There is power in myth, great power. Something that if you’ve read my work you likely understand. Stories are some of the most powerful agents of teaching, understanding, codifying, and change that there is in the world. Myths are no exceptions, if anything, myths are often stories but on steroids. One reoccurring myth, story, or whatever you want to call it is that of the dragon slayer. A knight who goes out and braves one of the fiercest beasts known to mythology and slays it, often saving a kingdom, a tribe, a race, or even a world in the process.
At first this might seem like childlike wish fulfillment. Simply young boys who want to be grown badasses and so read stories like this. That would be the modernist, psychological interpretation. But like everything modernist it misses the point and is usually wrong. Dragon slaying and stories about dragon slayers are not young masculine wish fulfillment or whatever term is popular nowadays by those without souls. No it’s something far greater and more powerful. Many realize this, some consciously like Tolkien and Lewis some subconsciously like Howard and Burroughs.
But most great storytellers of the non-modernist school understand this. As C. S. Lewis said when defending “fairy” tales “Since it is so likely that children will meet cruel enemies, let them at least have heard of brave knights and heroic courage.” but this goes beyond children. All men have a great thing to learn from myths and especially that of the dragon slayer and what it means. But before we dive in let’s get some things straight.
Dragons In The World & In Our Lives
First off too many interpret these stories as examples of physical achievement. Slaying a dragon is an act of great physical feats and that’s what it represents in the real world. However while that could certainly be true it goes a lot deeper than that. First off we have to talk about what a dragon is an its symbology, at least from a mythic standpoint. Now obviously symbols change and a dragon in one story could play a completely different role then in another so none of this is true across all stories but does represent a good “broad picture” of the symbol of a dragon.
Dragons have been used in many different times and places. There’s mention of dragons in the Bible representing different things from Satan to Empires to monetary systems and more. There’s dragons and serpents in Greek mythology that heroes must do battle with. And then of course in European lore there is the dragon who destroys countrysides and holds nations in thrall. Then you have “modern” literature that has dragons as representations of greed and other such things.
Essentially dragons represent some great, often unconquerable (or seemingly unconquerable), evil. One that many have tried to destroy but failed or one that most live in fear of and will therefore never challenge. It can be many different things. Aspects of human nature, a government, a ideology, a religion, a corporation, a bank, a political party, a million different things to different people. One thing that’s critical to understand is that we live in a dragon haunted and controlled world. Maybe conspiracy theorists are actually on to something with the whole reptilian thing.
Slaying The Dragons
So as we see dragons can represent many different things and they exist on macro and micro levels. For example for one man his anger is a dragon to him, for another his alcoholism, for another his cowardice. Then there are greater dragons like modernity, banks, corrupt governments, and the like. These things are not slain with physical force but with decay and exposing to the light. There are dragons of the mind and spirit as well. Men talk about having no more monsters to go out and fight, but you’d have to blind not to see the horror all around you.
Even this humble little site is dedicated to slaying dragons of the mind, dragons that have destroyed and enslaved a great many men. There are dragons that seek to destroy you, that seek to destroy the things you love, that seek to destroy the people you care about, and more. These dragons are often unopposed as most males are both cowards and fools, or at the very least one or the other. Or even if they are neither they see no reason to fight, nothing good left to fight for. Therefore we have a world where the many dragons are in ascendancy.
All around us, like weeds. With strong powerful systems that feed and support the dragons while making sure no dragon slayers are created or woken. But men are called to slay dragons and will feel the call in their heart, even if its faint, until they start. Maybe not all men share this, but most do. Enough to matter, enough to make a difference, enough to give the dragons pause, that’s for sure.
Becoming A Dragon Slayer
But how does one become a dragon slayer? Well there’s not really an answer I can give you in a paragraph, at least not a true answer. For starts don’t be a fool or a coward. Once that’s covered seek out the good things in this world that are worth promoting, growing, and defending from the dragons. Take care of the ones within yourself, then the ones in your immediate vicinity. Understand you won’t take down the big great ones by yourself. Do what you can with what you have. Teach those around you about the existence of dragons and how to fight them.
Dragon slaying is a lost art that needs to be revived. There are many dragons and many ways to slay them. Learn all that you can and set to it, the world will be better off when you do. The dragons want you to think that they’re invincible, that they have all the power and you none. But that isn’t true but as long as you believe it the dragons will have nothing to fear from you and they’ll continue to wreak havoc on you and your world. Which as a man is something you can’t accept.
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-Charles Sledge
