Myths of the origin of fire

by James George Frazer

According to an ancient Greek legend, Prometheus stole fire from Olympus and gave it to humankind, incurring the wrath of the great god Zeus and providing the world with its greatest treasure. Fanciful though this story may seem, it contains within it an element of cosmic truth; for among human inventions, fire is truly one of the most phenomenal and may well have seemed almost divine in origin. This volume examines the Prometheus myth, as well as other stories about the discovery of fire from various ages and from all parts of the world. Examining these narratives, we can see three successive phases of culture: the time when we were ignorant of the use of fire; when we used fire, but did not understand how to kindle it; and when at last we learned how to produce fire and bend it to our needs. A rich and intriguing collection of fantastic tales that sheds light on the dark corners of human consciousness.

Genres: Mythology

238 pages, Hardcover

First published May 1, 1975

About the author

Sir James George Frazer was a Scottish social anthropologist influential in the early stages of the modern studies of mythology and comparative religion. His most famous work, The Golden Bough (1890), documents and details the similarities among magical and religious beliefs around the globe. Frazer posited that human belief progressed through three stages: primitive magic, replaced by religion, in turn replaced by science.
He was married to the writer & translator Lilly Grove (Lady Frazer)

Reviews

[Mohamedridha Alaskari محمد رضا العسكري · Rating 4 out of 5]

اول لبنة في بناء تاريخ البشرية هي تلك الاساطير التي بدأ بتدوينها وتناقلها الانسان القديم. تلك الاساطير ماهي الا محاولة جدية للاجابة عن تلك الاسئلة التي فرضت نفسها على العقل البشري منذ زمن بعيد.
يتناول هذا الكتاب اساطير اكتشاف التار ضمن جدول زمني ينقسم الى:
١- عصر الجهل بوجود النار وكيفية استخدامها
٢- عصر اكتشاف النار واستخدامها للدفئ والطهي ولكهنم لازالوا يجهلون كيفية ايقادها.
٣- عصر اكتشاف طرق اشعال النارواستخدامها بانتظام.

اعتبر هذا الكتاب اساسي ومهم لكل من يريد ان يبدأ بالأنثروبولوجيا لدوره المهم في تفسير ظاهرة النار وذلك عن طريق سرد اساطير اصل النار عند الانسان في اكثر من ١٦ بقعة على الارض تواجد بها الانسان البدائي، انطلاقا من استراليا وانتهاءا بالهند.

[Roberto Yoed · Rating 3 out of 5]

An etnographical work that posits at the very end that all the myths presented (from Asia, America, Europe and Australia) have, aside from the fantasy, a kind of historical veracity.

The recount is good as a descriptive work, but the theoretical part is weak.

Still, a good book.

[Rosemay · Rating 3 out of 5]

Pas de theorie ou autre. Juste une collection de mythes.

[Funda Guzer · Rating 3 out of 5]

Konu çok ilginç fakat kitap çok yüzeysel . Derine inmemiş ve sonuç bölümü oldukça havada kalıyor .

[Martin Lutonsky · Rating 2 out of 5]

Mýty o původu ohně posbírané po celém světě. Docela mi neseděla zkrácená forma vyprávění. Zjistil jsem to sice až ke konci knížky (při Prometheovi - kterého mám moc rád, ale tato zkrácená verze byla fakt divná), ale o to větší mohl být potenciál pokud by mýty byli vyprávěny v delší podobě. Tak třeba příště.

[Mephistopheles · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting reference book, it has fire myths from all cultures. A bit dated (calls certain cultures 'savages') but still presented a really fascinating overview of a fascinating subject. Dry, best used as reference in conjunction with a more up-to-date work.

[Annette · Rating 4 out of 5]

A re-read.