highlighting the storyteller’s art 

The Reindeer Thief, DER, 1988 – a myth about a “reindeer thief” told over generations by the Chukchi people of Siberia 

ShaktiMa No Veh, DER, 2006 – based on ethnographic research, this myth of the Goddess Shaktima is told by a Muslim troupe in India 

The Crocodile Dream, “Sea Legends” – ZED, 1998 – a culturally diverse selection of legends and myths about supernatural spirits inhabiting the sea 

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