RE220 Lecture Notes - Lecture 3: Passover Seder, Eurocentrism, American Pop
Document Summary
Lesson 3 - the monomyth (religion in pop culture) Narratives are at the heart of popular films, novels, tv shows and even songs. Mythologist joseph campbell was intrigued by the narratives told by religions and found throughout popular culture stories is derived from a standard heroic myth that has shown up in religious around the world. He dubbed this common myth the "monomyth" (mono meaning "one") because he felt it was at the root of so many of the sacred and not so sacred stories we tell ourselves. Myth is a sacred narrative or story that embodies knowledge that a community uses to help understand the world and define itself. These stories often have to do with big issues: creation, life, death. Stories about primordial events (things that happened in the distant past - like creation) provide religious communities knowledge about how these events shaped current society.
