An Examination of Creation Stories

1. Human cultures create myths, in my opinion, in order to explain the unexplainable.  When they saw things like thunder, wind, volcanoes, and other acts of nature they would have to way to explain why or how these things were happening.  In order to explain them they created these myths that give reasons to why many of these natural occurrences happen.  These myths may not be as prominent in our culture today but are often used as stories to entertain our children and teach them morals.  And regarding myths that explain our creation, they too exist in our society in the form of religion which shows the origin of man in almost all cases.
2. By looking at the creation of stories of the aborigine as well as the Maori we are able to see what these cultures valued as well as other aspects of their culture.  Both stories rely on dominant male figures. In the Aborigine the father of all spirits directs the sun mother to awaken all the spirits and create life on earth.  Throughout the story the sun mother does all she can to make the father happy.  Then in the Maori story all of the spirits are men, except for the earth mother.  Men are created before women in this story as well.  The Maori story also justifies rebellion when under bad circumstances.  The Maori may have used this idea in their culture to justify rebellions.  Lastly, the Aborigine story glorifies nature and the spirits that make it up.  When it describes the animals it is almost always with positive and bright diction.  Thus the Aborigines most likely respected and live along side nature, instead of attempting to harness it.
3. Maori: gods, violent, all male, darkness in beginning, children want to seperate parents, underworld, no spirits. Aborigine: Light in beginning, female prescense, spirits sleeping, mother afraid of father, animals, spirits.  Both: Mother and father, nothing other then a head spirit in beginning, creations uncontrollable.  The differences and simmilarities in the myths may correspond to both simmilarities and differences between the cultures at the time when the myths were created.
4. Although certain aspects of nature which the myths explain have been proven wrong by modern science the myths are still able to show societal and personal struggles that exist in the world today.  Problems such as a wife being obediant to the father, children obeying their parents, rebellion, teamwork, and other isssues of todays society.
5. I think that we have evolved from other animals but there is a god.  I think that as long as we are good to others and are not harmful then we will somehow be rewarded.  Because of this I just try to do what I believe is right.