Dragon Impact upon Media

Sure, you've read dragon stories all over the internet. Chances are, you've read Beowolf or another story with a dragon within it sometime in school. Why is it that we not only learn about dragons on our own time but also in school? Well, dragons have majorly impacted media, and, in turn, the media has majorly impacted dragons.

• Evil Dragons: Why are they so common?
• Good Dragons: Where did they come from?
• Dragon Impact upon Artwork
• Dragon Impact upon Literature

In Greek and Roman mythology, these beast were viewed as, in part, evil. The Hydra, the beast killed by Heracles, is one of these evil dragons. In addition, the dragon that gaurded the Golden Fleece was also evil. So, back within the past, the dragon's need to hoard items and evil nature is rooted. This is, most probably, why the some dragons are viewed as evil.

Now, Catholocism did not help dragons. Since Satan (the Great Evil of the religion) took upon a dragon/snake form throughout the Bible. This lead to the many Famous French Dragon Tales, and it also lead to English Dragons being evil. Many countries that had their royal religion as Catholocism during their developing periods usually had evil dragons. This makes sense, too, as religion and the culture of people is reflected clearly into their mythology. Still, some areas retained their dragons as good beings.

Though some dragons were seen as pesky, if they did not purposely harm civilians or local towns, they are usually considered good-natured. In the same instance, dragons that aren't going about helping people yet do not harm them are also considered good. Just because a dragon fears a human that was "good" does not mean that the dragon was evil. After all, a bunch of perfectly innocent dragons were killed in the past, one being Kinabalu. In one sense, it seems the "newer" dragons have learned from the "older" dragon's mistakes of trusting humans.

Ollipeist of Ireland was a dragon who ran from St. Patrick. However, he had a good reason for his flight - after all, he was going to be kicked out anyways.

Now, how does all this tie into the good dragon stories? Well, you have to remember that dragons come from all parts of the world and from different time periods. As it was stated before, mythology reflects the religion, culture, and circumstances of the people of that time. For instance, those who lived in Mesopotamia had war-like dragons. Why? Well, Mesopotamia was considered the middle of the world, and it was exposed to constant warfare.

For the most part, good dragons can be found in China, Norse/Germanic, India, and Aztec/Mayan mythology. The most notable of all is, of course, the Quetzalcoatl, the dragon that was more peaceful than the Aztecs.

Finding a mix of dragons is much easier. The Babylonian/Sumerian Dragons, New Zealand Dragons, Egyptian Dragons, and Japanese Dragons.

Therefore, especially during the Golden Ages of different countries, old folk lore and mythology was revived constantly. More so, religions would contribute a great deal to this revival, and it is interesting to note that all the "major" religions (Zoroastrianism, Christianity, Judaism, Buddhism, Hinduism, Islam, and so forth) all mention serpents, snakes, or dragons in their teachings or stories.

Today, many people still quote Shakespeare. In a sense, people draw dragons for this same reason - the prestige and symbolism of the dragon runs deep. Modern artwork now has even more options as far as dragons go, for the tools for finding information have grown considerably.

Furthermore, the dragon's popularity has allowed it to spread to children, who grow up. Some of those children will, some day, write a book or draw a picture and maybe become famous for what they have done. The cycle will continue, especially with the fame dragons have now.

In many books, dragons play an important role, but are "secondary" characters, so to speak. A good example of this can be found in The Dragon Prince, where the dragons are a crucil asset to the storyline, yet they do not have personalities.

Other books have dragons in a secondary role, but they are not very important to the book. Sure, in The Hobbit, Smaug was important. However, how important was his character? Over all, he was just a prop to make the book more exciting, to give the story more flavor, and to give the reader an antagonist.

On quite the other hand, dragons can and have played a major role in novels. Now, how did these beast effect literature as a whole? Heroines and heores are commonly referred to as "Crushing the serpent beneath the heel."

It is also important to note that when there is a creature that is just as versitile as human beings, it becomes known. Sure, cats can be seen as both good and evil, right? But, think about it this way: When you are reading Dragon Sleeping and can connect attributes of that dragon to Smaug in The Hobbit, it shows how powerful dragons are.

How often have you heard Hercules compared to someone else, such as Achilles? Much like the humans in literature, dragons can be connected. Not just by their common traits, but by the simple fact of them being a dragon. Just as Hercules and Achilles are strong, the dragons are connected simply for one sole attribute.