Cruiser said, in a bit of wheel-within-wheels discussion:

{Quote}
"Joe Campbell said that there is nothing wrong with Myths"
{End Quote}

I enjoyed Mr. Campbell's PBS special. However, I disagree with the quote above by Frank.

Joe is right. Nothing wrong with myths. Why?

We have to understand the nature of myths. A myth is a story, set in the past, about things that are always true.

That is to say that a myth is a story which attempts to make a certain sort of metaphorical sense of principles which have always come up and always will.

Thus, to refer to "the Jesus myth", for example, is not to say that the events did or did not happen as set out, but that the story sheds light on timeless questions, regardless of historical fact. Likewise the myth of Sysephus, the myth of Narcissus, and on and on.

As long as we recognize the metaphorical nature of myth, it can be useful. It's when one tries to take the details of the story too literally that thinking gets muddled.

Dave Oesterreich