So what am I talking about? Well, as a fantasy writer/artist, I deal with a lot of mythology. One of the big things I've noticed about it is that people have all sorts of different perceptions of what things are. The most perfect example of this I can think of is the kobold. What do you think of when I say that?
When I think of kobolds, the image that comes to mind are small, scaly reptiles with a penchant for mining, and distantly related to dragons. Part of that comes from playing a lot of Dungeons & Dragons, where that's exactly what a kobold is. However, I'm sure many of you are thinking of something else. You WoW players are probably imagining little rat men running about with candles on their head (also miners). Other people could also be imagining little goblin-esque men with a myriad of magical powers.
Originally, they were that last one. Go ahead and look it up if you don't believe me. They originated in Germanic folklore, and have changed over the years. This sort of thing happens all the time too. Go look up pictures of manticores, chimeras, even dragons (on that note, check out The Flight of Dragons by Peter Dickinson if you can find it. Fascinating read), and you'll see some extreme diversity.
So how does it happen? Well, over the years the stories change. The way I figure it, every time an artist or author uses a mythological creature, they take a bit of creative license. It doesn't have to be much. Let's whip out an example here. Say you have an encounter with a mean dog. A Pomeranian, because it's funnier that way. The dog chases you off. Later you're recounting the tale with your friends. You can't tell them a small, fluffy dog scared you off, so you exaggerate and say it was a fierce mongrel. Later, one of your friends has a similar encounter with the same dog. When he tells the story, he remembers your tale, and adds a few details of his own, saying that it possessed claws and fangs that could rend a man asunder. Let's fast forward a few years, and suddenly this ornery Pomeranian is a fell and terrible werewolf.
That sounds pretty ridiculous, doesn't it? To so dramatically change a creature like that. But the thing about evolution is that it doesn't happen overnight. It can take hundreds or thousands of years to affect any grand change.
Which leads me to the reason I'm writing. The other night I was thinking about angels. Specifically, their wings. I can never get them to look right when I'm drawing, but that's actually true of most things. Anyway, I began to wonder on the origins of the wings of angels. It occurred to me that Heaven is invariably described as being 'up' from wherever you current location is. So it stands to reason that when people spoke of those who descended from the heavens, that they must have added wings. Because logically, how can you get back 'up' without a means to fly?
Then I thought some more. We have a much clearer understanding of 'up' now. We know that the 'up' where angels come from must be far more distant than we'd previously imagined. Wings just aren't going to cut it anymore, even with divine intervention.
Somehow, this all lead to a drawing of an angel with a jetpack.
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| Even angels need goggles. Safety first. |
