| Term | Definition |
|---|
| ennead | the egyptian polytheistic pantheon that consisted of nine gods |
| rhapsode | story teller |
| myth | an anonymous traditional story that explains a belief, custom or a mysterious natural phenomenon |
| epic | a long narrative work that relates the deed of a larger-than-life hero, who embodies the values of his or her society |
| legend | a story about extraordinary deeds, based to some extent on fact |
| sage | carriers or culture orally |
| stock question | end of the dilemma tales; its for discussion purposes |
| arete | excellence; the only way one could become immortal was through faith |
| narrative prose | a kind of writing that tells a story or relates an event |
| psalms | a sacred hymn or song |
| dilemma tale | an open-ended story that concludes with a question that asks the audience to choose from among several alternatives |
| niti | worldly wisdom |
| folktale | a story that is created by the common people and passed along orally generation to generation |
| rita | the pervasive cosmic order |
| parables | a short narrative that teaches a moral, or lesson about life |
| origin myth | stories that explains how things came to be |
| secular | non religious |
| karma | "action"; the sum of all your actions |
| archetype | a pattern or model that serves as the basis for different, but related, versions of a character, plot, or theme |
| psychomania | the battle of the faith; trouble with the mind; internal conflict |
| dharma | "to hold"; "sacred duty"; in Greek "destiny" |
| hubris | excessive pride |
| motif | tests the character has to pass in order to become a stronger person |
| moksha | liberation from samsara (cycle of reincarnation); end of all reincarnation and the end of suffering |
| griot | a professional story teller, singer, or entertainer |
| tragic flaw | a characters internal weakness |
| nirvana | the state of being free from both suffering and the cycle of rebirth |
| shanti | internal peace |
| external conflict | when a character struggles with some outside force |
| internal conflict | a struggled between opposing desires or needs within your mind |
| similarities between myths and folktales | address our deepest truth and engage our minds; include supernatural events; tell the adventures of gods and goddesses; reveal common truths and patterns of human life; explains origins of some rituals; transcend through generations; explain human experience; teach us things we can share with others; stories of the human family; oldest stories |
| folktales | secular stories that feature magic, transformations, and enchantments; folk heroes tend to be normal humans, who dont have powers |
| myths | explains the creation of the world; human condition; natural phenomena; the nature of gods and goddesses; meaning behind religious rituals; historical events; and moral lessons |
| beast fables | fables used by religious teachers to illustrate a moral point |
| characteristics of parables | human characters; the message of the story is interfered within itself; message concerns the deep truth; tells morals through an allegory |
| allegory | a story with an underlying message that can be understood on both a literal and symbolic way |
Combine with other sets
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