In the Nixa high school there are many English classes, one of which is mythology. Mythology is the study of myth and a collection of myths, especially one belonging to a particular religious or cultural tradition. The new addition to the mythology team is Lisa Bain. 

  “Mythology is enjoying a revival of sorts in the world today.  Although many find it to simply be interesting stories, there has been an increased interest in the gods represented in these stories.  Paganism and other religions are reviving some of these old stories.” Bain states, “They can teach morality stories to younger generations, but they can also be used to fuel the imagination.  Too often, imagination is not encouraged, but mythology pushes that boundary to encourage thinking outside the box.”

   The class itself explains the reality of the situation that does not make sense, if not throughout the story. Many students enjoy the class, one of which is Stephanie Richie, a senior. 

   “If we’re talking about the class: My favorite part is getting to learn about many different gods and goddesses from different areas of the world. Most of the focus is on Greek/Roman mythology, but you do have the opportunity to research a deity that you are interested in learning more about.” Richie Continues, “If we’re talking about mythology itself: My favorite part is learning about different gods and goddesses and coming up with different perceptions in my mind about what they would look and act like as humans. I picture them as archetypes that present themselves in society as ideal ways of being.” 

   Bain teaches the class in an engaging way for students to grasp. With different videos to counties, in-depth discussions too behind able to use ancient text. Because of this, they can relate old mythology stories to common day problems or outlooks. Bain says the favorite subject for students to learn about are the greek gods and creatures. 

   While enjoying reading about greek and roman gods, Richie discloses that she isn’t a very superstitious person and believes for these stories to exit out of boredom from past civilizations.

“It’s fun to imagine things combined. Take, for example, mermaids. They’re humans combined with fish. Then there’s dragons, which are basically large lizards but with wings. It’s a result of human imagination and the desire for novelty.” Richie said.

Richie also mentions that these were religions that people believed and followed with at a point in time. 

   “Mythology has a somewhat religious basis, while fairytales are unrealistic and imaginative. They also tend to have morals, whereas a lot of gods and goddesses in mythology apparently do not.” Richie said.

This is a good point because Bain stated another similar point, fairytales use magic and mysterious creatures to convey moral messages, usually cloaked in the cover of a children’s story.  Mythology might have those elements, but they are tied to supernatural gods and their lives.

  This allows mythology to have a separate category from fairy tales due to the religious aspects and origins. So while there are many different sides and parts to mythology, they all continue a similar consensus. Religion made into tales relating to past issues that can still be relevant in modern-day society.