"To tell a story meant to weave those two series of parallel events together, to make both worlds visible"
-The Marriage of Cadmus and Harmony

Myths are oftentimes taken for granted, yet they can hold sway over the very foundations of modern culture. In a large way this seems to be linked to our culture's shifting use of spare time. In today's ever increasing technological age, young children are reading fewer and fewer stories depicting the myths of our ancestors, and their time is becoming dominated by the various formats of modern media. Every year, millions of children are born into a world that no longer emphasizes the significance of the very stories upon which modern traditions are based.

I personally can admit to my own ignorance in this respect, as I have never truly appreciated the repercussions of some myths. After our first mythology class yesterday, I was able to think upon my Bible as Literature class from that morning in a different light. In said class, we were assigned to read the first half of Genesis, in which the creation of man and woman is depicted. At first, Adam was alone in the Garden of Eden, and then God created woman from one of Adam's ribs in order to provide him with a partner. If one were to view this passage as a work of literature rather than holy scripture, it could be interpreted that the author used this depiction as a way to develop the subsidiary role of woman under man. So in theory, the author successfully created a myth upon which human kind has built their social structure for all of written history.

If one were to link what we learned in the first day of class to the previously included quote of Roberto Calasso, the purpose of myth is to make sense of our own time by realting it to the past.