A Study Of Goddesses In Eastern And Western Mythologies From The Perspective Of Archetypal Criticism

Mythology is the story about ancient people's understanding and imagination toward some natural and cultural phenomenon. Therefore, it could also be regarded as primordial science and art consisting of mythology; at the same time, it is also the origin of modern science and art. No matter it is in the west or the east, there are similar mythologies and similar characters. In the early 20th century, myth was introduced into the field of archetypal criticism. The theoretical foundation of archetypal criticism is Carl G. Jung's psycho-analytical theory and Robert Fraser's anthropology.Among so many archetypes, various goddesses, originated from the Great Mother, occupy a very important role. In eastern and western mythologies, there are many different types and characteristic goddesses who, however, share some similar archetypal meanings. This thesis is based on archetypal criticism; it proves that female images have made great influence for the whole world in many aspects with the comparison between some typical goddess images. Through the comparison between the east and the west goddess images, this thesis tries to explain some reasons why women play an increasingly significant role in modern society.The first chapter is the simple introduction on the definition of archetypes, archetypal criticism, mythology and goddesses.The second chapter mainly analyses five typical goddess archetypes. For the goddess of life, it is the most common goddess in mythology. No matter it is ancient times or today, the goddess of life is considered as the most important goddess among different nations, and the symbol of life. The goddess of wisdom is endowed with endless wisdom, and considered as having power with endless knowledge. The goddess of love has a collective character, which is beauty. The goddess of moon occupies a critical position in many cultures all around the world, especially in mythologies, since the moon, like the sun, has numerously mysterious power. The goddess of evil is usually with beauty and wisdom, but She expresses them in a wrong way.The third chapter mainly analyses the reflection of the above goddess archetypes in specific mythologies. Since the east and the west include many nations, this thesis just chooses five typical nations:China, ancient India, ancient Egypt, Israel, and ancient Greece. This thesis analyses five types of goddesses chosen from the above five countries in order to complete the figure of goddess images, to help people understand goddesses more deeply, and explain the reason why females occupy an important position in modern world.The fourth chapter makes a summary about the analysis of the whole thesis, and discusses its significance of the analysis; at the same time, it introduces the limitations of this thesis.