Research
A myth is, "An unproved or false collective belief that is used to justify a social institution" ("Definition of Myth"). In our specific case study pertaining to St. Patrick, this definition would mean that the celebration that has become St. Patrick's Day is justified through the myth of him "driving" the "snakes" out of Ireland.
According to Chris Weigant, a political writer for the Huff Post, "This is an interesting case in mythologizing, because the story was originally a metaphor which was widely understood when it was introduced, but then as the symbolical link faded over time, somehow began to be interpreted literally instead of metaphorically" (Weigant, 2010). In the case of St. Patrick and the snakes, people have come to interpret it literally, in most cases, saying that he actually drove snakes out by saying a sermon and using his staff (Weigant, 2010). |
Conceptually, the concept of driving snakes out relates directly to the Pagan Druids whose main worshiped symbol was a serpent. St. Patrick spread Catholicism by becoming a missionary who traveled the Irish island converting these Pagan Druids as he went ("St. Patrick's Day Myths Debunked"). Hence, "driving" the Pagan Druids or "snakes" out by converting them into Catholicism. Around the time of when this myth began in the fifth century A.D., contemporary people would have immediately interpreted the conceptual symbolism between Druids and snakes and never would have interpreted it literally.
A similar myth or legend can be seen in the story of the Pied Piper of Hamelin. This story has changed over the centuries since its origin in the 13th century. Modern interpretation of the story emphasizes a cautionary tale of the consequences of not paying one’s debt. In this fiscally responsible version, the Piper leads the children away from Hamelin in retaliation for not being paid for clearing out rats. Originally the story was much more horrendous, because it of the death of Hamelin’s children either by plague or some sort of catastrophe, even possibly being led away in the Children’s Crusade of the 13th Century. This earlier tragic tale has been misinterpreted and forgotten by many today, in a similar manner in which St. Patrick’s actions were not literally dealing with actual snakes, but with symbolic snakes in the form of Pagan Druids.
A similar myth or legend can be seen in the story of the Pied Piper of Hamelin. This story has changed over the centuries since its origin in the 13th century. Modern interpretation of the story emphasizes a cautionary tale of the consequences of not paying one’s debt. In this fiscally responsible version, the Piper leads the children away from Hamelin in retaliation for not being paid for clearing out rats. Originally the story was much more horrendous, because it of the death of Hamelin’s children either by plague or some sort of catastrophe, even possibly being led away in the Children’s Crusade of the 13th Century. This earlier tragic tale has been misinterpreted and forgotten by many today, in a similar manner in which St. Patrick’s actions were not literally dealing with actual snakes, but with symbolic snakes in the form of Pagan Druids.
By: Angela Marocco, Brent Zeise, Katie Anderson MAET Year 2 Overseas 2012