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Title: Myth, Ritual, and Religion, Vol. 1

Author: Andrew Lang

Release Date: September, 2001 [Etext #2832]
Posting Date: November 12, 2009

Language: English

Character set encoding: ASCII

*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK MYTH, RITUAL, AND RELIGION, VOL. 1 ***

Produced by Donald Lainson

MYTH, RITUAL, AND RELIGION

Volume One

By Andrew Lang

CONTENTS

PREFACE TO NEW IMPRESSION.

PREFACE TO NEW EDITION.

CHAPTER I.--SYSTEMS OF MYTHOLOGY.

Definitions of religion--Contradictory evidence--"Belief in
spiritual beings"--Objection to Mr. Tylor's definition--Definition
as regards this argument--Problem: the contradiction between
religion and myth--Two human moods--Examples--Case of Greece--
Ancient mythologists--Criticism by Eusebius--Modern mythological
systems--Mr. Max Muller--Mannhardt.

CHAPTER II.--NEW SYSTEM PROPOSED.

Chapter I. recapitulated--Proposal of a new method: Science of
comparative or historical study of man--Anticipated in part by
Eusebius, Fontenelle, De Brosses, Spencer (of C. C. C., Cambridge),
and Mannhardt--Science of Tylor--Object of inquiry: to find
condition of human intellect in which marvels of myth are parts of
practical everyday belief--This is the savage state--Savages
described--The wild element of myth a survival from the savage
state--Advantages of this method--Partly accounts for wide
DIFFUSION as well as ORIGIN of myths--Connected with general
theory of evolution--Puzzling example of myth of the water-
swallower--Professor Tiele's criticism of the method--
Objections to method, and answer to these--See Appendix B.

CHAPTER III.--THE MENTAL CONDITION OF SAVAGES--CONFUSION WITH
NATURE--TOTEMISM.

The mental condition of savages the basis of the irrational element
in myth--Characteristics of that condition: (1) Confusion of all
things in an equality of presumed animation and intelligence;
(2) Belief in sorcery; (3) Spiritualism; (4) Curiosity; (5) Easy
credulity and mental indolence--The curiosity is satisfied, thanks
to the credulity,