The myth of Education – as all good myths should be – is powerful and pervasive. For clarity, I refer to the Sorelian conceptualisation of myth here (Sorel, 1908), rather than any recourse to the exclusively fictional or supernatural. Georges Sorel described a myth as a strong belief that, in the course of perpetuating that same myth, keeps a group, or society, together. Protecting the myth should invoke a strength of feeling, such that Sorel comes to describe the myth itself as a kind of tableau enchanteur: an enchanting, or bewitching, picture. This suggests that the myth has a hold over a group, rather than the converse. Even the critique of a myth necessarily alludes to this mythical enchantment.

From a Scottish perspective, what is alluring about the myth of education in our culture is hope and possibility – of equal opportunity, of social mobility, of a population that fulfils the four desirable capacities of successful learners, confident individuals, responsible citizens and effective contributors (Education Scotland, 2023). Education in Scotland, then, paints a picture of itself as a boon not only for the individual but for the society as a whole. It is an important caveat to note that the myth of education will be different in different societies but rarely the case that it is ever painted as something negative.

It is no wonder, then, that such a strong myth necessitates perpetuating itself not only in its natural domain – schools, colleges and universities – but also in the arena of popular culture and its associated subcultures. It is likely that many of us will be familiar with shows such as Sesame Street with its explicit educational intention woven into every episode. Don’t Hug Me I’m Scared parodies this so-called educational programming with its garish sets, charming puppetry and regular lessons. Each episode sees an anthropomorphised object spring to life to teach the main characters their respective areas of expertise. In the course of its 12 episodes, it has dealt with such lofty concepts as time, love and creativity; and less mysterious ideas like electricity and transportation.

I intend to show how this object of popular culture parodies, and therefore critiques, the myth of education in two ways, and in doing so, contributes to its permeation. First, there is an obvious, and overall, critique of (formal) education in general. The characters are housed in an environment that they cannot easily leave, as such these didactic interludes are often framed as impositions from what they would otherwise be doing. This can be effectively construed as reflective of mandatory schooling. Further to this, despite all of the lessons delivered, nothing ever changes. If Don’t Hug Me I’m Scared is considered unsettling (Pozes, 2022), it is in part due to this implicit comment against the myth of education as conducive to positive change.

Second, one particular episode (Jobs) looks specifically at the myth of education (and its relationship to the myth of work (Ellul, 1973)). It is here that symbols of formal education are used to deliver the lesson that education is important because it leads to work, even if that job is not one that brings the desired hope and social mobility that features in our tableau enchanteur. Again, this challenges the content of the myth but inevitably referring back to it because, whether we are agreeing with it or critiquing it, we are all bound up in the myth of education.

This is a conceptual/philosophical work in which I employ a hermeneutic analysis of a cultural object to build on and challenge my understanding of an existing concept as I have framed it in some of my previous work (being prepared for publication).

My intention is to reintroduce the concept of the myth of education into current discourse by aligning it with a contemporary cultural object. It is significant to expose ideas and conceptualisations we hold about education, even if we are critical of them, is inevitably bound up in a society-wide myth. This raises further questions about the ethics of perpetuating the myth among students and young people when it may not be representative of everyone’s experience, and whether there is anything we can do to change the myth that we hold.

Education Scotland. (2023). What is Curriculum for Excellence? Available at https://education.gov.scot/education-scotland/scottish-education-system/policy-for-scottish-education/policy-drivers/cfe-building-from-the-statement-appendix-incl-btc1-5/what-is-curriculum-for-excellence/ Ellul, J. (1973). Propaganda : The formation of men’s attitudes. (K. Kellen & J. Lerner Trans.). New York: Vintage. Pozes, E. (2022, July 6). Take Don’t Hug Me I’m Scared as an Unsettling Lesson. Medium [Online]. Available at https://medium.com/@emmelpozes/take-dont-hug-me-i-m-scared-as-an-unsettling-lesson-cc159646cb6 Sorel, G. (1908). Réflexions sur la violence. France: Librairie de Pages Libres.