Anthropologically, myth is a semiotic phenomenon that allows a culture to describe the world as a totality. In highly integrated societies organised by religious beliefs, myths usually take the form of a narrative that relates events of vanished, sacrilised past which is then used to establish the basic system of values that inform the worldview of the society in question.

Although strict divisions between myth and other signifying phenomena are difficult to draw, the general consensus is that myth, in its narrative expression, is distinct from the other two narrative genres found in relatively homogeneous societies, which are the folktale and the epic. Despite the fact that folktales, like myths, often delineate events of a fantastic character and may be delivered in a ritualised

3072 words

Citation: Carney, James Patrick. "Myth". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 04 October 2004 [https://www.litencyc.com/php/stopics.php?rec=true&UID=1220, accessed 23 November 2024.]