The word myth literally means word or story. As long as humans have existed and have been self aware, myths have been told in some form or another -- either through storytelling, drama or even dance. Myths function in a variety of different ways. First of all, they are used to explain the unexplainable (how did man get fire, how was the world created). Myths are also used to teach moral behavior through example and also serve a religious function. We can use myths to look into the psyche of a past culture. We can learn from myth what was important to that culture at that time as well as how people related to each other. Myths tell us much about how ancient cultures saw the world around them and how they thought they fit into that universe. As with the myth of Tantalus, we even learn that ancient cultures struggled with the same issues that we struggle with to this day. "Zeus punished Tantalus ... by hurling him into Tartarus, a terrifying place in the deepest region of the world, a prison of darkness, mists, howling winds and thick bronze walls. There Tantalus stands, trapped in the pool of water under the inaccessible fruit. Over his head a huge rock is delicately balanced, poised to fall at any moment." From "King Tantalus" by Barbara Mackay Download the full text of "King Tantalus" (.pdf)