Folklore, fairy tales, theology, and mythology.

[Greg]

Dude, that is a very amazing idea, and a powerful one indeed. Stories from all over the world should be shared! Thinking about it, I'll probably go for three books, one for me, and the other two for the libraries I frequent. I know the guy in charge of the kids area, and he's a comic book geek, so I know he'll be happy to have this donation! I'm really excited to read this now, and it's going to be so cool learning about new myths through this. Then I can look up new stories to read. Thank you for writing this awesome series. It really is an inspiration.

Whoa, that is awesome, man! Thank you so much! I'll send you a PM.

[ouroboros]

For everyon's culture again, you all know Grimm's tales from Germany, or Anderson's from Danemark, but have you heard of Perrault's tales and LaFontaine's Fables from France ? You probably know without knowing.

Charles Perrault:

* Tales of mother Goose
* Cinderalla
* The Sleeping Beauty
* Little red riding hood
* Puss in Boots
* ...

Jean de La Fontaine (over 100 fables) - losts of his Fables are inspiered by Aesop's:

* The coach and the fly (aka the Fly and the Mule)
Six horses strain to pull a stage-coach up a sandy hill and all the passengers are obliged to get out. A fly now buzzes about, urging on the horses and supervising the progress of the coach, then complains that all the work has been left to it alone. The fabulist comments,

Thus certain people, with important air,
Meddle with business they know nought about:
Seem to be wanted everywhere,
And everywhere they ought to be turned out.

* The Fox and the Crow - everyone knows it in France
In the fable a crow has found a piece of cheese and retired to a branch to eat it. A fox, wanting it for himself, flatters the crow, calling it beautiful and wondering whether its voice is as sweet to match. When it lets out a caw, the cheese falls and is devoured by the fox.

* The Frog and the Ox (aka The frog that wished to be as big as the ox)
The story concerns a frog that tries to inflate itself to the size of an ox, but bursts in the attempt. It has usually been applied to socio-economic relations.
La Fontaine conclude with:

This world of ours is full of foolish creatures too -
Commoners want to build chateaux;
Each princeling wants his royal retinue;
Each count his squires. And so it goes.

* The Tortoise and the Hare
The story concerns a Hare who ridicules a slow-moving Tortoise. Tired of the Hare's arrogant behavior, the Tortoise challenges him to a race.[2] The hare soon leaves the tortoise behind and, confident of winning, takes a nap midway through the race. When the Hare awakes however, he finds that his competitor, crawling slowly but steadily, has arrived before him.

* The Wolf and the Lamb
A wolf comes upon a lamb and, in order to justify taking its life, accuses it of various misdemeanours, all of which the lamb proves to be impossible. Losing patience, the wolf says the offences must have been committed by someone else in the family and that it does not propose to delay its meal by enquiring any further. The morals drawn are that the tyrant can always find an excuse for his tyranny, and that the unjust will not listen to the reasoning of the innocent.

* ...

I remember the Fox and the Crow when they were published by DC Comics.

[ouroboros]

I'm doing a series of graphic novels based on Black mythology.

https://www.amazon.com/Isnana-Were-S...ct_top?ie=UTF8



Is'nana the Were-Spider is a horror, fantasy, coming of age book about the son of Anansi, the Spider God of Stories of West African and Caribbean folktales. Is'nana searches for his own place in the world while trying to live up to his father's legacy. I'm also using this book as a way to introduce readers to characters from Black mythology, ranging from African mythology and spirituality, Caribbean folktales, and African American stories given most school don't quite educate people in such figures.

Some African tribes have a mythology as rich as that of the the Greeks-- the Yoruba and the Dahomeans are two that I've seen mentioned in reference books-- and would provide rich material for a new strain of epic fantasy, if a talented writer chose to make that his theme.

Finnish-American writer Emil Petaja is largely forgotten now, but he used Finnish lore for at least a half-dozen science-fiction fantasies, often with extraterrestrials playing the parts of the "deities."

[ouroboros]

Darkspellmaster, oh I love the Baku, I'm actually planning on using it in my own book at some point but haven't quite gotten there or figured out how/what context yet.

Baku had a large role in one of the URUSEI YATSURA movies.

[ouroboros]

I do enjoy Wonder Woman's take on some myths and am a huge fan of Rick Riordan's work on mythology.

Question are there any myths about people of non-divine heritage (that is no divine parents or ancestors) ascending to deity status?

It's implied that in Oedipus at Colonus that the long-suffering ex-king attains some vague deific status when he passes from the world. Some accounts give Oedipus divine ancestors but it's not a consistent part of his mythos.

In Genesis Enoch ascends to heaven without the pesky problem of dying. Whether one considers him a myth is up for grabs.

[Agent Z]

What would you guys are the best examples of "all myths are true" used in media?

[Greg]

What would you guys are the best examples of "all myths are true" used in media?

American Gods and Anansi Boys for sure.

[ouroboros]

Thor #200.

EDIT: I should add that Alan Moore made a similar claim when he said somewhere that "All stories are true."

Of course, there were some stories he didn't find true, like the stories of the Beneficent Imperialist or the Male Seducer, both of which he satirizes in his amusing but misleading James Bond spoof.

[Agent Z]

Can someone list me some nature deity characters with some interesting stories?

[jb681131]

Can someone list me some nature deity characters with some interesting stories?

Well do you know the Following creatures:

- The Cthulhu
- A Basilisk
- A Korrigan
- The Kraken
- A Centaure
- A Faun
- A Harpy
- A Ichthyocentaurs
- Triton
- Echidna
- A Sphinx
- A Harpy
- Baphomet
- Horus
- Minotaur
- Thoth
- A Gorgon
- Werecat
- A Cockatrice
- A Hippogriff
- A Chimera
- A Jackalope

Do you know Therianthropy ?

Look these up and have fun

[Agent Z]

Well do you know the Following creatures:

- The Cthulhu
- A Basilisk
- A Korrigan
- The Kraken
- A Centaure
- A Faun
- A Harpy
- A Ichthyocentaurs
- Triton
- Echidna
- A Sphinx
- A Harpy
- Baphomet
- Horus
- Minotaur
- Thoth
- A Gorgon
- Werecat
- A Cockatrice
- A Hippogriff
- A Chimera
- A Jackalope

Do you know Therianthropy ?

Look these up and have fun

I meant gods or spirits who govern nature.

[kjn]

Can someone list me some nature deity characters with some interesting stories?

The Scandinavian Näcken and Huldra (skogsrå).

[Gray Lensman]

I might have to read my copy of The Kalevela again after going through this thread. It's the epic of Finnish myth.

[Greg]

Can someone list me some nature deity characters with some interesting stories?

Probably Papa Bois of Trinidadian folklore.

[Kees_L]

Can someone list me some nature deity characters with some interesting stories?

I meant gods or spirits who govern nature.

When immersing myself in especially 19th century artsy stuff, such as paintings or music and writers/poets belonging to the "Romantics", I often start believing these people want to see nature as the leading (subtly both as most powerfully) government to existence itself.

Like as if government in its most bare or honest state would be nature. Folklore - as in what tales people tell amongst themselves since the longest - seems to have much in common with such. With nature interferring with human lives in a logic of itself and quite outside of what would seem commonly important or prestigious but still, weird playful kobolds and nimphs or such will plague or come **** with anyone, if only to show there'd be more to life and living?

An example of such would be the writings of William Hope Hodgson, an American-published Englishman & bodybuilder who died in WW1.