Quote:
Originally Posted by Uncle Robin
An anthology of mythology without any commentary or exposition, would imo be fiction. Analysis or discussion of mythology or folklore would be nonfiction
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Yes, though there are people that claim to follow old religions of Norse or Celts, and to a lesser extent Egyptian, Greek, Roman, or Babylonian but most if not all of those current so-called neo-pagan are invented between Victorian era and 1950s. There are lots of books on physic powers & and spiritualism (Victorian), Wiccan (invented c. 1952), Tarot (18th C as divination, card games since c. 14th), Astrology (current system has mediaeval roots but dates to Babalonian times).
Defunct religions, Myth, legend, folktales etc are not all the same thing. Folktales and fairy tales are mostly oral fiction written down since "fairy tale" ("conte de fées" in French) was first ascribed to them by Madame d'Aulnoy in the late 17th century.
Some myths or Legends written down much earlier (Sumer, Akkad, Egypt, Babylonian, Greek, Roman, Celtic, Norse). The oldest Norse MSS are from versions written in Iceland (c. 13th or 14th C. and sent to Denmark). Some surviving Irish ones are as old as 10th C. or earlier and some from Bronze Age oral tradition (1800 to 500 BC in Ireland).
Some claim to be historical. A certain range of Irish MSS is actually a strange mix of historical and fictional events.
So I'd put most post 15th Folklore in Fiction or its own category.
Modern versions of long defunct religions or entirely modem ideas such as Scientology get their own category.
Actually documented old religions, or ones still practised go under "Religion".
Myth & Legend are not quite the same thing but I usually lump them together, or they would be under fiction. Some was written as history. c.f. some Arthurian stuff and Irish Book of Invasions.
Books analysing or cataloguing the above would be non-fiction, though Golden Bough and Robert Graves are very unreliable.
Fiction or Non-Fiction is thus a little to binary.
What's the difference between Folktales / Fairy Stories and Fantasy?
Fantasy is stories written from the start, not transcribed oral tradition, by a known author. It may be inspired by or based on older works.
Folktales and Fairy Stories are oral traditions collected and written down since the 15th C. This started in England maybe from 1490s and in France popularised by Marie-Catherine d'Aulnoy from 1690s.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Madame_d%27Aulnoy
Shakespeare and his contemporaries by 1590s were certainly using written sources of fairy tales or folktales as well as history, myth & legend.
Written stories regarded as myth and legend have existed since writing was invented. Gilgamesh was worshipped by the 21st century BC so there is an overlap between myth & legend and also history and religion. Thus binary fiction and non-fiction is misleading.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gilgam...Netherworld%22
Irish people created new mythos about early Christians in Ireland such as the three Irish Patron Saints Patrick (who did exist), Bridget (who might be a re-invention of the Celtic Fire Goddess) and Columba (the one with least myths). Patrick was never canonised and was adopted 1st in Armagh long after death for political reasons against Cashel and others. Became Patron Saint in about 16th (or 15th?) because Lent laws tightened and his Feast day is in Lent (17th March).
So I'd put most about
Columba under non-fiction or history or religion, many books about St. Patrick under fiction and almost everything about St. Bridget under Fiction (or myth & Legend).