Mexican mothers and grandmothers tell the Mayan folktale“The Story of Mariano the
Buzzard”to teach children to work hard and not be lazy.^46 And the Chinese folktale
“The Taoist Priest of Lao-Shan”teaches young children not to yield to temptation
because it causes humiliation.^47
A common theme in many folktales and myths is the superhero, usually a male
protagonist who defends family, country, and even outer space. The United States is
not the only country with characters such as Superman, Captain Kirk, Spiderman,
X-Men, The Ironman, and Captain America. The Irish still admire the mythical war-
rior Cu Chulainn. In one of his most famous exploits, he single-handedly fights the
armies of Queen Mebh of Connacht and wins the battle that saves Ulster. Greeks
learn about Hercules, Jews learn about Samson, and Norwegians learn about Thor.
In Zaire, children are told the myth of invincibility. In this tale, young boys learn
that if they wrap green vines around their heads, their enemies’weapons cannot
hurt them.^48 Shiite Muslims pass on a seventh-century story of how the prophet
Muhammed’s grandson, knowing he was going to die, fought to his death. In the
story of Hanukkah, it is told how, in the second century, a small band of Jews
defeated a much larger army. That historic victory, known as the Maccabean Revolt,
is commemorated even today with festive religious and family events. Heroic feats are
also at the core of the story of Mexico’s Cinco de Mayo, celebrated as a national hol-
iday (more by Mexicans living in the United States than in Mexico itself). Here, the
historical story tells how on May 5, 1862, a small Mexican armed force defeated a
much larger and better-equipped invading French army. In each of these stories, the
key participants are successful because of their commendable conduct and strong per-
sonal character.
As we have indicated, stories can tell you about what was and still is important to a
group of people. Erdoes and Ortiz make this point as they write of stories in American
Indian culture:
They are also magic lenses through which we can glimpse social orders and daily
life: how families were organized, how political structures operated, how men caught
fish, how religious ceremonies felt to the people who took part, how power was
divided between men and women, how food was prepared, how honor in war was
celebrated.^49
We conclude this section on myths, folktales, and legends by reminding you that
they are found in every culture and deal with ideas that matter most to that culture—
ideas about life, death, relationships, and nature. Because these stories offer clues to
culture, Campbell urges you not only to understand your own story but also to read
other people’s myths.^50 We strongly concur with Campbell: When you study the
myths of a culture, you are studying that culture.Learning Culture Through Art. A trip to any art museum quickly reveals how the art of a
culture is both a method of passing on culture and a reflection of that culture. Nanda
and Warms develop this important idea in the following:
Art forms are not merely a mirror of culture—though they may be that as well—but art also
heightens cultural and social integration by displaying and confirming values that members of
a culture hold in common. The powerful artistic symbols of a society express universal themes
such as death, pride, and gender relationships in ways that are culturally compelling, even
when (some might say particularly when) their content is not consciously articulated.^51Characteristics of Culture 49Copyright 2017 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved. May not be copied, scanned, or duplicated, in whole or in part. Due to electronic rights, some third party content may be suppressed from the eBook and/or eChapter(s).