--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Literally, the Bible is a gigantic myth…" description: "\"Literally, the Bible is a gigantic myth, a narrative extending over the whole of time from creation to apocalypse, unified by a body of recurring image..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/806/northrop-frye-3483_apocalypse_literally-the-bible-is-a-gigantic-myth-a_1334683.jpg" --- # Literally, the Bible is a gigantic myth, a narrative… ![“Literally, the Bible is a gigantic myth, a narrative extending over the whole of time from creation to apocalypse, unified by a body of recurring imagery that "freezes" into a single metaphor cluster, the metaphors all being identified with the body of the Messiah, the man who is all men, the…” quote by Northrop Frye](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/806/northrop-frye-3483_apocalypse_literally-the-bible-is-a-gigantic-myth-a_1334683.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/806/northrop-frye-3483_apocalypse_literally-the-bible-is-a-gigantic-myth-a_1334683.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/806/northrop-frye-3483_apocalypse_literally-the-bible-is-a-gigantic-myth-a_1334683.jpg) > “Literally, the Bible is a gigantic myth, a narrative extending over the whole of time from creation to apocalypse, unified by a body of recurring imagery that "freezes" into a single metaphor cluster, the metaphors all being identified with the body of the Messiah, the man who is all men, the totality logoi who is one Logos, the grain of sand that is the world.” [Northrop Frye](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/northrop-frye/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The Bible functions as a vast, unified mythic narrative where recurring images converge into a single metaphorical framework centered on the Messiah as the ultimate representation of humanity and divine Logos. **In simple terms:** The Bible is a huge, unified myth about the Messiah as humanity and divine Logos. Key Takeaway Recognize how recurring images shape overarching meaning. Themes mythology religion literary analysis symbolism theology Mood contemplative analytical Type explanatory interpretive When to use this quote - Biblical study - comparative religion - creative writing - seminar discussion Key Concepts Narrative structure metaphor clustering iconography theological archetype Questions to Reflect On - How do recurring images influence your understanding of a text? - What does the Messiah symbolize in this framework? A Different Perspective Interpretations may differ across cultures and traditions. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Apocalypse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/apocalypse/) [Bible](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bible/) [Bible Gigantic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bible-gigantic-4489845/) [Body](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/body/) [Clusters](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/clusters/) [Creation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/creation/) [Extending](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/extending/) [Freeze](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/freeze/) [Gigantic Myth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/gigantic-myth-4489846/) [Grain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/grain/) [Grains of sand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/grains-of-sand/) [He man](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/he-man/) [Imagery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/imagery/) [Literally Bible](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/literally-bible-3652353/) [Logos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/logos/) [Men](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/men/) [Messiah](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/messiah/) [Metaphor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/metaphor/) [Myth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/myth/) [Myth Narrative](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/myth-narrative-2494702/) [Narrative](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/narrative/) [Recurring](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/recurring/) [Sand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sand/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/) [Totality](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/totality/) [Unified](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/unified/) [Whole](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/whole/) [World](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/world/) ## Related quotes > [Those who wish to base their morality literally on the Bible have either not read it or not understood it...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/those-who-wish-to-base-their-morality-literally-on-the-bible-have/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) > [“The bible when taken metaphorically, provides us the truth about god; but when taken literally, the bible provides as the truth about man.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joey-lawsin/the-bible-when-taken-metaphorically-provides-us-the-truth-about-god/) [Joey Lawsin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joey-lawsin/) > [“A myth is 'a narrative involving supernatural or fancied persons embodying popular ideas or social phenomena.' Women love telling stories . . . the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lucy-o-brien/a-myth-is-a-narrative-involving-supernatural-or-fancied-persons/) [Lucy O'Brien](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lucy-o-brien/) > [The claim that myth is always a narrative spin-off of ritual; the claim that myth is the projection of human anxieties onto a cosmological…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-bringhurst/the-claim-that-myth-is-always-a-narrative-spin-off-of-ritual-the/) [Robert Bringhurst](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-bringhurst/) > [People who experience themselves as authentic are also experiencing themselves as myth, but that's not the narrative they're going with.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachel-kushner/people-who-experience-themselves-as-authentic-are-also-experiencing/) [Rachel Kushner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachel-kushner/) > [Look around when you have got your first mushroom or made your first discovery: they grow in clusters.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-polya/look-around-when-you-have-got-your-first-mushroom-or-made-your-first/) [George Polya](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-polya/) > [What the Londoner sees in his mind’s eye is that cluster of towers and pinnacles seen from Pentonville Hill and outlined against a foggy…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-betjeman/what-the-londoner-sees-in-his-mind-s-eye-is-that-cluster-of-towers/) [John Betjeman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-betjeman/) > [What wondrous life is this I lead! Ripe apples drop about my head; The luscious clusters of the vine Upon my mouth do crush…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-marvell/what-wondrous-life-is-this-i-lead-ripe-apples-drop-about-my-head-the/) [Andrew Marvell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-marvell/) > [Without doing injustice to the living, it may safely be asserted that our loss is irreparable; and that among the shining hosts of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jefferson-davis/without-doing-injustice-to-the-living-it-may-safely-be-asserted-that/) [Jefferson Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jefferson-davis/) > [There's an attraction to emotional clusters or hypocrisies or awkwardness. A desire to expose something or point at something that's already poking out.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victoria-chang/there-s-an-attraction-to-emotional-clusters-or-hypocrisies-or/) [Victoria Chang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victoria-chang/) > [Whenever learners or those beyond learning awaken the mind, for the first time they plant one buddha-nature. Working with the four elements and five…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dogen/whenever-learners-or-those-beyond-learning-awaken-the-mind-for-the/) [Dogen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dogen/) > [In turbulent times, in times of great change, people head for the two extremes: fundamentalism and personal, spiritual experience...With no membership lists or even…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-naisbitt/in-turbulent-times-in-times-of-great-change-people-head-for-the-two/) [John Naisbitt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-naisbitt/) > [I think the recent cluster of WWII novels is so good because we have reached an optimal distance from the war. Just as a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-cleave/i-think-the-recent-cluster-of-wwii-novels-is-so-good-because-we-have/) [Chris Cleave](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-cleave/) > [You look around the world at geniuses, and they don't appear randomly, they appear in genius clusters. Athens in 50 BC, Florence 1500, Silicon…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-weiner/you-look-around-the-world-at-geniuses-and-they-don-t-appear-randomly/) [Eric Weiner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-weiner/) > [It shows you exactly how a star is formed; nothing else can be so pretty! A cluster of vapor, the cream of the milky…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-disraeli/it-shows-you-exactly-how-a-star-is-formed-nothing-else-can-be-so/) [Benjamin Disraeli](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-disraeli/) ## More by Northrop Frye > [I soon realized that a student of English literature who does not know the Bible does not understand a good deal of what is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/northrop-frye/i-soon-realized-that-a-student-of-english-literature-who-does-not/) [Northrop Frye](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/northrop-frye/) > [Our country has shown a lack of will to resist its own disintegration .. . Canada is practically the only country left in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/northrop-frye/our-country-has-shown-a-lack-of-will-to-resist-its-own-disintegration/) [Northrop Frye](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/northrop-frye/) > [“The only thing that words can do with any real precision or accuracy is hang together. Accuracy of description in language is not possible…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/northrop-frye/the-only-thing-that-words-can-do-with-any-real-precision-or-accuracy/) [Northrop Frye](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/northrop-frye/) > [The bedrock of doubt is the total nothingness of death. Death is a leveler, not because everybody dies, but because nobody understands what death…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/northrop-frye/the-bedrock-of-doubt-is-the-total-nothingness-of-death-death-is-a/) [Northrop Frye](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/northrop-frye/) > [Even the human heart is slightly left of centre.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/northrop-frye/even-the-human-heart-is-slightly-left-of-centre/) [Northrop Frye](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/northrop-frye/) > [Physics is an organized body of knowledge about nature, and a student of it says that he is learning physics, not nature. Art, like…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/northrop-frye/physics-is-an-organized-body-of-knowledge-about-nature-and-a-student/) [Northrop Frye](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/northrop-frye/) > [Literature as a whole is not an aggregate of exhibits with red and blue ribbons attached to them, like a cat-show, but the range…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/northrop-frye/literature-as-a-whole-is-not-an-aggregate-of-exhibits-with-red-and/) [Northrop Frye](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/northrop-frye/) > [One doesn't bother to believe the credible: the credible is believed already, by definition. There's no adventure of the mind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/northrop-frye/one-doesn-t-bother-to-believe-the-credible-the-credible-is-believed/) [Northrop Frye](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/northrop-frye/) > [Culture's essential service to a religion is to destroy intellectual idolatry, the recurrent tendency in religion to replace the object of its worship with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/northrop-frye/culture-s-essential-service-to-a-religion-is-to-destroy-intellectual/) [Northrop Frye](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/northrop-frye/) > [“Tendintele autoritate ale conservatorismului trebuie corectate prin mituri ale libertatii, in vreme ce un simt conservator al ordinii trebuie sa tempereze tendintele liberalismului spre…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/northrop-frye/tendintele-autoritate-ale-conservatorismului-trebuie-corectate-prin/) [Northrop Frye](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/northrop-frye/) > [Literature is a human apocalypse, man's revelation to man, and criticism is not a body of adjudications, but the awareness of that revelation, the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/northrop-frye/literature-is-a-human-apocalypse-man-s-revelation-to-man-and/) [Northrop Frye](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/northrop-frye/) > [“The particular myth that's been organizing this talk, and in a way the whole series, is the story of the Tower of Babel in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/northrop-frye/the-particular-myth-that-s-been-organizing-this-talk-and-in-a-way-the/) [Northrop Frye](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/northrop-frye/) > [Every human society possesses a mythology which is inherited, transmitted and diversified by literature.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/northrop-frye/every-human-society-possesses-a-mythology-which-is-inherited/) [Northrop Frye](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/northrop-frye/) > [Science begins with the world we have to live in, accepting its data and trying to explain its laws. From there, it moves toward…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/northrop-frye/science-begins-with-the-world-we-have-to-live-in-accepting-its-data/) [Northrop Frye](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/northrop-frye/) > [In the world of the imagination, anything goes that's imaginatively possible, but nothing really happens.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/northrop-frye/in-the-world-of-the-imagination-anything-goes-that-s-imaginatively/) [Northrop Frye](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/northrop-frye/) [Explore all 129 Northrop Frye quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/northrop-frye/) ## More Apocalypse quotes > [People always wonder when the world is going to end. I believe that the world will end when everyone stops loving.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nichole-fickes/people-always-wonder-when-the-world-is-going-to-end-i-believe-that/) [Nichole Fickes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nichole-fickes/) > [A South Korean inventor has finally created the robot that mankind has been waiting for. Scientists who have been worried about the robot apocalypse…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-pesca/a-south-korean-inventor-has-finally-created-the-robot-that-mankind/) [Mike Pesca](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-pesca/) > [The end of the world begins the moment you die.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/billy-graham/the-end-of-the-world-begins-the-moment-you-die/) [Billy Graham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/billy-graham/) > [If it makes you feel any better, this isn't my first apocalypse. There is hope.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherrilyn-kenyon/if-it-makes-you-feel-any-better-this-isn-t-my-first-apocalypse-there/) [Sherrilyn Kenyon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherrilyn-kenyon/) > [Funerals and weddings were commonplace, and nothing could have been so interesting to them as the coming of the end of the world ...…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-eggleston/funerals-and-weddings-were-commonplace-and-nothing-could-have-been-so/) [Edward Eggleston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-eggleston/) > [“The world did not end with a bang, nor did it end with a whimper. It was more of a chomp. And a slurp.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-rudolph/the-world-did-not-end-with-a-bang-nor-did-it-end-with-a-whimper-it/) [J. Rudolph](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-rudolph/) > [Nuclear apocalypse-who do you need? Actors are probably not top of the list. What can I do for you? I can pretend to be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christian-bale/nuclear-apocalypse-who-do-you-need-actors-are-probably-not-top-of-the/) [Christian Bale](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christian-bale/) > [“It was a comfortable, familiar apocalypse,”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adrian-barnes/it-was-a-comfortable-familiar-apocalypse/) [Adrian Barnes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adrian-barnes/) > [In the New Testament alone there are Gospels, acts, epistles, and an apocalypse. Gospels contain literary forms like miracles, parables, pronouncements, proverbs, farewell discourses,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/craig-blomberg/in-the-new-testament-alone-there-are-gospels-acts-epistles-and-an/) [Craig Blomberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/craig-blomberg/) > [The day came. The wrath descended. Sin, guilt, and retribution? The manic psychoses of those entities we referred to as states, institutions, systems -…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-k-dick/the-day-came-the-wrath-descended-sin-guilt-and-retribution-the-manic/) [Philip K. Dick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-k-dick/) > [“People have always been good at imagining the end of the world, which is much easier to picture than the strange sidelong paths of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rebecca-solnit/people-have-always-been-good-at-imagining-the-end-of-the-world-which/) [Rebecca Solnit](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rebecca-solnit/) > [The awkward moment when you predict the end of the world and nothing happens :P](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-awkward-moment-when-you-predict-the-end-of-the-world-and-nothing/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“I once fed a dog-fight operator to the dogs he had abused for so long, and do you want to know something? It felt…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cedric-nye/i-once-fed-a-dog-fight-operator-to-the-dogs-he-had-abused-for-so-long/) [Cedric Nye](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cedric-nye/) > [“You and I are victims of the same disease. We're fighting the same war, just different battles in different theaters, and it's way too…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isaac-marion/you-and-i-are-victims-of-the-same-disease-we-re-fighting-the-same-war/) [Isaac Marion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isaac-marion/) > [I've been around long enough now and have learned to be flexible enough to know that every movie isn't going to be Apocalypse Now…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurence-fishburne/i-ve-been-around-long-enough-now-and-have-learned-to-be-flexible/) [Laurence Fishburne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laurence-fishburne/) [Browse all 820 Apocalypse quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/apocalypse/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Literally, the Bible is a gigantic myth, a narrative extending over the whole of time from creation to apocalypse, unified by a body of recurring imagery that \"freezes\" into a single metaphor cluster, the metaphors all being identified with the body of the Messiah, the man who is all men, the totality logoi who is one Logos, the grain of sand that is the world.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Northrop Frye" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/northrop-frye/literally-the-bible-is-a-gigantic-myth-a-narrative-extending-over-the/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Apocalypse" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/northrop-frye/literally-the-bible-is-a-gigantic-myth-a-narrative-extending-over-the/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/806/northrop-frye-3483_apocalypse_literally-the-bible-is-a-gigantic-myth-a_1334683.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/806/northrop-frye-3483_apocalypse_literally-the-bible-is-a-gigantic-myth-a_1334683.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/806/northrop-frye-3483_apocalypse_literally-the-bible-is-a-gigantic-myth-a_1334683.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Literally, the Bible is a gigantic myth, a narrative extending over the whole of time from creation to…” — Northrop Frye", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Northrop Frye", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/northrop-frye/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Literally, the Bible is a gigantic...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/northrop-frye/literally-the-bible-is-a-gigantic-myth-a-narrative-extending-over-the/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/northrop-frye/literally-the-bible-is-a-gigantic-myth-a-narrative-extending-over-the/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```