An informative guide to the modern mythologies! This classic study, translated from the original French, deals primarily with societies around the world in which myth is--or was until very recently-- "living," in the sense that it supplies models for human behavior and, by that very fact, gives meaning and value to life. The author believes that understanding the structure and function of myths in these traditional societies serves to clarify a stage in the history of human thought: "myths reveal that the World, man, and life have a supernatural origin and history, and that this history is significant, precious, and exemplary."
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8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Important book for today,
By
This review is from: Myth and Reality (Religious Traditions of the World) (Paperback)
This book by Eliade looks at the function of myth as expressed through ritual, ceremony, and social rules. He argues that the myths provide templates for religious rituals, initiation ceremonies, magical charms, and social rules. In this way, all myths are myths of origin. Eliade also explores the survivals of mythic thinking in today's world.
Eliade explores a number of topics in the book including cosmogony, eschatology, mythic ideas relating to memory and forgetfulness, and more. In general he puts together a compelling view of universal trends in the function of myth. My only real complaint with the topic is that the book seems slightly dated to me-- there have been great developments in our understanding of the mindset of oral cultures since the book was originally written in French. These developments clarify a lot of the points that Eliade seems to grasp at. Hence while I think this book is well worth reading, I would highly recommend reading "Orality and Literacy" by Walter Ong first. All in all, this book will give you a different perspective on mythology and religion than you are likely to get elsewhere. I would recommend it for anyone seeking to understand these subjects and make sense out of life.
4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Myth and Reality,
This review is from: Myth and Reality (Religious Traditions of the World) (Paperback)
Myth and Realty is interesting to read in companion with Campbell's Hero with a Thousand Faces. The role of "myth" in our contemporary societies is not understood, let alone appreciated. Mircea develops ideas that anyone intrigued by the place of myth in modern culture should be looking to find.
8 of 12 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Awesome!,
By A Customer
This review is from: Myth and Reality (Paperback)
Another brilliant look at the archaic religious experience by Eliade. See also Eliade, "Myths Dreams and Mysteries." These are companion books.
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First Sentence:
FOR THE past fifty years at least, Western scholars have approached the study of myth from a viewpoint markedly different from, let us say, that of the nineteenth century. Read the first page Key Phrases - Capitalized Phrases (CAPs): (learn more)
New Year, New York, Supreme Being, Supernatural Beings, Middle Ages, The Myth of the Eternal Return, Near East, North American, Norman Cohn, Old Testament, Comparative Religion, Creator God, Earthly Paradise, Gioacchino da Fiore, Gospel of John, Greek Gods, Age of Gold, Alphonse Dupront, Clyde Kluckhohn, Dream Time, Hare Hongi, Jesus Christ, Mother Earth, The Pursuit of the Millennium New!
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Front Cover | Table of Contents | First Pages | Back Cover | Surprise Me!
FOR THE past fifty years at least, Western scholars have approached the study of myth from a viewpoint markedly different from, let us say, that of the nineteenth century. Read the first page Key Phrases - Capitalized Phrases (CAPs): (learn more)
New Year, New York, Supreme Being, Supernatural Beings, Middle Ages, The Myth of the Eternal Return, Near East, North American, Norman Cohn, Old Testament, Comparative Religion, Creator God, Earthly Paradise, Gioacchino da Fiore, Gospel of John, Greek Gods, Age of Gold, Alphonse Dupront, Clyde Kluckhohn, Dream Time, Hare Hongi, Jesus Christ, Mother Earth, The Pursuit of the Millennium New!
Books on Related Topics | Concordance | Text Stats Browse Sample Pages:
Front Cover | Table of Contents | First Pages | Back Cover | Surprise Me!
Citations (learn more)
100
books
cite this book:
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- Myth and Religion in Mircea Eliade (Theorists of Myth) by Douglas Allen on 17 pages
- The Poimandres as Myth: Scholarly Theory and Gnostic Meaning by Robert A. Segal on 9 pages
- Daily News, Eternal Stories: The Mythological Role of Journalism by Jack Lule on 5 pages
- "Trading Magic for Fact," Fact for Magic: Myth and Mythologizing in Postmodern Canadian Historical Fiction (Cross/Cultures 67) by Marc Colavincenzo on 5 pages
- Folk Roots and Mythic Wings in Sarah Orne Jewett and Toni Morrison: The Cultural Function of Narrative by Marilyn Sanders Mobley on 4 pages
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