Theseus

The tale of Theseus and the Minotaur demonstrates the four functions of mythology defined by Joseph Campbell in Occidental Mythology, with each one adding a new layer of meaning to the text. These four functions—mystical, cosmological, sociological, and psychological—each operate through the presence of a different character, or through characters’ interactions.

To be mystical, a myth must include the presence of something beyond the world and beyond the human—a divine force that guides and leads both the world and the story’s events. This function is included in “The Cruel Tribute” through the presence of Athena, goddess of wisdom and battle, and the gods of Olympus. The Athenians in the Labyrinth pray to Athena for her support in Theseus’s endeavor to defeat the Minotaur. When the tributes continue to be taken, the people of Athens “[lift] up their hands to Athena on the hilltop and [cry] out, ‘How Long, O Queen of the Air, how long shall this thing be?’” (197). They depend on Athena for protection and guidance, and they cannot fathom a world in which she is not protecting them, even when it seems she is not with them.