Myth and Magic

[Based on the reading "Magic, Science, and Religion" By Bronislaw Malinowski]

Malinowski states that there are three kinds of stories in primitive cultures that have different meanings and purposes. A fairytale, which is told by a certain person at a certain time, is a story for entertainment. The person is judged by how they told it and to what accuracy they told it. This story has no real meaning to the tribe other than entertainment. The second form of story is legend. The legend is a true story of something that is ordinary to he tribe and explains to most what is coming up in their life. Legends are told at anytime and are mainly told by elders to younger tribesman. The third and most valuable story to the tribe is the myth. The myth is thought to be a true story that focuses on things such as origin, magic, life and death, ect. It forms the cultural beliefs and norms you would see if you were observe the tribesman.

Malinowski believes that "myth is believed to be the real cause which has brought about the moral rule, the social grouping, the rite,or the custom" (pg. 108)of the tribal culture. He focuses on the impact of myth on culture through examining the myth of origin, the myth of life and death, and the myth of magic. These myths were created in order to give reason to the experiences they face in everyday life. Myths are seen mainly in ceremonies, traditions, and social customs. Malinowski believes that we can not understand a tribal myth without understanding and experiencing the tribe itself. We are not able to understand the myth in text without seeing the effect of the myth in person. An example he uses is the myth of magic. which is used to "bridge over the gaps and inadequacies in highly important activities not yet completely mastered by man" (pg. 140) This gives us a great example of how myths affect their social customs and everyday life through gardening, fishing, ect. They always do a certain chant or spell before they engage in certain activities.

In the conclusion of Malinowski's writing he states that after examining a more primitive culture "we may be able to gain a new sense of proportion with regard to our own institutions, beliefs, and customs." (pg. 145) I began to examine the myths in my culture and came to realize that the myths in U.S. society is entirely based on religion. With that we have looked more at the myths in society as symbolic with morals at the end and such that we don't take them as true instances that occurred. Some believed the stories happened but from what I feel myths in society are more for interpretation and symbolism rather that pure fact.

In examining the magic of the more primitive culture I gathered that they truly believed in magic, that if magic wasn't used their society wouldn't have justified things such as life and death. In the U.S. society I believe that magic is used more as an entertainment factor, something that we can use are imagination to play with, that children believe and as they grow up realize it was false. I feel as though in society magic has been replaced by science, the tribes used magic to explain phenomenons while now we generally try to use science. I thought reading about these myths was interesting and I do agree wit Malinowski that "myth conveys much more to the native than is contained in the mere story; that the story only gives the the really relevant concrete local differences; that the real meaning, in fact the full account, is contained in the traditional foundations of social organizations."