floodingreekandchinesemythology中西神话对比论文——洪水神话.docVIP

Flood in Greek and Chinese Mythology Ancient people couldn’t understand and explain what was happening, so they came up with ideas and stories through which they hoped they could make a sense of it. Among those mysteries，flood is an everlasting theme throughout the world, as Cassirer said: “From the history that any great culture is controlled and dominated by the flood myth．”There are many floods occurring in primitive times, “the basic structure of the nations’ flood myths is similar, but there are many different places of specific details due to various factors, that’s why we have so many different myths.”(1) The myths of different countries displayed their different national spirits and cultural values, To clarify the conditions of forming flood myths, we should obtain a comprehensive explanation from the historical and cultural factors． In Chinese mythology, a man named Gun tried for nine years to dam the destructive waters that covered the land. Because he failed, the supreme god executed him. Guns son, Yu, took up the task of taming the waters. Instead of building a dam, he decided to drain away the floodwaters through channels. A winged dragon flew in front of him, marking with his tail where Yu should dig the channels. Yu worked for many years, too busy even to see his family. In the end, however, he tamed the rivers, making the land along them suitable for farming. As his reward, Yu became emperor of China. To understand this myth, you have to know how important the Yellow River is to the Chinese. It’s the second longest river in China, more importantly the Yellow River is the birthplace of ancient Chinese culture and the cradle of Chinese Civilization. We call it, the Mother River. For thousands of years, people who lived in that area suffered from the flooding. In order to get a better living condition, their primary task was to solve the problem which was caused by the river. The story, in which these great heroes lead Chinese