Mythology: The Voyage of the HeroOxford University Press, 1998 M05 28 - 288 pages What makes something mythic? What do mythic events and narratives have to do with us? In Mythology, David Leeming offers an unusual and effective approach to the subject of mythology by stressing universal themes through myths of many cultures. This anthology collects a wide array of narrative texts from the Bible to English literature to interpretations by Joseph Campbell, C.G. Jung, and others, which illustrate how myths serve whole societies in our universal search for meaning. Leeming illustrates the various stages or rites of passage of the mythic universal hero, from birth to childhood, through trial and quest, death, descent, rebirth, and ascension. The arrangement of texts by themes such as "Childhood, Initiation and Divine Signs," "The Descent to the Underworld," and "Resurrection and Rebirth" strip mythic characters of their many national and cultural "masks" to reveal their archetypal aspects. Real figures, including Jesus and Mohammed, are also included underlining the theory that myths are real and can be applied to real life. This edition is updated to include additional heroine myths, as well as Navajo, Indonesian, Indian, Chinese, and African tales. |
From inside the book
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Page xi
... story , supplementing the com- mentaries , outlining essential motifs , and suggesting connections between the stories . Since its original publication in 1973 Mythology : The Voyage of the Hero has been used successfully as a textbook ...
... story , supplementing the com- mentaries , outlining essential motifs , and suggesting connections between the stories . Since its original publication in 1973 Mythology : The Voyage of the Hero has been used successfully as a textbook ...
Page xiv
... Stories of the Greeks by Rex Warner . Pages 118 : Reprinted with permission of Princeton University Press from The Hero with a Thousand Faces , by Joseph Campbell , copyright © 1949 , renewed 1976 by Princeton University Press . Pages ...
... Stories of the Greeks by Rex Warner . Pages 118 : Reprinted with permission of Princeton University Press from The Hero with a Thousand Faces , by Joseph Campbell , copyright © 1949 , renewed 1976 by Princeton University Press . Pages ...
Page 3
... story with no basis in fact , we will have made a necessary first step toward a meaningful defin- ition of our subject . The next step involves the choice of a path . Individual temperament and inclination will be the major factors in ...
... story with no basis in fact , we will have made a necessary first step toward a meaningful defin- ition of our subject . The next step involves the choice of a path . Individual temperament and inclination will be the major factors in ...
Page 6
... story or tale ? How do we determine what is myth and what is simply local color or " fill " ? We make use of comparison - of comparative mythology . We search , as we do in dreams , for recurrent themes and patterns . We attempt to take ...
... story or tale ? How do we determine what is myth and what is simply local color or " fill " ? We make use of comparison - of comparative mythology . We search , as we do in dreams , for recurrent themes and patterns . We attempt to take ...
Page 7
... story of the Buddha and the Tree is a myth of withdrawal and meditation , but it is also a quest myth and in some ways a descent myth . The story of Gawain is a quest myth and a rebirth myth . In a large mythic event elements of many or ...
... story of the Buddha and the Tree is a myth of withdrawal and meditation , but it is also a quest myth and in some ways a descent myth . The story of Gawain is a quest myth and a rebirth myth . In a large mythic event elements of many or ...
Contents
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11 | |
Part 2 CHILDHOOD INITIATION AND DIVINE SIGNS | 41 |
Part 3 PREPARATION MEDITATION WITHDRAWAL AND REFUSAL | 67 |
Part 4 TRIAL AND QUEST | 99 |
Part 5 DEATH AND THE SCAPEGOAT | 155 |
Part 6 THE DESCENT TO THE UNDERWORLD | 183 |
Part 7 RESURRECTION AND REBIRTH | 215 |
Part 8 ASCENSION APOTHEOSIS AND ATONEMENT | 241 |
259 | |
265 | |
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Common terms and phrases
Abraham Agdistis Alan Watts Ananse angels ascended asked Attis bear behold birth blessed blood Bodhisatta body born breast Buddha called cave child Christian cried Cuulu dance dark daughter David dead death descended Dionysus divine Draupadi earth eternal Eurystheus face father fear fell fire future Buddha gave Gilgamesh girls goddess gods golden Greek Hainuwele hands hath head heard heart heaven Heracles Hercules hero Hiiaka Inanna Israel Izanagi Jesus Joseph Campbell Kauai kill king Kuan Yin Kutoyis land lived lodge Lohiau looked Lord Maenads maiden monster Moses mother mountain myth Mythology night Odysseus Orpheus Osiris Pele Pentheus permission Philistine Prometheus quest Quetzalcoatl rebirth Reprinted resurrection returned river saith unto saying Sir James Frazer sisters soul spirit stone stood story sword thee Theseus things thou told took tree underworld Utnapishtim voice Wanjiru wife woman women young Zeus