Evolution of the anthropic myth in United States’ mythology: reasons, prerequisites, logic

Вестник археологии, антропологии и этнографии

Ryazanova S.V.¹  Logvinov R.N.²  Drozdov S.T.² 

[1] Perm Scientific Centre of Ural Branch RAS;Perm State National Researching University;

关键词: myth;    national mythology;    mythogenesis;    culture of the USA;    heroes of the frontier;    Paul Bunyan;    Davy Crockett;    superheroes;   

DOI  :  10.20874/2071-0437-2017-38-3-152-161

来源: DOAJ

【 摘 要 】

Evolution of the myth of a hero as the central anthropic image in the mythology of the United States occurred under the influence of mentality of the groups/subjects of mythogenesis and has a complex character. The emergence of spontaneous plots with a significant share of regional specifics, where the starting idea was the demiurgic myth of the frontier, was the first stage of the heroic myth. The basic mythological images are constructed on the archetypal basis, being filled with content due to the Protestant context and constantly ongoing processes of expanding the cultural ecumene of the country. The images of national heroes as symbols of the people and as deputies of the idea of an ancestor constituted the majority of the United States' anthropological myths until the 1920s. External factors of the country's development, such as active urbanization, secularization of culture, the First World War, the Great Depression, served as an impetus for the transformation of the heroic myth. The heroes of the frontier were replaced by superheroes, whose images combine superhuman and totemic features. In the national mythology, images of superheroes are associated with presentation of archetypal patterns and traditional plots, pushing the heroics of the frontier to the spheres of advertising, glamour and some kind of hagiography, which leads to a change in the heroes’ paraphernalia and the accompanying symbolic and sign range. A superhero as the central image of the contemporary national mythology of the United States emerges on the cusp of the processes of secularization, rise of the idea of a man, mass culture and technology, in close relation with the archetypal ground.

【 授权许可】

Unknown