The future of folklore
Last week I talked a little bit about Harry Potter and my dilemma of wanting to embrace a very good story though the subject matter of witchcraft was highly objectionable to me.
On Friday, the new “Star Wars: Clone Wars” came out. Earlier this summer, the fourth Indiana Jones movie hit the theaters. Each of these tales has me thinking about modern folklore and mythology.
What will be this generation’s folkloric legacy? Fiction of old was handed down in an era before motion pictures. From Homer’s Iliad to Robin Hood and King Arthur, classic tales have been preserved and enhanced through generations of storytellers and writers.
As a child, I remember tales of John Henry and Paul Bunyan being taught as folklore. But I never associated modern storytelling as being folklore or mythology. Moviemakers are perhaps the greatest folklorists of our time. The problem is we don’t think of them as such.
What will people generations from now think of what we pass as entertainment? It will take some truly incredible storytelling to survive through the centuries. That’s why I feel the Harry Potter stories will still be read (or viewed) by my great-great-great-grandchildren. The writing is solid and the tales are original and imaginative. “Star Wars” is unimaginably popular now, but what will become of it in the 22nd century? George Lucas has wowed us with incredible advances in moviemaking, but his ineptitude in storytelling is legend.
Will movies and movie franchises become our folklore or will written stories (likely to be made into movies later on) continue to nurture our need for fables?
Right now Batman and other comic book heroes are dominating at the box office. I have to ask, however, when was the last time you saw anyone reading a Batman novel? Do modern literature courses cover the likes of Superman, Iron Man or Spider-Man? Will people in the 23rd century care or even know about “Star Trek,” which takes place at that time?
As a Lone Ranger fan, I have a love for the Old West. But I doubt I could tell you what served as pop culture in the day. Outside of the works of Mark Twain and Jules Vern, I can’t name much from the 1800s that would qualify as folklore.
I would hope that the stories of the Lone Ranger, Roy Rogers, Hopalong Cassidy, Zorro and the various characters played by John Wayne would last as folklore legends, but it’s too soon to tell.
Mythology is a little harder to nail down. When I think of mythology, I think of ancient Greeks who believed the stories to be true. Harry Potter makes good modern mythology, though it is abundantly clear there is no belief to it. The Star Wars saga likewise has potential mythological status, not because the stories are good, but because of the following it has. There are some in the last census who listed their religion as “Jedi.”
I guess all this musing boils down to wondering how I’ll be remembered. What mark will I make across time?
In the long run, I guess it really doesn’t matter if I’m remembered on this Earth or not, though I like to think that someone will remember I was here generations from now. Ultimately, my destiny is Heaven. There I won’t have to worry about being remembered or what mark I made in the here and now. I will be there for all time. I won’t have to worry about being a memory but being memorable to my Lord. That in itself is reward enough for the labors of life, and that’s no folk tale.
Accountability update: This has been another bad week. A crunched schedule, bad weather and a mild medical condition kept me from working out or taking walks. That and there has been an abundance of holy bread (commonly known as donuts) here at the office. D’oh!
On Friday, the new “Star Wars: Clone Wars” came out. Earlier this summer, the fourth Indiana Jones movie hit the theaters. Each of these tales has me thinking about modern folklore and mythology.
What will be this generation’s folkloric legacy? Fiction of old was handed down in an era before motion pictures. From Homer’s Iliad to Robin Hood and King Arthur, classic tales have been preserved and enhanced through generations of storytellers and writers.
As a child, I remember tales of John Henry and Paul Bunyan being taught as folklore. But I never associated modern storytelling as being folklore or mythology. Moviemakers are perhaps the greatest folklorists of our time. The problem is we don’t think of them as such.
What will people generations from now think of what we pass as entertainment? It will take some truly incredible storytelling to survive through the centuries. That’s why I feel the Harry Potter stories will still be read (or viewed) by my great-great-great-grandchildren. The writing is solid and the tales are original and imaginative. “Star Wars” is unimaginably popular now, but what will become of it in the 22nd century? George Lucas has wowed us with incredible advances in moviemaking, but his ineptitude in storytelling is legend.
Will movies and movie franchises become our folklore or will written stories (likely to be made into movies later on) continue to nurture our need for fables?
Right now Batman and other comic book heroes are dominating at the box office. I have to ask, however, when was the last time you saw anyone reading a Batman novel? Do modern literature courses cover the likes of Superman, Iron Man or Spider-Man? Will people in the 23rd century care or even know about “Star Trek,” which takes place at that time?
As a Lone Ranger fan, I have a love for the Old West. But I doubt I could tell you what served as pop culture in the day. Outside of the works of Mark Twain and Jules Vern, I can’t name much from the 1800s that would qualify as folklore.
I would hope that the stories of the Lone Ranger, Roy Rogers, Hopalong Cassidy, Zorro and the various characters played by John Wayne would last as folklore legends, but it’s too soon to tell.
Mythology is a little harder to nail down. When I think of mythology, I think of ancient Greeks who believed the stories to be true. Harry Potter makes good modern mythology, though it is abundantly clear there is no belief to it. The Star Wars saga likewise has potential mythological status, not because the stories are good, but because of the following it has. There are some in the last census who listed their religion as “Jedi.”
I guess all this musing boils down to wondering how I’ll be remembered. What mark will I make across time?
In the long run, I guess it really doesn’t matter if I’m remembered on this Earth or not, though I like to think that someone will remember I was here generations from now. Ultimately, my destiny is Heaven. There I won’t have to worry about being remembered or what mark I made in the here and now. I will be there for all time. I won’t have to worry about being a memory but being memorable to my Lord. That in itself is reward enough for the labors of life, and that’s no folk tale.
Accountability update: This has been another bad week. A crunched schedule, bad weather and a mild medical condition kept me from working out or taking walks. That and there has been an abundance of holy bread (commonly known as donuts) here at the office. D’oh!
posted by Joe Southern | 12:31 PM
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