Mythification and Gender
By
Obododimma Oha
INTRODUCTION
I would like us to look at some narratives (stories) in culture and what they have to do with gender. We know that people like stories and pay great attention to what the stories are saying. They may not know when the stories try to seduce them, unless they are critical.
Moreover, these stories are told to shape our thinking about some issues. So, they affect our lives in a special way.
Some stories, too, are by nature viewed as divine truths. So, they are viewed as not just stories. They may appear to be stories but are something more.
Myths are special narratives in culture. In this lecture, we briefly examine what gender has to do with myths.
Myths of Gender as Explanations of Authentic Perception :
Myths are ancient ways of explaining how and why things are as they are. In other words, they are pseudo-scientific explanations which assume that their audiences cannot question their logic.
But thinking in society advances and changes.
That is to say, it is assumed that the myths provide a strong backing in the argument.
Who would question the truth, unless the person just wants to upset things and promote falsehood?
Gender Differences as Natural :
Myths of gender also try to impose logic on us, hoping to find our reasoning that low. They also try to explain relations or differences between men and women as natural and unquestionable.
There are some problems in viewing gender differences as natural. That is to say that God made it so. In that case, anyone arguing against it is committing a transgression. This is obviously a spiritualization of Gender. But God is responsible.
Gender Differences as Necessary for an Ordered Society :
Myths of gender differences also give an impression that such differentiation is necessary and good if we want to have an ordered society. The assumption is that if we want an ordered society, then we just have to accept the myths or ask them to guide us.
The Ancientness of the Myths and the Idea of Enduring Practice:
The idea of the myths as longstanding ideas is invoked in a subtle way. If the ideas have endured through time, then it is assumed that they merit acceptance. Time has tested them, it is assumed, and if they have survived, that is a great lesson!
Some Reasons for Using Mythical Narratives in Articulating Gender :
-- Myths would make the Explanation on gender more acceptable.
-- Myths would make the explanation appear scientific and above questions.
-- The myths can live long and so the sentiments they convey would easily be passed on.
--- The myths can be reused as other narratives, for instance, as motif in films. This point deserves extensive discussion and bringing Nollywood in.
Concluding Remarks :
-- Myths, we have seen, lend more weight to the arguments underlying the narratives. When myths are deployed, they seem to upgrade the claim but we know that the claims could be weak and misleading. That myths, important narratives in folklore, are used does not mean that we can no longer question some misleading assumptions that are conveyed.
Links to consult:
https://www.britannica.com/topic/myth
Read:
"Every myth presents itself as an authoritative, factual account, no matter how much the narrated events are at variance with natural law or ordinary experience. By extension from this primary religious meaning, the word myth may also be used more loosely to refer to an ideological belief when that belief is the object of a quasi-religious faith; an example would be the Marxist eschatological myth of the withering away of the state."
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