Mythological Background in

Literature
Types of myths
 Categorizing myths
Myths were generally followed as
religions in that the stories were
accepted to be true.

With the gift of hindsight we can

study myths and generally separate
them into 3 distinct categories.
 Type of myth 1 - Etiological myths

Etiological myths, or divine myths, focus on

the gods themselves.

The term ‘etiological’ is derived from the

Greek word ‘aitia’ which means “cause.”
 Type of myth 1 - Etiological myths
Etiological myths describe phenomena that
articulate natural phenomena (or the
actions of divine forces).

They generally depict creation, gods and a

time before man.
 Type of myth 1 - Etiological myths
Gods often represented forces of nature or
powerful emotions in etiological myths

Can you think of any?

-Aphrodite represented desire and sexual

passion
-Zeus represented the lightning
Type of myth 1 - Etiological myths

Etiological myths were almost a form

of primitive science.

It is important to remember though

that to the Ancient Greeks, they were
very much real.
 Type of myth 2- Heroic myths
Heroic myths or ‘legends’ represent
mythological memories of the human past.

In these stories, the main characters are

mortal and not divine.

The main characters were often related to

gods who regularly appeared in the stories.
 Type of myth 2- Heroic myths
They often represented an aristocratic
or ‘hero’ class.

Examples of heroic myths are Achilles,

Jason and Theseus.
 Type of myth 2- Heroic myths
Heroic myths often contained
elements of real history.

Can you think of any?

(e.g. a mythological account of the

Trojan War).
Type of myth 3 - Traditional folk stories
Folk stories are used to articulate human
commonalities (e.g. Aesop’s fables).

The tales contain easily recognizable motifs or

items (often with magical powers).

They often represent societal fears of rites of

passage.