insomuch as it is the need to understand the turns of phrase or idioms derived from them, mainly because those phrases are still used in common parlance. whether it be one's white whale or to cast pearls before swine or a Sisyphean task or a Herculean effort. some phrases come out of vogue (like how we say "between a rock and a hard place" rather than "between Scylla and Charybdis"), but in general i'd say it's good practice in general. besides some of those stories are good, regardless of cultural significance.