[asimovian]

Did any of you avid Fantasy readers notice that all the elements in your preferred genre - monsters, adventure, sub- and superhuman beings, places where anything is possible, heroes - can be found in mythology ?
Myths, according to myself, are the Fantasy genre of past generations. Yes, that's what I mean : Fantasy is not new, it has always been here as mythology, which goes back to the origins of human civilization.
I contend that in the remote past myths were as avidly - if not more so - consumed as Fantasy is today.
Then why are there so many Fantasy enthusiasts today but, even amongst these, so few readers of mythology ? Even amongst Dungeons & Dragons players, who are inventing their own myths, together with their heroes, and are acting out those myths as realistically as possible, I think those knowledeable with real classical myths are very rare.
Why is this ?
Which is the difference between myths and today's Fantasy ?

[Rob B]

I've always enjoyed mythology and one of the better and more interesting classes I took in College was a Mythology class.

[ezchaos]

IMO, there are more mythology readers out there than you think, asimovian. I think modern fantasy and mythology are one and the same. Our ancestors may look back at books like LOTR and see them a myths, just like we today see Zeus, Thor, etc as myths. I don't see how a fantasy reader can read modern works and not be interested in the old myths, since, as you say, most modern fantasy draws something from them.

[BoxingGriffin]

I am a big Star Wars fan, and a few years ago had the great luck of being able to go see a traveling Smithsonian exhibit called "Star Wars: The Magic of Myth". It was very, very cool; not just because I got to see Boba Fett's costume (sweet!), but the whole thing was set up to explain how Lucas used Myth to come up with his plot. As I read, I realized that just about every fantasy book I have ever read also uses this same formula. It's been awhile, but it went something like
-young hero discovers hidden abilities
-becomes a "reluctant" hero thrust into the world to save it from whatever danger has arisen
-finds a mentor to teach him/her about his budding talents
-gradually increases in power and eventually comes to battle THE evil of the world.

I'm sure I missed most of it, but that's as much as I can remember. Certainly most fantasy books stick to this formula (with much success).

I've personally never delved too much into Mythology, mostly because I don't know where to look. Anyone have any recommendations of good mythology (any culture) books?

[ezchaos]

BG, I've read quite a few mythologies from different cultures, and I thought they were all pretty cool. My personal favorites are Norse and Greek. I love the The Iliad and Odyssey.

Probably the mythologies that are drawn on the most in modern fantasy are Norse, Welsh, Celtic/Irish, but so are many others.

You should be able to easily find mythlogies at any bookstore or library. If they don't have them, then shame on them!

[This message has been edited by ezchaos (edited May 14, 2002).]

[Loque]

i'm also a big mythology fan, first got into it from all those dodgy old movies but then started reading the original translations. My favourite was always greek but that's partly because they are the most readily available i've found.

[Vitriol]

When I was young I had no idea fantasy as a genre existed. My favorite books were the Narnia series, but no one ever told me there were other books like that out there.
Instead I used to devour mythology, mainly Greek & Roman, but also Japanese, Norse, Chinese and anything else I could find. Once I found fantasy & sci-fi I pretty much stopped, but I can still remember all sorts of random chunks.
The Norse stuff was always my favorite; what other society would depict their deity of mischief as bound with the entrails of his children on three pointed rocks while a poisonous snake drips venom into his eyes. Quality stuff.

[Limor]

I think when you say that there are "so few readers of Mythology" amongst fantasy readers you might be referring to the younger readers. Much like others have already said, when I was growing up I didn't know about fantasy books and I definitely didn't have access to any.
Mythology WAS my fiction reading.

Later I have developed an interest in Theology, which is also a very strong thread in fantasy books. Basically if you take away the monsters dragons and other superhuman being what your basically left with is the struggle between good and evil, the worship of a chosen good, and the impact all this has on the survival of the human race. Theology even provides us with the occasional "wizard" who can bring down rain, heal the sick, or turn blood into wine.

[asimovian]

BoxingGriffin, that's one thing I think is specifically 'wrong' with modern Fantasy : the tendency to simply follow a formula must be really strong today and, I feel, is not to the advantage of real originality.
That is one drawback you cannot find with the classical myths.
I suggest 'Mythology' by Bulfinch.
It's a classic, although some contend not the beste one (but I don't know any better one - I didn't read actually very much of it myself), an incredible treasure of myths, practically as vivid as modern Fantasy.