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Mythos Natura A Guide to Nature’s Fairies, Gods, and Goddesses

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Mythos Natura. A Guide to Nature’s Fairies, Gods, and Goddesses. Disclaimer. Works Cited. - PowerPoint PPT Presentation

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Page 1: Mythos  Natura

Mythos Natura

A Guide to Nature’s Fairies, Gods, and Goddesses

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Works CitedAstma, Aaron. Theoi.com. N.p., 2001. Web. 13 Mar 2012.

<http://www.theoi.com/index.html>.Encyclopædia Britannica. Encyclopædia Britannica Online. Encyclopædia Britannica Inc., 2012. Web. 13 Mar. 2012. <http://www.britannica.com/Many Unnamed or Difficult to Source Artists for Pictures Used.

(So for fairness sake I named none)

Due to the nature of mythology, folklore, and legends. Any discrepancies, errors, or misinterpretations of

mythical or legendary creatures or characters reflects solely on the source materials used and not the author. Even professional researchers and historians disagree with each other over the origins of such creatures and

characters.

Disclaimer

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Mythos NaturaA Guide to Nature’s Fairies, Gods, and Goddesses

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Fairies and Fey

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Also known as Fey, Elves, or Fair Folk Origins are varied but the most known form of

Fairies come from Celtic and English folklore. Are considered denizens of a more natural

“other” world in English mythology, usually crossing over into the “human” world to cause mischief or simply observe humans.

Goblins, Gnomes, Brownies, Banshees, Changelings, Sprites, Pixies, etc. are all considered types of Fairies.

Fairies

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The Fairy World“Fairyland,” “Land of the Faeries,” or “The Fey”

A world where the fairies reside it is considered either as a parallel universe to the “human” world or it is represented as a physical place typically dark

forests. In a way the fairy world is the ideal form of Nature, wild and untamable, free from human influence. It is often held in a high regard

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The Queen of The Fairies“Mab,” “Titania,” “Gloriana,” or “Tanaquil”

The Queen of the Fairies is a title given to numerous characters throughout literature and folklore. However, the Queen of the Fairies is also a name for the

mythological figure. Originating in English Folklore, she was believed to rule over the land of fairies.

Generally speaking, the Queen of the Fairies represents Nature in it’s purest

form, as a character she more represents and coexists with Nature rather than actually dominating it.

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Glorianaa.k.a. “Tanaquil” Possibly the first literary example of a fairy queen, appearing only in the epic poem series by Edmund Spenser The Faerie Queene. In the story she rules over the Land of the Faeries in which various knights quest in her honor.

Unlike other Fairy Queens, Gloriana was created as a tribute to Queen Elizabeth and represented ideas other than nature, such as honor and chivalry or loyalty to the crown.

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Mab Considered one of the first Queen of the Fairies, Queen Mab is mentioned first in Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet. She is noted for her ability to grant wishes within dreams or allow sleepers to “give birth” to their deepest desires in their dreams.

Queen Mab represents the dream world and embodies the mystical and mysterious side of nature.

She appears in works by Shakespeare, Johnson, Barrie, and many others continuing into modern fiction.

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Titania As one of the later Fairy Queens, Titania became a replacement in literature. Though much like in a prequel or prologue episode in modern entertainment, Titania is an ancestor of Gloriana’s. Most notably she and Queen Mab became the most common references for the Queen of Fairies as time passed. Titania however is slightly less magical than Queen Mab, and represents the beauty of Nature rather than the mystery.

Fun Fact: One of Uranus’s Moon’s is named Titania in tribute to William Shakespeare.

She appears in works by Shakespeare, Tennyson, and Goethe.

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Oberona.k.a. “King of the Fairies” or “King of the Elves”

Oberon appears as the King of the Fairies in Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream, however Oberon originated from a French Poem titled Huon de Bourdeaux, in which he was a “dwarf-king” with magical powers. In most instances of Oberon’s appearance he is a helpful character, often using his magic to aid the protagonists.

He appears in works by Shakespeare, Johnson, Goethe and many others.

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Pucka.k.a. “Tom Goodfellow,” “Puca,” or “Hobgoblin”

Puck is notorious as a mischievous fairy, known for his biting wit and mocking attitude. He appears in Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream, but instances of puca precede Shakespeare’s writing. A puca is a mischievous fairy that misleads travellers through woods or sours farmer’s milk. There are also instances of fairies named variations of Puck through many different countries. He represents Nature’s playful and sometimes dark side, being a creature of mischief and tricks.

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Gods and Goddesses

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Dionysus a.k.a. “Bacchus” in both Greek and Roman.

The god of wine, vegetation, pleasure, and festivity. His symbols usually have to do with one of his domains: grapes for wine, a cup for festivities, leopard skin and a pine cone tipped staff for vegetation. He is either depicted as a jovial bearded man or a mildly effeminate youth, typically in the company of his satyrs and nymphs. Dionysus is one of the nature gods it would not be too far of a stretch to see inspiration drawn from him in the creation of Oberon.

His name appears in many literary works and is now used as a title for the person presiding over Mardi Gras Krewe “The Krewe of Bacchus”

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Comus Comus is actually a minor or “demi” god in Greek and Roman mythology (possibly just Greek). Which means he is descended of Gods but his bloodline may be mixed with mortals His domains are festivity, revelry, and merrymaking, as in Milton’s Masque presented at Ludlow Castle. He often appears as a satyr or a winged youth with a donkey’s ears. Milton’s version of Comus is more of a tribute to the original God, than an accurate portrayal (according to his myths) as Comus typically was not far from Bacchus at all times.

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Gaia Gaia was the Greek goddess of Earth. She is the mother of all the Greek gods, including the titans (such as Cronus) before the gods that are most commonly associated with Greek mythology today (like Zeus). She is the personification of Earth, and as such all things Nature. Gaia is a predecessor or inspiration for Mother Nature as the two figures share many ideas in common such as the creation of plants and animal life.

Gaia is mentioned in many works of literature.

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Modern Mythology

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Mother Nature Mother Nature is an interesting and unique figure in that she does not directly tie into any specific religion, theology, or folklore, and finding definitions of her separate from Gaia are nearly impossible. Artists, poets, novelists, naturalists, and even regular people reference Mother Nature as a personification of Nature. Whether equating a fierce hurricane to her wrath or a tranquil forest to her beauty people of many religions use the idea of Mother Nature to describe inexplicable Nature.

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The Green Mana.k.a. “Jack-in-the-Green” The Green Man originated from English Folklore as far back as pagan religions. During the time period many religions centered on gods of Nature, vegetation, or fertility. The Green Man is the most well known iteration of those gods. He can be seen as a masculine version of Mother Nature, or a religious version of Oberon. As time passed The Green Man’s mythos split and transformed into many literary characters known today. The most famous of which is… Robin of the Hood, or simply Robin Hood.

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The EndAn Abridged Compendium

by C. Aaron Olague