A Study Of Joseph Campbell’s Creation Myth Theory

Joseph Campbell is an American mythologist who has lived a life of mixed reviews,with some seeing him as the heir to the Jungian school and others calling him "the godfather of Hollywood cinema.His mythological theories for the general public have brought him many followers,but also made him much criticized.The Hero with a Thousand Faces and The Mask of God are arguably the two most important books of his life,which is the main basis of this paper.This paper will explore in depth the creation myth theory in Campbell’s myth theory on the basis of previous studies of his myth theory,revealing the characteristics of his creation myth theory and how the creation myth cures the spiritual wasteland problem of modern human beings.The paper is divided into three main parts:The first part starts from the underlying logic of Campbell’s myth theory,namely,the two parts of biopsychology and game ritual theory.It is from the "innate release mechanism" and game theory that Campbell recognizes the similarity between human neural structure and world mythology.Campbell believes that mythology is created by human beings in order to know the world and understand their own existence,while game ritual is a practical means for mythology.Campbell believes that the influence of myth on the human psyche is still imprinted today,and uncovering the part of myth’s influence on the human psyche is considered by Campbell to be one of the most valuable things in myth theory.Campbell’s second part explores Campbell’s "single myth" theory and the history of world mythology on the basis of common psychological and mythological values.Campbell expanded the similarity of heroic stories to all myths in the world and constructed his own history of world mythology on this basis to show people the similarity of myths.The similarity of human psychological structure is also shown through the similarity of myths,which further deepens Campbell’s understanding of the relationship between the value of myths and human psychology,and hopes to dig deeper into the factors that influence myths on human spirituality.The third part is to explore specifically how creation myth theory is realized in solving the spiritual dilemma of modern man.First,advances in science and technology have made it possible to recreate the value of myth,and second,the psychoanalytic school’s understanding of the therapeutic function of myth has opened up a whole new path for Campbell.It is on the basis of these two that Campbell’s mythic healing techniques unfold,and he hopes to recreate the healing function of myth in a psychological way.In his view,the creation of myth by modern artists and his own view of "following the path of intuition" are the practical methods of mythic therapy.He hopes that such a practical method can help human beings to get out of the spiritual wasteland caused by modern civilization,so as to realize individual freedom and happiness.