Concept in Definition ABC

The word legend It is widely used in our language and we usually use it to express various issues.

Narration that mixes real and fantastic elements associated with popular culture and custom and is transmitted orally

But without a doubt the most popular use is to designate that narration of real, supernatural events, or a mixture of both and that is characterized by being transmitted from generation to generation through the oral route, although, it can also be done written mode.

It is usually associated with the history of saints, mythological characters, patriots or heroes of the homeland, or with some notable historical events.

We can include this type of narration within what is popularly known as folklore of a community as it integrates culture and traditions more deeply rooted within it, such is the case of dreams, fears, ideas, popular vision, and that integrate the global conception that a people holds about their own history.

There is generally no objective in the legend to explain the supernatural, but rather the idea is to tell an event with the intention of entertaining or extending a vision.

moral on the matter under treatment, while therefore the attributes of those involved in it will be highlighted.

Thus, through it, the idiosyncrasy and the way a certain community has to be can be effectively appreciated.

In other words, we delve into their legends and surely we will know a lot about that people or society.

As the story usually has certain inaccuracies and some fantastic elements, it is that literary legend is placed in the middle of the myth and the real event.

Other salient characteristics of the legend is that it generally appears located in a place and at a time that are known and recognized by the community in which it is transmitted, then, this question adds some verisimilitude to the story.

It should be noted that the universe of the legend admits modifications, additions, and even deletions in the content.

In some way, its classic form of diffusion, which has been oral, generates precisely these situations.

Differences with the tale and the myth

To differentiate it from story, with which it is normally associated, it is worth mentioning that the legend, unlike him, will always appear linked to a specific event and presents it integrated into the culture, uses and customs of the community that it affects.

For its part, as we know, the story is framed within a specific time and place, although fiction elements are spoken and present in it.

Meanwhile, if we had to attribute a mission to the legend, it could be said that it is to give a foundation and an explanation to a specific culture.

They will always appear framed within a historical nucleus and are grouped around a notable character or who carries out important actions, such is the case of a hero such as Robin Hood.

It is common that when speaking of legend of the hand the concept of myth arises and many times both terms are used interchangeably, but they are not the same and it is important to mark the differences.

The myth is a story that narrates supernatural events, carried out precisely by extraordinary characters, who are not human, for example monsters, gods, among others.

Normally in this story he faces opposites, good and evil and there is a symbolic representation of some event associated with nature.

While the legend is a story that, as we have already seen, originates many times in a event that happened concretely and really in the history of a people which has been enriched or enlarged from of the inclusion of fantastic or supernatural elements.

Normally it is a social creation, in which the members of a community participate and that explains the origin of a person, a place, an event, among others.

Person who embodies feats

But the word also has other uses, in the language colloquial, that person who stars in unique and unrepeatable events or feats, that is, the idol, is usually designated as a legend. “Maradona is a soccer legend.”

Inscription in shields or coins

And on the other hand, the word is used to refer to that inscription that appears on shields, on tombstones, on coins, among others; or in the defect of him to text that has the mission of accompanying a Photography, a map, a sheet, it's called a legend.

Topics in Legend