Week 4: Essay - Representations of Good and Evil

In my reading of the Ancient Egypt Unit this week, there was one detail that stood out to me that set this set of mythologies apart from those with which I am more familiar (i.e. Greco-Roman myth). The sense of justice in these texts differ greatly from those in the Classical Mythology Unit I read a few weeks ago. In reading Classical Mythology, I was forced to accept the fact that bad things happened to good people, and there was not always (not even most of the time) justice for the wronged innocent. Ancient Egyptian Mythology was a departure from this school of thought because it seemed that the wicked always eventually got what was coming to them. I find this difference between the two mythologies interesting because I have, for a long time, believed that one can gain a sense of the values important to a given society based on its fictional representations of Good and Evil.

Depiction of Osiris (Image Source:Ancient Civilization History Website)

A few years ago, I remember watching a movie with my mother during which she told me something I have always since held on. I cannot recall exactly what movie it was, but it was something rather action-y, with a storyline that involved a clear "good guy" and "bad guy," and I remember growing anxious as I had become very invested in the plot and the characters and it seemed as if the "bad guy" was going to be victorious. I remember then that my mom turned to me and said, "Oh, honey, don't worry. They still don't like to let the bad guy win." I remember feeling comforted by this thought and was then able to relax and enjoy the rest of the movie with the firm notion that Good would always triumph over Evil. I found this axiom comforting, not because it is absolute in reality - there are murderers and rapists and child abusers out there that have managed to evade prison - but because it gives me hope for our society, which at times seems pretty broken. Even in this age of looser morals and not so clear line between right and wrong, the fact that Hollywood chooses to portray Good conquering Evil indicates, at least in my eyes, that our desire for justice and our optimism in the face of adversity is something that society will hold onto for generations to come. In a similar manner, it could be inferred* of Ancient Egyptian Society that it places high value on bringing those who do wrong to justice, no matter their position, for we see even the gods being busted down to size on regular occasion. An example of this value appears in the story The Death of Osiris. When Osiris is killed and his throne usurped, it would appear that good guys do indeed finish last. However, We later learn that Osiris has been avenged by his son which illustrates the value placed on justice in Egyptian society.

In contrast to the Egyptian Mythology, justice does not always make an appearance in classical mythology. Countless women are raped by Jupiter and then punished by his irrational sister. What, then, could be said about the values of Ancient Greco-Roman culture? The gods are revered and worshipped even despite their widely known character flaws and vices. This could be indicative of an admiration for power and immortality that overshadows a desires to see justice play itself out. This is not to say that this society had no sense of justice or desire to see evil punished, just that it was perhaps not as large a value as immortality and reverence for the gods. This could be why we often see the humans in Classical Mythology at the mercy of the whims and ways of the gods while the gods themselves seem to typically walk away unscathed. Gods were outside the realm of law and social so it stands to reason that they might overshadow values that concerned or related to the law.

I've always had a small apprehension that one day, I'll be watching a movie, a Marvel or DC superhero movie, perhaps, and after the dust from the big stand off has settled, it will be the villain who emerges victorious. This may seem silly, to be concerned with the endings of fictitious stories and plotlines, but I really do believe it would be indicative  of a shift in society's values. When the bad guy starts to win, I think it will be time to evaluate our values in society as a whole.

The Dark Knight Rises (Image source: Giri's Domain-Blogspot)Ancient Civilization History Website