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Appropriating Foreign Mythology for Fiction

Crow T R0bot

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Crow T R0bot
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Jun 14, 2013
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I'm a fan of Rick Riordan's Percy Jackson and the Olympians and have also started reading said author's Kane Chronicles and Heroes of Olympus series. Even before then I started reading about Coyote, the trickster icon of Navajo (and other western tribal) mythology, and found the concept of him interesting enough that I wanted to write a story about him.

However, in the interest of not being just another white guy taking something from Native Americans, I feel like I'm gonna have to do a lot of research on Native American mythology and culture.

So in the meantime, I ask: what does it take to make using other cultures' stories as inspiration for your own okay? Is just doing your homework enough, or is there more to it?

What is the "right" way to write a story on something unique to a culture that isn't your own?
 
Crow T R0bot said:
What is the "right" way to write a story on something unique to a culture that isn't your own?
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There is no right way.

The right thing to do is write your own story, and if it happens to contain elements inspired by this or that other thing, so be it.

If you have any good stories in you, you won't get them out by trying to write somebody else's story in a way they will appreciate.
 
Usually add ray guns and it turns out they're aliens.
 
Crow T R0bot said:
However, in the interest of not being just another white guy taking something from Native Americans, I feel like I'm gonna have to do a lot of research on Native American mythology and culture.
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I really wouldn't worry about cultural appropriation in mythology: if a culture is careless enough to allow syncretism to occur it means they weren't really interested in protecting their brand anyway.
 
Crow T R0bot said:
I'm a fan of Rick Riordan's Percy Jackson and the Olympians and have also started reading said author's Kane Chronicles and Heroes of Olympus series. Even before then I started reading about Coyote, the trickster icon of Navajo (and other western tribal) mythology, and found the concept of him interesting enough that I wanted to write a story about him.

However, in the interest of not being just another white guy taking something from Native Americans, I feel like I'm gonna have to do a lot of research on Native American mythology and culture.

So in the meantime, I ask: what does it take to make using other cultures' stories as inspiration for your own okay? Is just doing your homework enough, or is there more to it?

What is the "right" way to write a story on something unique to a culture that isn't your own?
Click to expand...

So what if foreign mythology is used to produce fiction?

There have been many fiction stories based on Greek mythology, Biblical mythology, Egyptian Mythology, and so on. That is the great thing about fiction, one can do with it whatever one wants to do with it.

Therefore, use whatever level of research that you think is appropriate for your fiction.
 
If you are writing a story about a specific mythological character and you want it to be accurate, then do as much research as you feel necessary to accomplish that.

If you really are just appropriating something like Star Trek did with the Greek gods ("Who Mourns for Adonais?"), or like Tolkein did with a whole bunch of stuff, then just have at it.

In either case, the quality of the final product will be far more important than whatever research you do. It's fiction, not a documentary.

Ward
 
Although you do need to take care not to offend any actual gods you might write about. They might sue and/or smite you. Zeus has a mighty team of lawyers on retainer, and after those Stargate episodes Hathor's agent really monitors her portrayals. Tlaloc is amenable to any use of his image provided you pay him a licensing fee and accept the no-nudity clause.
 
Is this really about the concept of adapting foreign mythology, or about not wanting to offend minorities?
Greek mythology is foreign to us modern folks, even though we've been appropriating it for ages. We're free to pillage, plunder, mock and adapt their stories because nobody believes in them or bases their identity on them. Same goes for Slavic, Norse, and a slew of other mythologies.
There are still native Americans around though, and some of them might feel that their stories are being taken from them, another sign that white people disrespect their traditions.

If your question is about using mythology in your stories: go for it. Do your research, be respectful, and tell a good story. You can never please everyone.

If your question is about not stepping on anyone's toes: stick to 'white people' mythologies. A pity if you ask me, stories have always been based on other stories, people have always borrowed from other peoples they have come into contact with. Integration is not oppression and appropriation not neccessarily theft.
 
theprestige said:
The right thing to do is write your own story, and if it happens to contain elements inspired by this or that other thing, so be it.
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This. Coyote, Monkey, Loki, Spider... every pantheistic culture has had a trickster deity. Write to the archetype, and people will catch on.
 
TragicMonkey said:
Although you do need to take care not to offend any actual gods you might write about. They might sue and/or smite you. Zeus has a mighty team of lawyers on retainer, and after those Stargate episodes Hathor's agent really monitors her portrayals. Tlaloc is amenable to any use of his image provided you pay him a licensing fee and accept the no-nudity clause.
Click to expand...

That reminds me, did you still want the leaked selfies he sent to Jennifer Lawrence?
 
Porpoise of Life said:
Is this really about the concept of adapting foreign mythology, or about not wanting to offend minorities?
Greek mythology is foreign to us modern folks, even though we've been appropriating it for ages. We're free to pillage, plunder, mock and adapt their stories because nobody believes in them or bases their identity on them. Same goes for Slavic, Norse, and a slew of other mythologies.
There are still native Americans around though, and some of them might feel that their stories are being taken from them, another sign that white people disrespect their traditions.

If your question is about using mythology in your stories: go for it. Do your research, be respectful, and tell a good story. You can never please everyone.

If your question is about not stepping on anyone's toes: stick to 'white people' mythologies. A pity if you ask me, stories have always been based on other stories, people have always borrowed from other peoples they have come into contact with. Integration is not oppression and appropriation not neccessarily theft.
Click to expand...

I guess it's a little of both, as I thought the latter worry was implied in my original post. I want to be respectful of the people I'm borrowing ideas from, but without a healthy dose of research I feel like a bull in a literary china shop. It really doesn't help that I live on the opposite end of the country from the Navajo Nation (or any other native tribe that counts Coyote among its legends) and I'm wondering how much creative license is too much.

It doesn't help that by necessity, Coyote, like all tricksters, can be kind of a dick. How much of a dick is something I haven't decided on yet. :P
 
Crow T R0bot said:
It really doesn't help that I live on the opposite end of the country from the Navajo Nation (or any other native tribe that counts Coyote among its legends) and I'm wondering how much creative license is too much.
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I wouldn't worry. From what I know of Navajo and Hopi religion Westerners make a much bigger deal of Coyote than they do; the Corn and War gods are the sacred ones. Something like comparing Brer Rabbit to Jesus.
 
Crow T R0bot said:
What is the "right" way to write a story on something unique to a culture that isn't your own?
Click to expand...

I wouldn't worry about it. Their culture will still be there, and if they're not satisfied with the way other people have represented it they're welcome to do their own take on it.

If it was good enough for Shakespeare, that's good enough for me.
 
Crow T R0bot said:
What is the "right" way to write a story on something unique to a culture that isn't your own?
Click to expand...

There is no wrong way, let me put it like that. You're creating fiction by borrowing ideas from another culture's mythology - you're not incorporating those myths into your own personal culture/life style (however that would work..).

Appropriation is me wearing a turban for stylistic purposes. Appropriation is not me creating a fantasy world that's hatched from a cosmic egg, like in Hindu mythology.
 
Blaster said:
Appropriation is me wearing a turban for stylistic purposes.
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I wouldn't go that far. Turbans do not belong to any one culture, and they have been worn in the West (if not that popularly) for at least a century. If it is worn just because one thinks it is cool and stylish, that's adoption, not appropriation. Japanese playing baseball or Chinese eating hamburgers are not pretending to be Americans.

On the other hand, if one is wearing a turban particular to some specific ethnic or religous group because one claims to feel 'a deep spiritual connection' or otherwise tries to claim some measure of identification with those people, that is appropriation. I'm talking about people like my aunt (by marriage) who once claimed, by virtue of some small fraction of "Cherokee" ancestry, that her great-something-grandmother was an "indian princess" and so took to wearing feathers in her hair and buckskin fringe.
 
Someday THor is going to beat the crap out of Stan Lee for the way he is portrayed in Marvel comics.
 
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