The color of the world changes day by day
So I have a writing/theological question. Is it offensive to mix together gods and pretend that they were always the same god to begin with, just that stories separated them?
I have a tendency to work with gods a lot recently, both because of my fondness for Loki in the marvel world and because my inborn fascination with gods and religions. So I have been writing and doing research into a lot of different religions. (Verdict: There are A LOT of gods and goddesses. Who knew, right? :P) Some gods and goddesses seem very similar, though I am not sure as of now if that is from actual cultural dissemination, from archetypes, or generally because people want to pay homage to the same sorts of things over and over. So I have been toying around
The thing is I am trying not to be disrespectful to any religion, including the extinct ones. I don't want to impose ethnocentricity or cultural superiority over a culture simply because I think they are close enough. I am all too aware because of my general fondness for Rome that there are cultural implication in each god and goddess even if they are essentially "stolen" from another culture. If you want an example take Mars and Ares. Ares is generally a pretty big fuck up, considered to be a blowhard and a bit of a coward. This says something about the way Greeks (Really Athenians if I'm being precise since I highly doubt the Spartans felt this way and I will not speak for the other Greek cultures) viewed war. Mars on the other hand is proud and victorious, viewed very positively. But ostensibly they are the same god, so would be lumped together. I would do this but on a greater cultural level, not denying the tales of either but creating an amalgamation of the two and treating it as my character. I would never hope to cover all gods, but I would hope to do this for greater tales and a fuller character as well as a more global feel to the story. Yet I do not want to seem ignorant.
Then again perhaps I'm making too big a deal of this and over-thinking everything. I have been helping a friend write a wild west styled world and today I had to argue in favor of witch burnings and putting Christianity in the setting. (Seriously, I am all in favor of equality but you can't discount the fact that Christianity exists within the U.S. as of the time that westerns are typically set in. It really doesn't do anyone any services to act in ignorance of history just because it is "unPC" now.) After that I just kept thinking things over and over wondering if maybe I was being too callous about things. I'm sure it will pass, but for now my mind swims with questions.
I have a tendency to work with gods a lot recently, both because of my fondness for Loki in the marvel world and because my inborn fascination with gods and religions. So I have been writing and doing research into a lot of different religions. (Verdict: There are A LOT of gods and goddesses. Who knew, right? :P) Some gods and goddesses seem very similar, though I am not sure as of now if that is from actual cultural dissemination, from archetypes, or generally because people want to pay homage to the same sorts of things over and over. So I have been toying around
The thing is I am trying not to be disrespectful to any religion, including the extinct ones. I don't want to impose ethnocentricity or cultural superiority over a culture simply because I think they are close enough. I am all too aware because of my general fondness for Rome that there are cultural implication in each god and goddess even if they are essentially "stolen" from another culture. If you want an example take Mars and Ares. Ares is generally a pretty big fuck up, considered to be a blowhard and a bit of a coward. This says something about the way Greeks (Really Athenians if I'm being precise since I highly doubt the Spartans felt this way and I will not speak for the other Greek cultures) viewed war. Mars on the other hand is proud and victorious, viewed very positively. But ostensibly they are the same god, so would be lumped together. I would do this but on a greater cultural level, not denying the tales of either but creating an amalgamation of the two and treating it as my character. I would never hope to cover all gods, but I would hope to do this for greater tales and a fuller character as well as a more global feel to the story. Yet I do not want to seem ignorant.
Then again perhaps I'm making too big a deal of this and over-thinking everything. I have been helping a friend write a wild west styled world and today I had to argue in favor of witch burnings and putting Christianity in the setting. (Seriously, I am all in favor of equality but you can't discount the fact that Christianity exists within the U.S. as of the time that westerns are typically set in. It really doesn't do anyone any services to act in ignorance of history just because it is "unPC" now.) After that I just kept thinking things over and over wondering if maybe I was being too callous about things. I'm sure it will pass, but for now my mind swims with questions.