Name: The Power of Myth
Rating: 4.2 (144 reviews)
Author: Joseph Campbell with Bill Moyers

What’s in it for me? Find out why myths still carry the power to unite cultures and make sense of life.

Talking snakes, magic swords and children jumping fully formed from the thighs of fathers. How could such fantastic myths and stories tell us anything about our modern life?

In ancient times, in the absence of science, myths helped people make sense of the natural world. Yet the truth is, even with today’s cutting-edge technology, we need myths more than ever.

Why? Myths still help us make sense of life’s more slippery truths, like why we’re here and what it means when we die. These blinks explain the impact mythology has had on culture and society.

But most importantly, you’ll learn how myths have an uncanny way of showing us just how much we have in common with our fellow man, regardless of culture or background.

Reading these blinks, you’ll find out

what King Arthur and Luke Skywalker have in common;
why eating an apple is one of the oldest acts of civil disobedience; and
how horses turned the myths of Native Americans upside down.

A myth is a story that provides a shared identity for a community and reflects its cultural origins.

When you were a child, did you enjoy bedtime stories? Tales of the heroic deeds of Robin Hood, or the adventures of King Arthur and his Knights of the Round Table?

Such stories, or myths, are essential in establishing and preserving the identity of a community.

Many myths explain the beginning of life, or how a culture came to be. Through this, myths function as a tool in forming a group identity and in doing so, they also explain how one group is separate or different from other groups.

The concept of a “chosen people” is grounded in myth. Certain religious groups believe the truth of their community is the only truth, and that they have been chosen by God for a special purpose. In contrast, people who exist outside the group need to be converted or fought.

Religious myths foster a connection with other members of a group and create a common identity and shared destiny, while also acting as a boundary for anyone with differing beliefs.

So how do myths happen? Stories tend to mirror the geographical or cultural roots of the place where they originate.

The idea of a god, for instance, is a cultural construct. In religions with multiple gods, each god is responsible for some element in nature, such as the wind or sun, or even animals. The Incas of South America, for example, believed their founding ancestor was the “son” of the sun god, Inti.

And when circumstances in a culture change, so do its myths.

The mythology of Native American tribes in North America was centred around vegetation. The Cherokee’s “first mother” and most important goddess was Selu, meaning “maize.”

Yet after the Spanish brought horses to the continent, which helped the tribes more efficiently hunt buffalo, the buffalo became an important mythological figure as well.

Myths can adapt or vary over time, but their core message usually endures, allowing members of a group to continue to identify with them.

Certain myths cut across cultures and peoples. Yet we focus too often on the differences instead.

Think about the religious myths you know. Which individual could walk on water? You might think this was Jesus. Yet Buddhism tells us that Buddha did the same thing, too!

Across cultures and religions, we share archetypes of common ideas. An archetype is a universal principle or idea that transcends culture. Importantly, we all – regardless of cultural or religious background – subconsciously understand what each archetype stands for.

Myths help us better grasp some of life’s transcendent ideas, things like god or eternity.

What does God look like? A bearded man, sitting on a cloud? A multi-limbed goddess? An elephant, a monkey, or the sun?

We usually prefer to think in terms of the physical to comprehend the abstract, such as the concept of god. What’s more, we tend to seek out physical proof for the assumptions we make.

As our international connections proliferate, a global mythology will develop.

If the ancient myths are dying in the face of modernization, will our common understandings, the archetypes that underpin our shared stories, fade away too? Hopefully not.

As globalization takes deeper root, cultures are converging. Worldwide we are consuming the same mass media, sharing food from the same outlets or wearing clothes sold by the same chains.

Key ideas in The Power of Myth

What is The Power of Myth about?

The Power of Myth (1988) clarifies the origins, evolution and meaning of myths. By comparing stories from different cultures, myth-master Joseph Campbell demonstrates how myths give clarity to universal notions of life, love and death. As spirituality declines in Western culture, he explains that myths are more important than ever, as they help us understand the human experience.

About the Author

American mythologist, lecturer and author Joseph Campbell (1904-1987) was best known for his exhaustive research and insight into comparative mythology and comparative religion. His best-known works, The Hero with a Thousand Faces and The Masks of God, valued by scholars as well as storytellers, influenced films such as Star Wars. The Power of Myth was the companion book to a documentary that aired in the United States.

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The Power of Myth summary