Our Literature professor asked us to write a thousand-word essay regarding the purpose and effects of mythology, specifically on the image of men and women. I posted it here to share to everyone my masterpiece that I have worked on for six straight hours. Enjoy reading! :)
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Myths have already reached into all the nooks and crannies of the lives of everyone. Although they lack authenticity and reliability, we have to admit that these stories have played a huge part in explaining the universe and all that is in it. They act as a medium of conveying ideas of how the world was formed, how humans were created, what happens after life, why people act the way they do, how certain practices originated, where laws were based, how heroes use their god-given powers, what attributes to emulate, and what happens to those who do good and evil things. So based on the aforementioned statements, we can infer that myths were primarily constructed to explain the unexplainable. They unravel mysteries that the human mind can not simply make sense of. Aside from that, these narratives also justify a culture's activities. They explain how rituals and norms were conceived. They present guidelines for human beings as well. The individuals in these texts usually portray roles that are supposed to be imitated by the readers. They basically act as role models — archetypal beings who experience difficulties but overcome them by making use of their admirable qualities. But the most wonderful thing that a myth does is give meaning to life. These stories, no matter how unbelievable they may seem, have inherent reasons of how things happen and morals that somehow give inspiration to whoever makes an effort in pondering upon them.
It is already apparent that these myths can greatly affect one's outlook in life. Perhaps that is the reason why most of our beliefs and actions today are deeply rooted in these fictional texts. A good example of that would be gender stratification — an inequality between men and women. A lot of stories show that the actions and attitudes of the characters are based on their capabilities and limitations brought about by their gender. As a matter of fact, these stories may have even paved the way for the society to make a clear distinction between the male and female persona. They have actually made the former superior over the latter.
Although the story of Genesis in the Bible is not really considered as one of these deliberately made-up narratives, it still depicts a story similar to those of the myths where women are subservient. The act of taking a man's rib and putting it in a woman's body is simply telling us that women are dependent on men. Aside from that, they were also created to serve as a companion and helper of the latter. It implies that the role and abilities of the female persona are limited and were created for the sole benefit of the male persona.
Another Biblical narrative that depicts discrimination is the story of Samson and Delilah. Delilah, who is obviously the woman, is described as beautiful and seductive. Again, it shows stratification because she has become an object of desire for Samson, thereby exposing women as a visually striking display to be looked at.
A good myth that is quite similar to that is the Panay- Visayan folktale entitled "Tungkung Langit and Alunsina". It is an account of creation that was formed from the love story of two gods. Tungkung Langit, the man, possesses all the good qualities like being industrious, responsible, loving, and kind. He is the ruler who works hard for coordination and order. Alunsina, the woman, is the absolute opposite. She is lazy, jealous and selfish. There was even a part in the story where she was described as just waiting in their abode for the coming of her husband. It gives us an idea that women are associated with the private space of the domestic, and men are linked to the public domain of work. Again, it is an utter discrimination between the two genders.
Another example is the Cherokee creation myth. This is quite different because it talks about a brother and a sister — the first two human beings on earth. Superiority was depicted when the brother hit his sister with a fish and forced her to multiply. The role of women was clearly established in this particular scene. It simply shows that they were originally intended to follow the orders of men and bear children for them.
More bigotry can be seen in the famous Filipino myth entitled "Si Malakas at si Maganda". Malakas, the man, was created first and he was the one who decided where his mate would come from. It only signifies that men always come first and they possess the ability to make important decisions.
Yes, it is true that myths are not something that we should completely believe in. However, like any other story that circulates in our society, these false narratives have a great tendency to influence whoever hears them. Now, based on these fictional texts, one can easily become aware of the image that myths have formed in the minds of the people. They have showed us that women are meant to be submissive and men are expected to exude dominance. The disappointing effects of these accounts are evident in our world today. Men have become the symbol for strength, while women are seen as weak individuals. This can be considered as one of the reasons why a lot of men take advantage of women. The latter get abused, belittled, neglected, and objectified. It is truly frustrating to see that most of the female population experience discrimination because of physical limitations which were even more emphasized because of stories propagated centuries ago.
But fortuitously, beliefs are gradually changing over time. We are finally in the process of breaking free from the common notion that our society must follow a patriarchal system that actually puts men in a pedestal. Many people are really hoping that this would come to a completion sooner so the future generation would not solely base their actions from ancient stories and thus, putting an end to previous practices where an entity must always be placed above the other.
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