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106th out of 210 books
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278 voters
The Golden Bough: A Study in Magic and Religion: A New Abridgement from the Second and Third Editions (Oxford World's Classics)
A classic study of the beliefs and institutions of mankind, and the progress through magic and religion to scientific thought, The Golden Bough has a unique status in modern anthropology and literature.
First published in 1890, The Golden Bough was eventually issued in a twelve-volume edition (1906-15) which was abridged in 1922 by the author and his wife. That abridgement...more
First published in 1890, The Golden Bough was eventually issued in a twelve-volume edition (1906-15) which was abridged in 1922 by the author and his wife. That abridgement...more
Paperback, 912 pages
Published
April 1st 2009
by Oxford University Press
(first published 1890)
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Influential without bound and ere-breaking of ground, this is undeniably a major modern classic that reshaped its entire field. Of course, most of Frazier's theses have been broadly discredited, but it's not like you're studying comparative mythology to build bridges with it (although it's been proposed that unsold copies of Joseph Campbell, shredded to a fine mist, would provide high-quality industrial weathering and cheap insulation suitable for the Third World).
That having been said, this boo...more
That having been said, this boo...more
Discovering The Golden Bough, and then Graves' The White Goddess (which owes a critically huge debt to the Golden Bough), was a life-changing time for me that recast the stories I had vacuumed up at that age, from Greek myths to Kipling, as about something more than their contents or even the authors intent. It was first published over 100 years ago; still, nothing can get a boy into that modernist, meta- meta- meta- perspective on society like The Golden Bough. Of course it's only fair that we...more
O lucrare enorma despre gandirea magica si religioasa a societatilor vechi si a celor necivilizate care abunda in ritualuri si taboouri de tot felul. Frazer, autorul le categorizeaza in magia homeopatica si contagioasa.
Magia homeopatica consta in idea ca asemanatorul lucreaza similar originalului. Exemplu clasic ar fi papusa woodoo - papusa reprezinta un oarecare rau si orice rau facut papusei va afecta originalul.
Magia contagioasa ar fi ca obiecte sau persoane atinse de alt lucru sau persoana...more
Magia homeopatica consta in idea ca asemanatorul lucreaza similar originalului. Exemplu clasic ar fi papusa woodoo - papusa reprezinta un oarecare rau si orice rau facut papusei va afecta originalul.
Magia contagioasa ar fi ca obiecte sau persoane atinse de alt lucru sau persoana...more
Book Description
A classic study of the beliefs and institutions of mankind, and the progress through magic and religion to scientific thought, The Golden Bough has a unique status in modern anthropology and literature. First published in 1890, The Golden Bough was eventually issued in a twelve-volume edition (1906-15) which was abridged in 1922 by the author and his wife. That abridgement has never been reconsidered for a modern audience. In it some of the more controversial passages were droppe...more
A classic study of the beliefs and institutions of mankind, and the progress through magic and religion to scientific thought, The Golden Bough has a unique status in modern anthropology and literature. First published in 1890, The Golden Bough was eventually issued in a twelve-volume edition (1906-15) which was abridged in 1922 by the author and his wife. That abridgement has never been reconsidered for a modern audience. In it some of the more controversial passages were droppe...more
A classic, groundbreaking piece of comparative mythology and anthropology. It's influenced Jung, Campbell, T.S. Eliot and even Apocalypse Now.
It's a bit dated, particularly in its sticking to the "primitive savage" evolves into "sophisticated civilization" model, but alot of the basic principals are still very sound.
Frazer starts a single incident, a Latin ritual of a King of the Forest, who is ritually killed and replaced by his successor.
He uses this a launching pad for a far reaching, glob...more
It's a bit dated, particularly in its sticking to the "primitive savage" evolves into "sophisticated civilization" model, but alot of the basic principals are still very sound.
Frazer starts a single incident, a Latin ritual of a King of the Forest, who is ritually killed and replaced by his successor.
He uses this a launching pad for a far reaching, glob...more
i didn't actually finish this. i valiantly read on to page 368 until the repetition, racism, imperialism and sexism wore me down. every time, after several pages of examples, JGF said something like, 'a few more examples will suffice to prove...', i wanted to stab myself in the neck.
the content is actually very interesting (although i bummed to hear that a lot of it has been discredited) and just thinking about how he organised all this information blows my mind, but, see paragraph one.
a huge we...more
the content is actually very interesting (although i bummed to hear that a lot of it has been discredited) and just thinking about how he organised all this information blows my mind, but, see paragraph one.
a huge we...more
This is not a "review" of the classic "Golden Bough." This is a review of several hardback and soft back editions available to the collector which are complimentary to each other's content and pagination. The purchaser may wish to take care in selecting which edition of the Golden Bough they consider for purchase. Several hardbound editions exist.
The most common edition is the 2-volume abridged 4th edition,this is the edition supervised by Graves widow; it is woefully incomplete. It seems Mrs. G...more
The most common edition is the 2-volume abridged 4th edition,this is the edition supervised by Graves widow; it is woefully incomplete. It seems Mrs. G...more
1 like · like · see review
The Golden Bough is no doubt an exercise in patience. To be clear, I have not finished this book, and will not for many years. This book takes time to digest and fully understand, but once that time is taken to contemplate it, literally everything that can be seen in the world opens up to the insights that are provided. Expecting to read this book once, without careful pause and effort, is akin to attempting to understand the enlightenment of the ages in an afternoon. I can see how many parts of...more
I listened to this book in my car over 42 hours driving to and from Riverside. Sheesh. I guess this is an interesting and important work, but I have some issues with it. Of course I do, judging it from my own perspective rather than from the time it was written. First, I think that comparing people in time and space is spurious--"savages" in Africa and Asia are not the same as "savages" from ancient times. To postulate that all peoples move along a common timeline is problematic. Second, he over...more
Although the topic of ancient times is an interesting one, the writer's style makes it almost as interesting as a 1975 edition of the IBM-360 job control language manual. Older computer science types will understand. I'm referring to an extremely dry manual of a very tedious subject that was imperative to use correctly in order to use a high-end computer of 40 years ago. This was a slow, tedious read. Some of the information in it is... well... not quite believable unless verified by another sou...more
The classic book of comparative mythology. Between this and Joseph Campbell's "Hero with a Thousand Faces," I came to realize the universality of belief in the dead and reborn demigod at the heart of nearly all the world's religions.
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This book is swarming with folklore, mythology and animistic ritual examples. Pretty much the entire book is dedicated to short explanations of ritual practices from all over the globe. What it lacks is much in the way of a linear, coherent argument or point.
The Golden Bough is simply one of the best magical books I have read. James Frazer exhibits, in exhaustive, yet entertaining detail the rites and practices of the pagans during the Taurus Aeon of Goddess Worship prior to the beginning of the Old Testament. It is an essential study for any serious student of occultism, the large influence this work had upon Aleister Crowley is evident. Simply put, read this book, and you will open up new vistas of understanding, for those who study Magick, it wil...more
technically I stopped at page 202 (chapter 17, The Burden of Royalty). But since I don't see myself picking it up again in the foreseeable future, I'm taking it off my "currently reading"
For anyone serious about mythology, folklore, fairy tales, this book is a must-have. While this book might have never been heard of my many people today who enjoy myths and fairytales, it's a solid classic reference book and was an ambitious project for its time. I can't say much that the other reviewers haven't said already. I'm definitely glad I bought this book, it has been a worthwhile addition to my library. If you're going to buy this book, make sure to buy this specific version, as it has...more
Apr 06, 2008
Lisa
rated it
2 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Recommends it for:
Pseudo-intellectual horses' rear ends.
How I could possibly have highlighted so much of this book and yet not actually read it is a pure freakin' mystery.
I have had this edition for a long while - and I now also have picked up the free gutenberg/kindle edition to help me re-read parts of it as often as I want to....it's a big paperback with little print...it's commonly known that this is a flawed book. But it has value as a personal viewpoint of anthropology of the time (1920's) and to that point, whether Frazier's personal philosophy skews the information or not, there is still valid core information of how people might have lived. I hate the se...more
بهترین کتابیست که درباره جادو و دین خوانده ام
Originally published as a 12 volume set in 1890, the Golden Bough is classic study in anthropology. It explores the origins of primitive magic and religion by comparing multiple cultures and practices. Frazer���s main idea is belief goes through three stages of evolution; primitive magic progresses to religion and finally ends with scientific belief. Although its scientific value has faded over time, its influence on sociology, psychology, anthropology, mythology, religion, folklore and literatu...more
1 like · like · see review
May 12, 2013
Eddy Allen
rated it
4 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
arts-and-historical
Before Joseph Campbell became the world's most famous practitioner of comparative mythology, there was Sir James George Frazer. The Golden Bough was originally published in two volumes in 1890, but Frazer became so enamored of his topic that over the next few decades he expanded the work sixfold, then in 1922 cut it all down to a single thick edition suitable for mass distribution. The thesis on the origins of magic and religion that it elaborates "will be long and laborious," Frazer warns reade...more
Fascinating yet oddly dull. Frazer's "The Golden Bough" is a classic in the field of anthropology and comparative religions. So I expected it to be relatively interesting. And the core ideas were. Because Frazer's insightful mind takes a synthetic, structural view of spiritual & superstitious beliefs and practices, and finds similarities and recurrent patterns.
The downside is that the general outline of these ideas is lost in a tumble of facts. So one is left with the feeling of having read...more
The downside is that the general outline of these ideas is lost in a tumble of facts. So one is left with the feeling of having read...more
کتاب حدود هشتصد و پنجاه ست، تقریبن 50 صفحه اضافات مبتذله داره از اخر
اصل کتاب که خدا بیامرز جیمز جرج فریزر نوشته 12 جلده که این خلاصه ی اون 12 جلده
ظاهرن اون کتاب اصلی الان توی پروژه گوتنبرگ در دسترسه، البته به لطف دولت فخیمه فیلتره
فعلن که رسیدیم پایان فصل اول (صفه هشتاد و دو) میتونم بگم برعکس اون چیزی که فکر میکردم، هیجان هم داره
و چیزی رو که خودم همیشه فکر میکردم باشه ظاهرن قراره در این کتاب بهش پرداخته بشه
syncretism
که ترجمه شده همآمیزی
اینجوری که من فهمیدم یعنی آیین و آداب و رسومی که از مذهبی به...more
اصل کتاب که خدا بیامرز جیمز جرج فریزر نوشته 12 جلده که این خلاصه ی اون 12 جلده
ظاهرن اون کتاب اصلی الان توی پروژه گوتنبرگ در دسترسه، البته به لطف دولت فخیمه فیلتره
فعلن که رسیدیم پایان فصل اول (صفه هشتاد و دو) میتونم بگم برعکس اون چیزی که فکر میکردم، هیجان هم داره
و چیزی رو که خودم همیشه فکر میکردم باشه ظاهرن قراره در این کتاب بهش پرداخته بشه
syncretism
که ترجمه شده همآمیزی
اینجوری که من فهمیدم یعنی آیین و آداب و رسومی که از مذهبی به...more
Jul 29, 2012
Lisa (Harmonybites)
rated it
2 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Recommends it for:
Those Interested in Folk Lore, Anthropology, Religion, Literature
Recommended to Lisa (Harmonybites) by:
Good Reading: 100 Significiant Books
The Foreword compares Frazer and Golden Bough in its impact to such revolutionary thinkers of the 19th Century as Darwin, Marx, and Freud. This seminal work of anthropology and comparative religion first published in 1890 was in fact a great influence on Freud and Jung as well as T.S. Eliot and Yeats and the modern Neopagan movement. Frazer's influence on Joseph Campbell is obvious--he's the original. Frazer tries to argue for the monomyth--the idea that religion and myth can be reduced to a few...more
This is a fascinating book, detailing all sorts of magical and religious rites acroos the globe and down the ages. It is very well written and despite being a huge tome it has a very coherent line of argument. I did feel at time that the examples rather piled up and made it a bit heavy going but no doubt depending on where you are from it is nice to see something from your part of the world. Some of it was well known but much quite eye-opening. My copy has an excellent index which I am sure I wi...more
I read this, like many people, because I know how influential it was. I studied English in college, and this book always kept cropping up. So I thought to myself, maybe if I read this, I'll have a greater understanding of Modernist writers.
Right...
How to describe this? 850 pages of poorly argued drivel. The only part worth reading is the section on sympathetic magic. That part at least actually seems to be going somewhere and actually makes sense. It's an interesting and intelligent way of thin...more
Right...
How to describe this? 850 pages of poorly argued drivel. The only part worth reading is the section on sympathetic magic. That part at least actually seems to be going somewhere and actually makes sense. It's an interesting and intelligent way of thin...more
2 likes · like · see review
This is such an important work. If you take it from the perspective of what it is, an anthology of rituals and belief systems found in religious and non religious cultures across the globe. As some other readers have pointed out it is not linear, it is also not well coordinated in way of connecting points and making/laying out statements about those points. But what it is absolutely superb and unbeatable in, is its exhaustive amount of information. I did read the full version, and the sheer amou...more
May 04, 2010
Stephen
rated it
4 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
scotland,
19th-century
Frazer stunningly presents a progression of human thought with magic as the thesis, religion as its antithesis, and science as its synthesis. With the magical world, everything happened according to fixed patterns and the knowing man was able to intercede, manipulate these elements, and alter the future and his surroundings according to his will. With religion, everything became fixed to the whims of the gods; anything at random could happen if the gods so desired it, and man's only role in cont...more
Frasier seems to depict religion as an evolutionary process, from primitive superstition and magic on to a more refined monotheism, finally culminating in enlightened scientific thought. We find Darwin in absolutely everything these days. The problem with such a depiction, however, is that the enlightened scientitificism and rationalism of modern times has created just as much (if not far more) terror than the primitive magicians and priests of old (giving us communism, Nazism, eugenics, etc.);...more
This is one of those older books that 90 years down the line is showing its prejudices. It has a lot of useful information for a fantasy writer, but it also shows a lot of western "those primitive cultures actually believe in magic!" bias.
So -- worth checking out of the library and taking a look. Won't be your favorite, but might spark some interesting ideas. It will take you back closer to source materials. I need to take a look again sometime.
Warning -- thick, compound sentence structure!
So -- worth checking out of the library and taking a look. Won't be your favorite, but might spark some interesting ideas. It will take you back closer to source materials. I need to take a look again sometime.
Warning -- thick, compound sentence structure!
I won't repeat the excellent insights of my esteemed colleagues on this very important literary work, and instead just say that this is a beautiful edition, lovely to look at and hold in the hands, and is the perfect sourcebook both for those with a causal interest in such subjects, or for the budding scholar looking to become acquainted with it.
There is nothing quite like the full 12-volume (third edition) for those looking to go down the rabbit hole!
There is nothing quite like the full 12-volume (third edition) for those looking to go down the rabbit hole!
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| Giant Text... | 4 | 27 | May 08, 2013 09:36am | |
| nyaze fori | 1 | 4 | Sep 16, 2011 02:08am |
Scottish social anthropologist influential in the early stages of the modern studies of mythology and comparative religion.
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“By religion, then, I understand a propitiation or conciliation of powers superior to man which are believed to direct and control the course of nature and of human life. Thus defined, religion consists of two elements, a theoretical and a practical, namely, a belief in powers higher than man and an attempt to propitiate or please them. Of the two, belief clearly comes first, since we must believe in the existence of a divine being before we can attempt to please him. But unless the belief leads to a corresponding practice, it is not a religion but merely a theology; in the language of St. James, “faith, if it hath not works, is dead, being alone.” In other words, no man is religious who does not govern his conduct in some measure by the fear or love of God. On the other hand, mere practice, divested of all religious belief, is also not religion. Two men may behave in exactly the same way, and yet one of them may be religious and the other not. If the one acts from the love or fear of God, he is religious; if the other acts from the love or fear of man, he is moral or immoral according as his behaviour comports or conflicts with the general good.”
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Jan 22, 2010 05:35am