International Journal of Language & Literature

Myth and the Extraordinary Event
José Manuel Losada

Abstract
There is no myth without extraordinary event that gives it the supernatural qualities it requires in order to become part of the literary and mythological History. A definition should be given about what “extraordinary” means: an event involving facts done by personal beings (either gods or human) belonging to the supernatural world is an extraordinary one (e.g. the fight between gods and titans). But there are also myths involving personal beings who act only in the natural world (Clytemnestra). This article also presents some groups of beings categorized in categories by their origin and acts performed in each world (natural, divine...), in an attempt to demonstrate that a personage of the natural world may be involved in a process of mythification under specific conditions. Thus we can explain that human beings can operate ordinary facts in the natural world, and that these human :even sometimes historic: beings may become myths (Alexander the Great, Humphrey Bogart).

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