Myths, Old and New: The Bedtime Stories of Humankind
Myths, Old and New: The Bedtime Stories of Humankind

Summary/Abstract: One may think that myth has become obsolete, that its study no longer has a place in contemporary society, yet myth and ritual are repositories of ancient knowledge and they carry universal patterns of behavior and thought across the ages and geographic boundaries. Whereas history and archeology can offer but a blurry image of old psychology, myths can facilitate a clearer glimpse into the minds of people who lived hundreds or thousands of years ago. There was a time when life was inconceivable without religion. Nowadays this is no longer so. Still our daily lives continue to be shaped by long forgotten rituals and practices, some of which are so deeply rooted in our psyche that we do not even remember their relationship with the sacred anymore. Due to scientific discoveries, we tend to view myths with the superiority the microwave user feels towards the cave man, trying to light a bundle of dry grass with a flint. Also, because myth and religion are not necessary in order to supply a moral code for life in society, we tend to overlook their intrinsic value and their imperceptible, albeit omnipresent influence on the way we act, think and regard the world around us. In this paper I intend to discuss two modern phenomena: the re-telling and the re-invention of myths.

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