Myth Definitions

Mythology Definitions

1.) Myth-A myth is a traditional story accepted as history. It serves to relate and explain the world’s views on a culture and its people. An example would be the myth of Hercules.
2.) Hero-A hero is the founder of something new; a new age, era, religion. He contains one or more unique characteristic that sets him apart from regular people. An example of a hero is Atalanta.
3.) Hero Journey-The hero journey is the road of trials battles and obstacles that the hero goes through, such as the journey the ultimate battle, companions along the way, the call to adventure, initiation, transformation, death and rebirth, and the boon brought back. In the myth of Hercules, he encounters many trails and battles, the 12 labors of hercules, and the boon was security and safety for the people.
4.) Universal- Universal means that something applies to everyone in some way. It is a representation of every man, and everyone can somehow relate to that idea. It is the “big picture.” Hercules is universal because even though he is a hero, he still has his flaws and he still is human. Hercules has a very bad temper, and lacks self confidence, which many can relate to in some way.
5.) Archetype-Archetype describes structure, a type or kind of something. It is the foundation or the original model. The creation archetypes are void, watery abyss and the egg. For example in the Egypt myth, everything starts out in a dark watery abyss called Nun.
6.) Cyclical-Cyclical refers to a cycle or a constant pattern with repetition. The pattern is unbroken and it is whole. Every myth follows the cyclical pattern with the Hero Journey, starting with call to adventure, collecting companions, the initiation, the journey, ultimate battle, boon, transformation, death and rebirth, the boon is shared, and then it starts all over again in the same pattern.
7.) Duality-Duality means double or opposites, you have one with the other. With duality there is a sense of two-ness and separation division. For example there is yin and yang, there is good and evil, light and dark, land and water, moon and sun, male or female, and many others that come with life and stories.
8.) Creation-Creation means the starting point or the beginning, the origin or the first. For example in the Chinese myth, then there was an egg, and inside there was Pangu.
9.) Life from Death-the term life from death refers to the idea that for something or someone to live, another must die, and that death creates life. For example in the Egypt myth there is death and then out of that death the sweat creates the sungod, the tears create the humans and so on.
10.) Matriarchal-Matriarchal means the foundation of female power where the mother or woman rules. For example there is Mother Earth.
11.) Patriarchal-Patriarchal means the foundation of male power where the father or man rules. For example Father Sky.
12.) Sacrifice-Sacrifice means the tribute, or the giving up of something for something else or the common good. It can be an offering or a gift. For example in the myth of Demeter and Persephone, Demeter sacrifices Persephone for six months out of each year.

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Persephone and Demeter

            The myth of Demeter and Persephone is a story of beauty, precious innocence, loss, and a reason for change.  A mother’s grievance and sorrow for her perfect creation, snatched, and exposed.  A virgin’s innocence stolen, from the man of mystery and fear.  There are three different levels of interpretation in analyzing myths.  The natural explanation of the story explains the obvious, the surface layer of the story, and the simple details of the myth.  The social level explains how society reacts to the natural level.  And last the psychological level of interpretation explains the inner most details of the story, the hidden messages and meanings of the story and how it can relate to the reader personally.

            In the myth of Demeter and Persephone the surface details are simple.  Demeter is the Corn Goddess, she provides for the people of the Earth.  Persephone is the Goddess of Spring.  She represents new life and change, babies and birth.  She symbolizes newness and freshness in the seasons.  These are the first details the reader is made aware of, but there is a massive amount of depth and layers in the next level of interpretation.

            On the social level, Demeter is referred to by society as the “Good Mother”.  She represents Agriculture, planting, and growing.  Civilization would not have been possible without her help and her gift of corn.  She symbolizes versatility.  She is a leader, a queen.  Persephone symbolizes many things on a social level; one being happiness.  She is always so happy and, she contains innocence and carries her youth as a privilege, savoring and enjoying every minute of it, knowing it only lasts so long.  Persephone is beautiful, and lively, perfection lingers closely around her.  She defines purity and virginity.  When she is stolen away by the feared god of the underworld, Hades, all of these traits change. She is forced into marriage, her purity and innocence taken from her unwillingly.  Her liveliness and spirit are crushed.

            The last layer, the psychological aspect, holds so many deep details. Demeter is nurturing and caring to Persephone and her people she watches over.  She is protective and provides a sense of safety and security.   Demeter is a mother to Persephone; her daughter is part of her. She loves Persephone dearly and when she is taken, Demeter experiences the pain, the emotional loss, and the loneliness around her without Persephone by her side.  This is the same grief that human’s have when they have lost a loved one from their lives, so even though she is a goddess, Demeter relates.   Persephone is such a complex individual; the details can be analyzed so deeply.  She holds such a compassion and love for the beauty around her.  She is a daughter, a friend, and someone that defined perfection.  Persephone is also malleable like an impression, she takes in everything around her, and with every new thing she learns, like anyone, she changes and grows.  She contains so much curiosity and adventure inside of her, which is where she comes to be very vulnerable and naïve to the imperfections and dangers around her.  When she is taken unwillingly by Hades, she realizes the darker side of things that she had never been exposed to.  Her innocence and purity is stolen from her and she feels a sense of loss, guilt and shame.  But as she learns of the darker side, she still holds her curiosity, which leads her to the seed and the return to Hades for four months of the year, where she leaves earth and everything dies.  Her mother mourns until her daughters safe return.

            There are three layers of myth analysis, natural, social, and psychological.  Within these layers we are able to see and pick out the deep unknown details that in some way relate to us as readers personally.  The myth of Demeter and Persephone is a story of beauty, precious innocence, loss, and a reason for change.  A mother’s grievance and sorrow for her perfect creation, snatched, and exposed.  A virgin’s innocence stolen, from the man of mystery and fear.  In Some way we can all relate to this meaningful myth.