by Byram Campbell
April, 1965
Mr. Campbell, a noted authority in the field of social anthropology, harkens back to one of the themes in his book, Race and Social Revolution, in which be called for a fresh view of all aspects of race relations.
What would such a fresh view entail? Not merely a willingness to face facts rather than hide from them; most importantly, a will to make the effort to learn. And this, Mr. Campbell tells us, is what is really lacking, today. His suggestion follows this thought: we need a moral revolution for without it the truth will never be faced.
What is a myth? The term originally meant, a story. But stories, now regarded as myths, sometimes acquire overtones of importance to the people who developed them, for they might endorse moral conceptions. Often, they recounted the exploits of heroes, thus tending to give listeners pride in their kind and a sense of belong-ing. In these ways, they helped develop and maintain culture.
In modern times, the term myth has acquired new meanings. For our purposes we may consider myths to be beliefs about humanity; beliefs which either cannot be proved scientifically or can only be proved in part.
Obviously, such beliefs have great potentials for good or evil. We shall deal with two of these; the one, judged by its effects on humanity, wholly evil; the other with a vast potential for good.
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