Mythology!

[Celadon's Penultimate]

Sam Weber- Vampire

[Marvelous Miscreant]

For my Blog assignment in my Information Design and Usability class I need to have two blog posts that contain interviews with a relevant source. Since my blog is on Egyptian Mythology I was hoping Wulf and possibly someone else would be willing to help me out by answering a few questions and sharing some insight.

I don't have to include your name if that makes you uncomfortable and you can use a pseudonym, but I will have to document your reliability as a source. Wulf, you've studied many mythologies enough on your own time to be a very qualified source so I'm really hoping you could help me out. But no problem if you'd rather not.

if anyone else is fairly knowledgeable about Egyptian mythology or just mythology in general I;d appreciate your help as well.

[Zaleramancer]

Yes.

[Celadon's Penultimate]

By all means, I'd be glad to help any way I can.

[Marvelous Miscreant]

Thank you so much,  Zale and Wulf. You guys have no idea how much this means to me. I'm very grateful that you guys are willing to help me.

Now, I haven't gotten all the questions written out yet, but when I do I'll post them and let you respond at your leisure. The questions will be different for both of you as that's one of the requirements of the project. If you'd prefer me to email them or ask them one at a time I will happily accommodate you.

Again, thank you so much.

[Celadon's Penultimate]

Okay, sounds good.

Just let me know once you've emailed me; I don't really check email on my own, unless I absolutely need to.

[Marvelous Miscreant]

I can post it here if that's easier, or do you prefer email for this?

[Zaleramancer]

I like posts.

They stay in the ground.

[Celadon's Penultimate]

Posting is just fine. It should be easier and more obvious that way.

[Zaleramancer]

I was reading about Loa and noticed that chickens are the most common animal to be sacrificed to them. My brain, in a brilliant moment of associative memory, then made a connection between this and a certain stereotype.

It was a terrible moment.

[Marvelous Miscreant]

So, I'm like 98% sure that my favorite Egyptian Myth of all time is "The Myth of Nut and Ra"

It goes kinda like this. Ra found out the Nut was going to have children and fearing that one of them would usurp his throne he decried that Nut would be forbidden from having children on any day of the year. Nut refused to sit idly by though and went to Thoth, the God of Wisdom, for assistance. Thoth was pretty much the whole package when it came to being clever. He went to Khonshu, the God of the Moon, and gambled with him. Thoth used his superior cunning to win against Khonshu over and over again. each time Khonshu lost he gave Thoth a little of his moonlight as winnings. Eventually Thoth had enough moonlight to go through with his plan. At this time the year was only 360 days long. Thoth used the moonlight he'd won to create five extra days that were not part of the year so that Nut could have her children.

[Myself]

Interesting. That is a cool myth.

[Celadon's Penultimate]

Indeed. I like that.

[WonderDrow]

That mooning myth is Ra-ther Thoth-aly Nuts.

(sorry, couldn't resist )

[Zaleramancer]

Salt and Iron and Silver and Fire.

[Marvelous Miscreant]

Wulf, Zale, I finally have my questions ready for you to answer. There is a slightly different set for each of you, but that's due to the instructions of my assignment. Just answer as best you can and add in any other comments you'd like to make on the subject. Many of these questions are opinion based so don't worry about your answers.

And thanks again for your help.



Shadowulf1

How long have you studied mythology?

What other Mythologies have you studied?

How do you think Egyptian Mythology differs from other mythologies you’ve studied?

What are some of your personal views on Egyptian mythology as a whole?

Egyptian myths are notoriously confusing due to differing accounts throughout their history. What is your opinion on the often varied and competing versions of Egyptian myths?

Do you believe that myths are an effective means of storytelling? Why?

In your own opinion, do you believe that people today can learn from mythology and how?

Do you have a favorite myth or God from Egyptian mythology? Why?


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Zaleramancer

How long have you studied mythology?

What other Mythologies have you studied?

How do you think Egyptian Mythology differs from other mythologies you’ve studied?

What are some of your personal views on Egyptian mythology as a whole?

How do you feel about myths as a method for storytelling?

Do you believe that myths hold an educational value for people today? How?

Why do you think that Egyptian Gods and myths feature animals so commonly?

Egyptians, unlike some other cultures were not overly fearful of death as reflected in their myth.  Why do you believe this was?

Do you have a favorite myth or God from Egyptian mythology? Why?

[Celadon's Penultimate]

Golem Marv wrote

Shadowulf1

How long have you studied mythology? I've done independent reading and research ever since the fifth grade, when I was 10. That would put me at 12 years.

What other Mythologies have you studied? Greek, Roman, Norse, Slavic, Australian, African, Hindu, Native American, etc. Whatever mythology I can get my hands on, really. The stories are all fascinating.

How do you think Egyptian Mythology differs from other mythologies you’ve studied? Egyptian Mythology seems, at least from my experience, much less protracted. The myths are much shorter. Though, this may simply be due to the fact that I have yet to read a body of Egyptian myth so interconnected as Hesiod's Theogony for the Greeks. Egyptian myths depict the gods' personality and significance, you know what to expect from each, but there isn't much in-between without a little extra-added on by translators. Also, I haven't seen any mortal heroes to speak of. All of their tales seem to deal directly with the gods themselves.

What are some of your personal views on Egyptian mythology as a whole? It's fascinating. Very fun stuff to delve into. Less filler than many other myths I've read, so you get down to what seems to be the real purpose of the myth in the first place; to explain certain natural and social phenomena in the world. My only complaint is my difficulty with finding more of the stories to collect; I've read up on certain deities, spirits and creatures aside from the main ones (such as the creature Sak, with the head of a falcon, the body of a leopard and a tail ending in a lotus bloom), but not many of them besides the gods themselves actually show up with significant functions in any surviving myths I've found to date.

Egyptian myths are notoriously confusing due to differing accounts throughout their history. What is your opinion on the often varied and competing versions of Egyptian myths? Every mythology, cult and surviving religious belief system seems to have variations on what they believe is true. Different parts of Greece placed heavier emphasis on different gods, and likewise different parts of Egypt interpreted stories in different ways. It happens, and it shouldn't disconcerting or confusing; rather, as a fan of the sci-fi and fantasy genres, I find the idea of alternate realities intriguing.

Do you believe that myths are an effective means of storytelling? Why? Of course. In creating a myth, you introduce a character or a set of characters, and cast them into some prodigious situation--freeing the sword from the stone, navigating the labyrinth, slaying the rakshasas, etc. You may not be able to relate directly to their struggles (for, certainly, you've never had to face a Gorgon in your life), but sometimes you can relate to the feelings that such tasks evoke, whether that feeling be the exultation of adventure, or trepidation at the daunting task that lies ahead. And even if you can't relate, everybody likes a role model to look up to, enjoys the villain who takes the overconfident hero down a peg, and fancies the trickster who bests far stronger opponents with his wit instead of his muscle. Not only is mythology an effective means of telling a story... I would be hard-pressed to find a more effective means of storytelling than mythology.

In your own opinion, do you believe that people today can learn from mythology and how? Definitely. People through the ages have very broad wants, needs, concerns and interests that ring true throughout the ages. They wonder about their place in the world. They wonder if what they're doing is right. They wonder where to find people who are like-minded, to whom they can relate. They wonder how to deal with people who are different from them, or how to deal with situations that seem impossible to handle. All these issues and more are addressed by mythology, in a way that plain-out lecturing or pep talks simply don't accomplish.

Do you have a favorite myth or God from Egyptian mythology? Why? I have to say, from what I've read, I like Thoth the best. He's clever and wise, and those are always the makings of an adventure right there. And as a writer myself, his mythical invention of writing certainly bumps him up on my list. Not to mention, he's not particularly good or evil, only balanced. This puts him into a moral grey area that is very versatile for a story. He is a philosopher, but also a politician; a scientist, but also a magician; an astronomer, but also an astrologer. His combination of the good and the bad, the rhetorical and the lyrical, the mundane and the supernatural, makes him undoubtedly among the most interesting of all.

Here you are. Let me know if there's more.

[Marvelous Miscreant]

Wulf do you mind if I use your name or would you prefer a Pseudonym?

[Celadon's Penultimate]

Feel free to use my name. Is this something we'll be able to access online, or will it be turned in on paper?

[Marvelous Miscreant]

Online, its a Blog.