A Sociological Analysis of Myth

Abstract

I quote Emile Durkheim on myth, in which he discusses "the Last Supper. " I then take this story and run it through my myth model. Durkheim argued that cultural representations play an important role in societies and that human beings have a dual role: We are in societies and societies are in us-especially, I would argue, in the form of myths we learn as we grow up. I take the story of Adam and Eve, retell it and then use the myth model to show its cultural resonance, especially as it can be applied to American history and culture. I show how the great western Shane relates to our ideas about Adamic innocence and nature.