Mythopoeia, which means "myth-making" in Ancient Greek, is a type of story found in modern books and movies. It involves creating fake or made-up myths, often using ideas from real myths. Writers use this method to build new stories that include characters and themes from old myths. This idea became very popular because of J. R. R. Tolkien in the 1930s, though it existed before him. Authors who write in this style mix old myth themes with new fictional stories. Mythopoeia is both the process of making myths and the myths themselves.
Genre
The term mythopoeia comes from the ancient Greek word muthopoiía (μυθοποιία), which means "myth-making." Another similar term is mythopoesis (μυθοποίησις), which has the same meaning. The word mythopoeia, defined as "the act of creating myths," was first recorded in 1846. In its earliest use, it described the creation of myths in ancient times.
Many books include themes from myths, but only a few have the complex, self-referential style and purpose of mythopoeia. Writers known for mythopoeic works include William Blake, H.P. Lovecraft, Lord Dunsany, J.R.R. Tolkien, C.S. Lewis, Mervyn Peake, and Robert E. Howard. Tolkien used the word mythopoeia as the title of one of his poems, written in 1931 and published in Tree and Leaf.
Works of mythopoeia are often grouped into fantasy or science fiction. However, they help preserve mythology in the modern world, according to Joseph Campbell, a well-known scholar of world myths. Campbell described a world influenced by Nietzsche, where many old myths have faded. He believed new myths must be created, but he thought modern society changes too quickly to be fully explained by any single mythological system until the future.
Philosopher Phillip Stambovsky argued that mythopoeia helps people cope with the fear that comes from living in a rational, scientific world. He also said it can connect different cultures and societies.
Mythopoeia is sometimes called artificial mythology, which highlights that it was not created naturally. It is compared to artificial languages and is not considered real mythology. For example, folklorist Alan Dundes stated, "No novel can meet the cultural standards of a myth. A work of art or artificial creation cannot be the story of a culture's sacred traditions. At most, it is artificial myth."
In literature
William Blake created his own mythology in works like Vala, or The Four Zoas. He introduced gods such as Urizen, Orc, Los, Albion, Rintrah, Ahania, and Enitharmon. In the 19th century, writers like George MacDonald and H. Rider Haggard created fictional worlds. C. S. Lewis admired their ability to create myths.
Lord Dunsany’s 1905 book, The Gods of Pegana, features a group of gods he invented who live in a place called Pegāna. Later works by Dunsany, such as Time and the Gods and Tales of Three Hemispheres, also include mythical themes. In 1919, Dunsany told an interviewer that he tried to explain the ocean and the moon in The Gods of Pegana. His work influenced J.R.R. Tolkien’s stories.
T. S. Eliot’s poem The Waste Land (1922) was inspired by the idea of a 20th-century mythology, modeled after the cycle of death and rebirth described by James George Frazer, an expert in myths and folklore.
J.R.R. Tolkien wrote a poem called Mythopoeia after a discussion in 1931 with C. S. Lewis and Hugo Dyson. In the poem, Tolkien described humans as “little makers” who create their own worlds, or “subcreation,” within the world made by God.
Tolkien’s stories include myths about the beginning of the world, epic poems, and made-up languages, geology, and geography. He explained the purpose of myth-making, “subcreation,” and “Faery” in works like Leaf by Niggle and Smith of Wootton Major. In On Fairy-Stories, he described “Faery” as both a made-up world and a deep part of the human mind that allows people to create stories. He argued that language is important in making myths, saying that words like adjectives can be powerful tools for storytelling.
Scholars have compared Tolkien’s ideas about myths to the Christian concept of Logos, or “The Word,” which represents how God created the world through language.
Verlyn Flieger wrote that Elias Lönnrot created the Kalevala, a Finnish mythology, to give Finland a sense of identity. Tolkien, who read the Kalevala, imagined creating a similar mythology, but one that was entirely fictional. Unlike Lönnrot, who collected stories from people in Finland, Tolkien invented both the storytellers and the stories, using Elves as his characters.
In 1931, C. S. Lewis, who believed in God, was unsure about the value of myths. He thought myths were “lies,” but later believed that the story of Christianity was a “true myth.” His books, like The Chronicles of Narnia, use myth-like stories to reflect Christian ideas, such as a king who sacrifices himself and is brought back to life. Lewis argued that reading Narnia as a direct copy of Christian events missed the deeper purpose of myth-making. Tolkien agreed, saying that myths should not be forced into clear allegories.
Thomas Roberts wrote that the myths of superheroes, like Superman, are similar to stories about saints. Superman, who was sent from the “heavens” to save people, is like a messiah in religious stories. Like Greek gods on Mount Olympus, Superman and other superheroes watch over humans from a high place called the Watchtower.
In modernist literature, myth-making helped writers organize ideas and find meaning in a time of confusion and uncertainty. Writers used myths not to copy old stories, but to create new ways of understanding the world. This was a response to the loss of old beliefs and the need for new ways to explain life.
In film
Frank McConnell, the author of Storytelling and Mythmaking and a professor of English at the University of California, described film as another form of "mythmaking." He said, "Film and literature are important because they are types of mythmaking." McConnell believed film is especially good at creating myths, stating, "Film works to create a reality that connects with people in a meaningful way." He also noted that American western and romance movies share similarities with the myths of King Arthur, while adventure and action movies reflect the myths of ancient societies. He pointed out that many romance movies feature heroes who symbolically act like knights, similar to characters in stories like Sir Gawain and the Quest for the Holy Grail.
George Lucas, the filmmaker behind Star Wars, explained that the story of Star Wars is an example of modern myth-making. In 1999, he told Bill Moyers, "I intentionally used myths and traditional myth themes in Star Wars." McConnell wrote that Star Wars quickly became a widely accepted part of popular mythology. John Lyden, a professor and chair of the Religion Department at Dana College, said Star Wars includes religious and mythical ideas, particularly those related to apocalyptic themes. Steven D. Greydanus of The Decent Film Guide agreed, calling Star Wars a "work of epic myth creation." He argued that Star Wars is the best example of American myth-making, writing:
"The Force, the Jedi knights, Darth Vader, Obi-Wan, Princess Leia, Yoda, lightsabers, and the Death Star are part of the shared imagination of many Americans in a way that can only be called mythic. In my review of A New Hope, I called Star Wars 'the quintessential American mythology,' a modern version of stories about King Arthur, Tolkien, and the warrior epics of the East."
Roger Ebert noted that George Lucas worked with Joseph Campbell, an expert on myths, to create Star Wars. He said, "It is not by chance that Lucas used Campbell’s ideas to shape a story that draws from the oldest human tales." However, some critics have questioned the connection between Star Wars and myths. Steven Hart pointed out that Lucas did not mention Joseph Campbell when Star Wars was first made, and they only met in the 1980s. Their friendship helped increase Campbell’s fame and shifted attention away from Star Wars’ roots in the science fiction genre, which some critics view as less respected.
In music
In classical music, Richard Wagner's operas aimed to create a new kind of "total work of art," changing old stories from the Teutonic past into something new that honored the Romantic movement.
The rock band Phish first became a group while helping its lead member, Trey Anastasio, complete a senior project in college called The Man Who Stepped into Yesterday. This work includes a series of songs that tell the story of events in a mythical land called Gamehendge, which is home to imaginary creatures and a group called the "Lizards." The project mixes styles from musicals and rock operas with ideas from philosophy and fiction. Many fans see the creation of Gamehendge as the central idea of the band, as the story's "Helping Friendly Book" encourages people to let go of control and follow life's natural flow.
The progressive rock band Magma created a space-themed musical story across more than fifteen albums, centered around a fictional planet called Kobaïa. Their first album describes people leaving a dying Earth to build a spiritual utopia on Kobaïa. Later albums explore conflicts between the Kobaïans, descendants of Earth's settlers, and other Earth refugees. Other albums tell stories from ancient Earth, leading up to the Kobaïan cycle. All Magma songs are sung in a made-up language called Kobaïan, created by the band's frontman, Christian Vander, because he believed French was not expressive enough for the music or the story. The language is not translated into English, except for the title track of Kobaïa, which describes Earth's refugees arriving on Kobaïa. Understanding the Kobaïa story depends on feeling the lyrics, using limited translations and clues from album liner notes.
The psychedelic rock band King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard often use similar characters and themes in their songs, music videos, and album covers. Their stories feature gamblers, cowboys, Australian footballers, mythical creatures, and space explorers, suggesting a larger connected universe. Fans of the band use the term "Gizzverse" to describe the shared storyline across their music. In a 2017 interview, band member Stu Mackenzie confirmed that all their music exists in the same fictional world, even if it takes place in different times and places.
The black metal band Immortal's lyricist, Harald Nævdal, created a mythological world called Blashyrkh, filled with demons, battles, cold landscapes, forests, and darkness. The band describes this world as a northern "Frostdemon" realm.
Organizations
The Mythopoeic Society works to support mythopoeic literature. It organizes conferences, publishes books and magazines, and presents the Mythopoeic Awards.