MIND MOVES:SINCE WRITING about hero myths in modern life (Healthplus, January 19th), I have received many communications from people who have endorsed the importance of stories, myths, fairy tales and broadened my understanding of their relevance considerably.
Many readers have shared with me how they are using these elements in their work with both children and adults: a teacher who runs a camp for young people aged seven and older on a remote island on the Corrib, described how she uses Irish fairy tales and old Celtic romances as an integral part of the experience; a monk who runs a “gentle warrior” course for 12-13 year olds to help them adapt more successfully in school, invited me to witness his work first-hand; a psycho- therapist described how she has been applying the steps outlined in Joseph Campbell’s description of the hero’s journey to map a path of recovery from mental health problems.
Their letters and others directed me to a treasure trove of writings that I have been reading feverishly over the past month. Thank you.
Good stories, like Snow White, Hansel and Gretel, Cinderella have endured because they speak to our deepest fears and aspirations.
Their simple storylines and larger-than-life characters allow us to engage with powerful and contradictory emotions – our murderous urges, our terror of separation, and irrational jealousies – without being overwhelmed.
Myths and fairy tales don’t prettify reality. They portray the world as a fierce and dangerous place where parents can abandon and even murder their children; fathers die and siblings turn mercilessly against the weakest in the family. And they get to the heart of the drama from the very beginning : “There was once a king who had an illness, and no one believed that he would come out of it with his life”, “There were once a man and a woman who had long in vain wished for a child”, “There was once upon a time a king who had three sons, of whom two were clever and wise, but the third did not speak much, and was simple, and was called the simpleton”.
But these stories also give the reader the confidence that they can survive and they suggest where solutions to problems can be found. They warn us that nothing good is ever achieved without setbacks and disappointments; that boys only become men through trials and tribulations; that a slave girl may well discover her true identity as a princess but only after spending some time in obscurity; and that even a “simpleton” can achieve greatness through loyalty and courage.
Life may be a precarious business, full of treacherous pitfalls, but by engaging with its most primal energies, we can live happily ever after, or at least survive the slings and arrows of misfortune.
Many of the letters I received spoke about the importance of rites of initiation, which was something I knew little about. As I understand it, initiation is concerned with preparing a young person to accept the call to adventure that life is inviting them to take. Rites of passage never dared to tell someone what their particular path should be, but it empowered them to take the first step.
Rites of initiation have always involved the support of the whole community. While each young person should be allowed to find a path to discovering their own unique identity, it was also appreciated that they needed and belonged to others. Part of their initiation was to enable them discover they belonged not only to their family or village, but to the much larger story of humanity.
Your very encouraging response to this whole concept of myth and story has helped me to finally act on an idea I have nurtured for a long time: to put together a course for young people that would incorporate myths, fairy tales, (and rites of initiation) in a way that would make this wisdom available to them for the particular challenges they face.
This will be as much a journey for us as it will be for our participants. I will keep readers informed of our progress.
Tony Bates is founding director of Headstrong – The National Centre for Youth Mental Health, www.headstrong.ie