Tag: mythology
We’re excited that you’ve joined the conversation! At HMU, we want to continue the great authors’ conversations in a contemporary context, and this blog will help us do that. We look back to Aristotle and the early philosophers who used reason and discourse to gain wisdom and now we endeavor to do the same every day.
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June 7, 2024
Thanks to Alissa Simon, HMU Tutor, for today’s post.
I have always had a difficult time separating myth and fairy tale. They seem similar to me, and in fact, according to historian, critic, and writer Marina Warner, they do share similarities. They often incorporate flat characters. Plots do not need to be elaborate. Both tend to be from oral traditions. Additionally, they frequently include the intervention of a meddlesome character such as the gods (in the case of myth) or witches and magicians (in the case of fairy tale).
March 24, 2023
Thanks to Eden Tesfaslassie, HMU 2022 Fellow in Ideas, for today’s post.
In Black Swan, the film utilizes the ballet performance Swan Lake, based on a fairytale, as a frame. The film uses other elements of the fairy tale genre, as evidenced by the character archetypes. The viewer can see characteristics of mothers, Prince Charmings, and villains reflected in the film’s ensemble cast.
May 15, 2020
Thanks to Alissa Simon, HMU Tutor, for today’s post.
Recently, I found myself struggling with the question: How might Chaucer or Dante’s works demonstrate the way that “language is myth,” as Claude Lévi-Strauss asserts in Structural Anthropology (vol 58: 475)?
First I began to examine what Lévi-Strauss means by language. He separates language into two categories: langue and parole. Langue is the system of language which includes grammar and conventions.
October 6, 2017
Thanks to Alissa Simon, HMU Tutor, for today’s post.
Myth is what happens to a strong belief once the belief has changed. In other words, what was once firm belief, turns into cultural story and entertainment. They become important narratives, but not necessarily belief systems. For example, we know who Zeus is, but I doubt that anyone believes the story of Leda and the Swan. (I say that with some hesitation because one could argue that the story is really about transformation,
September 8, 2017
Thanks to Alissa Simon, HMU Tutor, for today’s post.
According to Merriam-Webster, a clue is:
- something that guides through an intricate procedure or maze of difficulties or
- a piece of evidence that leads one toward the solution of a problem
Clue offers one example of how language changes and is, therefore, the subject of today’s blog. I love this word because it visually expresses its meaning better than the string of the four letters c-l-u-e.
August 4, 2017
“As a student I wanted to stand up at the mic during Q and A to challenge the terms under which one applies the term myth not to mention legend but I did not because the line was long because the speaker was well-known well-respected in other words he was a legend but not a myth.” – Layli Long Soldier, “Whereas”
Thanks to Alissa Simon, HMU Tutor, for today’s post.