Folklore, Myth, Legend

Some folklore, fairy tales, or legends serve as interesting parables that convey spiritual realities by example. We probably don't want to read or watch the Twilight series, but also there the myth of the vampire is flipped on its head to a degree.

I believe that folklore and mythology has important lessons embedded that can help us to understand certain things - acting as a sort of parable. If we consider how myths develop, it's likely that they represent subconscious realities and questions. To become a popular folktale, the aspects of a story must be "agreed upon" in some sense. That is, it must resonate with enough people for it to be passed on. Legends are filtered through the consciousness (intuition, memory) of a lot of people and therefore it becomes a distilled and interesting tale.

The tropes of folklore and legend can teach us things as well. The hero's journey is a repeated theme. There are also familiar characters. In addition to the hero are the villain, the father, the mother, the step-mother, the soothsayer, the damsel, and others.