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NOW! MY¥ 1H a " Id An Introduct 1on 8) Wor y thology ~~ a e a t e oe ra es FF oe - 3 i RENT: SCOTT LEONARD MICHAEL MCCLURE Myth and Knowing Digitized by the Internet Archive In 2022 with funding from Kahle/Austin Foundation https://archive.org/details/mythknowingintro0000leon MYTH AND KNOWING An Introduction to World Mythology Scott Leonard Youngstown State University Michael McClure Washington and Lee University Boston Burr Ridge, IL Dubuque, |A Madison,W I New York San Francisco St. Louis Bangkok Bogoté Caracas Kuala Lumpur Lisbon London Madrid Mexico City Milan Montreal New Delhi Santiago Seoul Singapore Sydney Taipei Toronto McGraw-Hill Higher Education 3g A Division of The McGraw-Hill Companies MYTH AND KNOWING Published by McGraw-Hill, a business unit of The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc., 1221 Avenue of the Americas, New York, NY, 10020. Copyright © 2004 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or distributed in any form or by any means, or stored in a database or retrieval system, without the prior written consent of The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc., including, but not limited to, in any network or other electronic storage or transmission, or broadcast for distance learning. Some ancillaries, including electronic and print components, may not be available to customers outside the United States. This book is printed on acid-free paper. 234567890 FGR/FGR09876543 ISBN 0-7674-1957-X Publisher: Kenneth King Sponsoring editor: Jon-David Hague Senior marketing manager: Greg Brueck Project manager: Diane M. Folliard Lead production supervisor: Lori Koetters Coordinator of freelance design: Mary E. Kazak Manager, photo research: Brian J. Pecko Art editor: Cristin Yancey Cover design: Sarah Studnicki Cover art: “Ad Marginem” 1930, 210 (E10) 46 X 36 cm; water-colour; Oeffentliche Kunstsammlung, Basel. © 2002 Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York/VG Bild-Kunst, Bonn Scala/Art Resource, NY Typeface: 10/12 Times Roman Compositor: G&S Typesetters, Inc. Printer: Quebecor World Fairfield, Inc. Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Leonard, Scott A., 1958-— Myth and knowing : an introduction to world mythology / Scott Leonard, Michael McClure. p. cm. Includes index. ISBN 0-7674-1957-X (softcover : alk. paper) 1. Mythology. I. McClure, Michael, 1950-—_ II. Title. BL312.L46 2004 398.2 —dce21 2002041074 www.mhhe.com About the Authors In 1986, Scott Leonard and Michael McClure met in an undergraduate critical theory course at Humboldt State University in Arcata, CA. They soon formed a friend- ship based on their mutual love of literature, theories about, well, everything, and excellent micro-brews. Both received their B.A.s and M.A.s from Humboldt State and both traveled east to pursue their respective doctoral studies. Scott received his Ph.D. from The Ohio State University (go Bucks!) in 1992. He has published scholarly articles on nineteenth-century British Literature, insti- tutional theory, and composition. He currently is associate professor of English at Youngstown State University where he teaches myth, the British romantics, and serves as director of YSU’s Composition Program. Michael received his Ph.D. from the Joint Program in English and Education at the University of Michigan (go Blue!) in 1993. He has since published fiction and poetry as well as academic articles on composition and rhetoric. He is currently a visit- ing assistant professor of English at Washington and Lee University in Lexington, VA. Preface Myth and Knowing is an introduction to myths around the world and their systematic study, written primarily for introductory college courses in myth, mythology, and world literature, with numerous generative uses in other disciplines, including first-year writing, anthropology, religion, and psychology. Although several excellent textbooks on classical mythology exist, readers wishing to explore the mythic terrain beyond Athens and Rome have not been as well served. Given an ever-growing public interest in myth and an academic climate that encourages “multicultural” approaches to traditional sub- jects, this lack is surprising. Yet, until now, textbooks devoted to world myth have tended to feature pallid, often sanitized versions of these sacred narratives, presented not to fire the reader’s imagination nor for their inherent beauty and strangeness but to exemplify a limited range of myth types or to illustrate one argument or another about the interpre- tive key that unlocks the hidden meaning of all myth. Teachers wishing to discuss world myth in terms other than such tale-types as fertility, creation, and hero myths or to in- vestigate with their students the psychological and cultural implications of these stories have been forced to rely on supplemental course packets and a great deal of ingenuity. Myth and Knowing was born of a frustration that no single volume provided a broad collection of the world’s myths and a thorough overview of mythology as a field of study. We have endeavored to create a book that acquaints students with traditional academic classification systems but that nevertheless puts the story itself above all else. While, like its predecessors, our text does a great deal of summarizing of the world’s myths to illustrate various teaching points, it also respects the potency of myth’s densely symbolic and metaphoric phrasing. We have, therefore, selected, wherever possible, translations and versions of the following stories that preserve some of the majesty and mystery, the poetry and power of their original languages. Moreover, an important assumption guiding our efforts has been that myth—far from being merely stories about the gods and the exploits of heroes—is a vital way through which human beings orient themselves to the world. Where did we come from and what is our purpose? What happens after we die? Why is there suffering and what can be done about it? Myths provide a rich array of answers to these and many other phe- nomenological and ontological questions. Through the study of myths we can see di- verse cultures wrestling with such fundamental questions, and we can use the perspec- vi Preface Vii tives thus provided as ground from which to see our own attempts to understand the nature of the divine, the nature of the self, and the obligations we have to others in new ways. Through myths each person learns what is good and praiseworthy and what is not; what is beautiful and valuable and what is not; and what is true and right and what is not. These understandings about the individual in relation to notions of the divine order and the human community are the bedrock upon which societies, religions, and individual lives are built. Encouraging students to engage imaginatively, sympathetically, yet criti- cally with the narratives that inform belief and rationalize action in this violent and anx- ious world is one of the central missions of our text. The archeological, cultural, and historical contexts provided for the stories are another distinguishing feature of Myth and Knowing. We feel strongly that, despite the universality of many mythic themes, the stories themselves should be presented in a way that also communicates some of a culture’s unique history and qualities. While all creation myths tell us how we got here, by whose agency, and how human beings fit in the grand scheme of things, characteristic qualities of each culture inflect these stories. For example, Native American creation myths tend to dramatize the idea that everything is intelligent, that the human being is related to brothers bear and fox as well as to the rocks and trees, while Egyptian and classical Greek accounts only imply human creation in their portrayals of how the various gods gave cosmic order to primordial chaos. These distinct cosmological approaches shape a culture’s social organization, religious beliefs, art, customs, and way of relating to outsiders. All cultures tell stories of origins, but the conceptual architecture built upon these foundational accounts is significantly different. Our text teaches students to look for and appreciate those differences. Organization We’ ve designed Myth and Knowing to serve the needs of the typical semester-long course. Each of the book’s chapters is, in effect, a scholarly essay that introduces students to major mythologists and their ideas, defines important terms, outlines classification systems, and specifies the terms of on-going debates. Each chapter-essay concludes with an ex- tensive bibliography from which students can launch research projects of their own. The text begins with a historical overview of the shifting definitions of myth and clear, if brief, summaries of the major schools of mythology. Our text demonstrates that the definition of the word “myth” and its study have complex histories in which moral, religious, philosophical, and political authority has always been at stake. Myth and mythology are presented as contested fields of meaning that have shaped and been shaped by various ideological currents. Rather than assuming a consensus that doesn’t exist about what can legitimately be called a myth and how we should study it, we show our readers why myth is so difficult to define and why approaches to it are so numerous. Thus, the introductory chapter furnishes students with a conceptual vocabulary and rudimentary methods for analyzing the myths that appear in later chapters. The five chapters following the Introduction focus on specific mythic genres —creation myths, myths of the female divine, myths of the male divine, trickster myths, and myths of sacred places. The essay portions of the chapter discuss characteristic features of each genre and mine mythic treasure from around the world to provide illustrations. While we do a fair bit of summarizing and excerpting of the world’s myths to illustrate Vili Preface various themes, characters, and analytical schemes in the essays, each genre chapter also features a collection of full-text readings upon which students and their instructors may perform close, critical readings. Each story is introduced with a map and brief remarks that provide an overview of the known archaeological, historical, and cultural facts shap- ing the narrative. These stories exemplify the unique rhythms, ethnocentrisms, and sym- bol systems of myths told in cultures around the world. Acknowledgments Since this text is the product of two minds, our expressions of gratitude must be both individual and collective. Scott would like to thank Christine Miletta Leonard who, in her capacity as research assistant, spent many tedious hours photocopying and scanning stories for possible inclusion in the final manuscript and who, in her capacity as loving wife, jealously guarded his writing and research time from every intrusion. Without Chris’s encouragement, support, and meticulous care this project would not have been possible. Scott would also like to thank Tom Gage, now professor emeritus at Humboldt State University, in whose classroom his passion for myth and mythology was first kin- dled. During the fall of 1987, Tom fought through a 15-week bout with laryngitis to show his students the Semitic precursors of Greek myth, a singular display of enthu- siasm for his subject and commitment to his students that continues to inspire and in form Scott’s own classroom practice. To this list of worthy benefactors, Scott also grate- fully acknowledges Youngstown State University and its Research Council for granting a semester’s leave and a stipend in support of this project. And he would also like to thank his co-author and long-time friend Michael McClure for every day we spent on this project. Who else would have insisted that our guiding editorial principle should be that the book feature “really cool stories”? Spending the last four years talking, mar- veling, arguing, and laughing together about myth, mythology, and our book has truly been reward enough for our labor. Michael would like to thank Robin Le Blanc for her commitment to the power and importance of telling and hearing the stories that, in the end, are “all you get.” Also, for her wisdom that that “all” is enough. This book has benefited at various stages from the suggestions of many scholars who were gracious enough to review the manuscript for McGraw-Hill. The following people offered helpful suggestions in the early stages of the book: Louise Ackley —Boise State University Ann Canale—Lindenwood University Marvin Lansverk—Montana State University, Bozeman Jen Wahlquist—Utah Valley State College Robert Wolverton—Mississippi State University Michael Sexson, Montana State University, Bozeman David Karnos, Montana State University, Billings