Discuss Religious Myth in Secular Literature.
After reading the lecture on religious myth in secular literature in your module and the assigned short stories, complete the following written assignment:
As you read in the preceding Module, the Christ Motif in Literature, also known as Resurrection motif, initiation motif, transformation motif etc. notice they follow this pattern:
May also be called Resurrection, transformation, initiation motif etc. But the pattern is the same
Hero must leave status quo
Must face obstacles
Descends to an underworld
Must die (either real or metaphorical death)
Returns as a reborn or resurrected hero with new knowledge of the Self and the world around them.
Find this motif in short stories and answer the following questions for both stories. Explore the text fully and thoroughly. The short stories are provided in the modules.
Explain the pattern of the Transformation motif commonly found in literature
Describe the main characters at the beginning of the story and at what point these characters “leave the status quo” of their lives.
What obstacles do they face before descending into an underground?
Locate the point where the main characters enter an underground unfamiliar world
What difficulties are encountered there?
Are there any associations with death present in the underground world? What are they?
What does the hero learn about their true Self? About their world?
Explain the point at which they re-emerge, in other words are resurrected.
Have they changed? How?
