The Importance of Greek Mythology

The Importance of Greek Mythology

Many people believe that mythology is totally irrelevant and vanished from our modern society. However, these people are entirely mistaken. Greek mythology is still very much present in our world. Many people view Greek mythology just as a form of entertainment. While it is most noticeable in entertainment, what people don’t realize is how much Greek mythology has shaped our lives. The way we can tell that mythology is still around us is because it can be found in movies, books, and in the things we say. Mythology is nowhere near disappearing from out world. Mythology plays an important role in the modern world. Without it we wouldn’t have some of the great works that are present now.

We see mythology appear most often in movies. One especially famous movie that portrays mythology is the movie Clash of the Titans. This movie is based off of the story of Perseus. Perseus was a demigod who kills Medusa and uses her head to kill his enemies and to protect his mother and wife. Clash of the Titans is similar to the myth of Perseus because in the movie Perseus uses Medusas head to kill the Kraken and to protect Io. The two pieces are similar because the share the same conflict. The movie is different, however, because the overall plot of the story is different. The events that surround the conflict of the story are completely different of those in the movie. When people see movies such as Clash of the Titans, they can be inspired. This is the power of myth in the world. Myths inspire us to do great things. Without myths we would lose a great source of inspiration. It is important that we have movies based on Greek mythology because for the many people who wouldn’t dare to read about it, it offers a look into the myths that they would not recognize many other places. When people see such amazing films it inspires them to find out more.

The importance of mythology is not portrayed just in movies, but in books too. Today people all over the world are reading fictional novels based off of mythology. A popular young adult novel that was inspired by Greek myths is the series, Percy Jackson and the Olympians. This book has reference to many myths, however, the actually story is unlike that of any one myth. Because this is a widely known book, kids everywhere are being inspired to learn more about true Greek myths. Mythology is so important because it is a way that people use to fix their unanswerable questions. Even though most people have accepted that Greek mythology isn’t real, there are other types of myths that people still do believe in. Through books we can come to realize the enticement of these Greek myths. It is so impeccably important that we have these books around today because they remind us of the Greeks and what they once believed. These books inspire us to learn and enjoy the myths that the Greeks left for us.

Mythology often has greatest relevance in the way we speak. Even without meaning to we say things that have reference to Greek mythology. For example, the word arachnid is derived from an old myth about a weaver named Arachne. Arachne was turned into a spider when Athena got frustrated with Arachne’s skill for weaving. Athena doomed her to a life of nothing but weaving spider webs for the rest of her days. This is how we got the word arachnid. There are countless other words that have a background story derived from myths such as arachnid. These myths helped to shape our language as a whole. We should be very grateful for the Greeks because without their myths, our language would sound exceptionally different.

To conclude, mythology has an immense importance in our society. Through movies, books, and speech, it is easy to understand the way that Greek Mythology has influenced and changed our modern world. Greek mythology is both influential and inspiring to us. The Greeks have given us an amazing source of entertainment and a view of how ancient people viewed their world. We will always have Greek literature which is why it is so important that we learn about it and how it is relevant to us.