Myth | Definition, History, Examples, & Facts | Britannica
Dec 16, 2024 · myth, a symbolic narrative, usually of unknown origin and at least partly traditional, that ostensibly relates actual events and that is especially associated with religious belief.It is distinguished from symbolic behaviour (cult, ritual) and symbolic places or objects (temples, icons). Myths are specific accounts of gods or superhuman beings involved in extraordinary events or circumstances ...
Myth - Folklore, Legends, Fables | Britannica
Dec 16, 2024 · Myth - Folklore, Legends, Fables: In Western culture there are a number of literary or narrative genres that scholars have related in different ways to myths. Examples are fables, fairy tales, folktales, sagas, epics, legends, and etiologic tales (which refer to causes or explain why a thing is the way it is). Another form of tale, the …
Legend | Definition, Examples, & Facts | Britannica
Dec 13, 2024 · legend, traditional story or group of stories told about a particular person or place.Formerly the term legend meant a tale about a saint. Legends resemble folktales in content; they may include supernatural beings, elements of mythology, or explanations of natural phenomena, but they are associated with a particular locality or …
Myth - Origins, Rituals, Beliefs | Britannica
Dec 16, 2024 · Myth - Origins, Rituals, Beliefs: Myth and history represent alternative ways of looking at the past. Defining history is hardly easier than defining myth, but a historical approach necessarily involves both establishing a chronological framework for events and comparing and contrasting rival traditions in order to produce a coherent account. The latter process, in …
Greek mythology - Gods, Heroes, Myths | Britannica
Nov 21, 2024 · Greek mythology - Gods, Heroes, Myths: Myths of origin represent an attempt to render the universe comprehensible in human terms. Greek creation myths (cosmogonies) and views of the universe (cosmologies) were more systematic and specific than those of other ancient peoples. Yet their very artistry serves as an impediment to interpretation, since the Greeks embellished the myths with folktale ...
Myth - Origins, Functions, Types | Britannica
Dec 16, 2024 · Myth - Origins, Functions, Types: The importance of studying myth to provide a key to a human society is a matter of historical record. In the middle of the 19th century, for instance, a newly appointed British governor of New Zealand, Sir George Grey, was confronted by the problem of how to come to terms with the Maori, who were hostile to the British. He learned their language, but that ...
Greek mythology | Gods, Stories, & History | Britannica
Nov 21, 2024 · Many of the lyric poets preserved various myths, but the odes of Pindar of Thebes (flourished 6th–5th century bce) are particularly rich in myth and legend. The works of the three tragedians— Aeschylus, Sophocles, and Euripides, all of the 5th century bce —are remarkable for the variety of the traditions they preserve.
Greek mythology - Gods, Heroes, Legends | Britannica
Nov 21, 2024 · Greek mythology - Gods, Heroes, Legends: To distinguish between myth, legend, and folktale can be useful, provided it is remembered that the Greeks themselves did not do so. Greek religious myths are concerned with gods or heroes in their more serious aspects or are connected with ritual. They include cosmogonical tales of the genesis of the gods and the world out of Chaos, the successions of ...
Folk literature - Folktale, Myth, Legend | Britannica
Dec 21, 2024 · Folk literature - Folktale, Myth, Legend: The oral fictional tale, from whatever ultimate origin, is practically universal both in time and place. Certain peoples tell very simple stories and others tales of great complexity, but the basic pattern of tale-teller and audience is found everywhere and as far back as can be learned. Differing from legend or tradition, which is usually believed ...
Myth - Origin, Ritual, Belief | Britannica
Dec 16, 2024 · Myth - Origin, Ritual, Belief: The most obvious function of myths is the explanation of facts, whether natural or cultural. One North American Indian (Abenaki) myth, for example, explains the origin of corn (maize): a lonely man meets a beautiful woman with long, fair hair; she promises to remain with him if he follows her instructions; she tells …