Join us on a literary world trip!
Add this book to bookshelf
Grey
Write a new comment Default profile 50px
Grey
Subscribe to read the full book or read the first pages for free!
I want to read the book!
All characters reduced
The Golden Bough - cover

The Golden Bough

James George Frazer

Publisher: BookRix

  • 0
  • 0
  • 0

Summary

The Golden Bough: A Study in Magic and Religion is a wide-ranging, comparative study of mythology and religion, written by the Scottish anthropologist Sir James George Frazer. The work was aimed at a wide literate audience raised on tales as told in such publications as Thomas Bulfinch's The Age of Fable, or Stories of Gods and Heroes. Frazer offered a modernist approach to discussing religion, treating it dispassionately as a cultural phenomenon rather than from a theological perspective. The influence of The Golden Bough on contemporary European literature and thought was substantial.

The Golden Bough attempts to define the shared elements of religious belief to scientific thought, discussing fertility rites, human sacrifice, the dying god, the scapegoat and many other symbols and practices whose influence has extended into twentieth-century culture.[3] Its thesis is that old religions were fertility cults that revolved around the worship and periodic sacrifice of a sacred king. Frazer proposed that mankind progresses from magic through religious belief to scientific thought.

This thesis was developed in relation to J. M. W. Turner's painting of The Golden Bough, a sacred grove where a certain tree grew day and night. It was a transfigured landscape in a dream-like vision of the woodland lake of Nemi, "Diana's Mirror", where religious ceremonies and the "fulfillment of vows" of priests and kings were held. The king was the incarnation of a dying and reviving god, a solar deity who underwent a mystic marriage to a goddess of the Earth. He died at the harvest and was reincarnated in the spring. Frazer claims that this legend of rebirth is central to almost all of the world's mythologies.
Available since: 12/19/2023.
Print length: 1632 pages.

Other books that might interest you

  • Daddy Was a Number Runner - A Novel - cover

    Daddy Was a Number Runner - A Novel

    Louise Meriwether

    • 0
    • 0
    • 0 
    This modern classic is "a tough, tender, bitter novel of a black girl struggling towards womanhood" in 1930s Harlem—with a foreword by James Baldwin (Publishers Weekly). 
 
 
 
Depression-era Harlem is home for twelve-year-old Francie Coffin and her family, and it's both a place of refuge and the source of untold dangers for her and her poor, working class family. The beloved "daddy" of the title indeed becomes a number runner when he is unable to find legal work, and while one of Francie's brothers dreams of becoming a chemist, the other is already in a gang. Francie is a dreamer, too, but there are risks in everything from going to the movies to walking down the block, and her pragmatism eventually outweighs her hope; "We was all poor and black and apt to stay that way, and that was that." 
 
 
 
First published in 1970, Daddy Was a Number Runner is one of the seminal novels of the black experience in America. The New York Times Book Review proclaimed it "a most important novel."
    Show book
  • I Give You My Heart - A True Story of Courage and Survival - cover

    I Give You My Heart - A True...

    Wendy Holden

    • 0
    • 0
    • 0 
    An unlikely friendship between two couples leads to one of the most remarkable acts of selfless sacrifice when the Nazis invade their country. 
 
 
 
A teenage girl, guilty only of being Jewish, is saved from the fate that awaits her family and hidden by her parents' Catholic friends—who pay the ultimate price for their bravery. So much was risked and so much lost but the legacy of their courage and trust lives on through the surviving generations. Now, at last, their story can be told . . .
    Show book
  • Hot Erotic Short Stories 3 in 1 - Naughty Adult Collection: Taboo Sex Stories Tantric Sex Guide and Kama Sutra for Beginners Immerse Yourself Into Forbidden Fantasies Domination and Role Play - cover

    Hot Erotic Short Stories 3 in 1...

    Eva Harmon

    • 0
    • 0
    • 0 
    Hot Erotic Short Stories 3 in 1: A Sinfully Seductive Audio CollectionPrepare to be irresistibly drawn into the sultry world of "Hot Erotic Short Stories 3 in 1: A Sinfully Seductive Audio Collection." This audiobook is your ticket to an unforgettable journey through desire, passion, and unadulterated pleasure. Featuring three captivating segments, it will captivate your senses and leave you yearning for more.?? Taboo Temptations: Forbidden Desires UnleashedExperience the allure of forbidden fantasies as they push the boundaries of what's considered off-limits. These gripping tales will awaken your deepest desires, setting your senses ablaze with a lustful intensity that's impossible to resist.?? Tantric Bliss: Ignite Your Intimate FlamesDiscover the ancient art of Tantra through the power of audio, unlocking the secrets to profound connection and heightened sensuality. This sensual guide will lead you on a journey of prolonged ecstasy and intense pleasure, transforming your intimate moments into passionate, soul-stirring encounters.?? Kama Sutra Unveiled: Sensual Exploration at Its FinestUncover the timeless wisdom of the Kama Sutra as it guides you through the art of seduction, sexual positions, and the pursuit of ultimate pleasure. Whether you're a novice or a seasoned lover, this audiobook offers a tantalizing experience.
    Show book
  • Ethical Theory - 50 Puzzles Paradoxes and Thought Experiments (Puzzles Paradoxes and Thought Experiments in Philosophy) - cover

    Ethical Theory - 50 Puzzles...

    Sarah Stroud, Daniel Muñoz

    • 0
    • 0
    • 0 
    In this new kind of introduction to ethical theory, Daniel Muñoz and Sarah Stroud present fifty of the field's most exciting puzzles, paradoxes, and thought experiments. Over the course of eleven chapters, the authors cover a huge variety of topics, starting with the classic debate between utilitarians and deontologists and ending on existential questions about the future of humanity. 
 
 
 
Every chapter begins with a helpful introduction, and each of the fifty entries includes references for further reading and questions for reflection. Among the entries are such classics as the Ring of Gyges, Jim and the Villagers, the Repugnant Conclusion, JoJo, "One Thought Too Many," the Miners Puzzle, the Gentle Murder Paradox, Nowheresville, the Experience Machine, and the Trolley Problem. The book also explores several more recent topics of interest, such as doxastic wronging and the ethics of AI, so that even advanced students are likely to discover something new. Each entry can be read on its own, and the writing is accessible and conversational throughout, making this an ideal resource for undergraduate teaching. Listeners at any level can pick up this book and see for themselves how fascinating—and puzzling—ethical theory can be.
    Show book
  • MAX YOUR LEADERSHIP! - Unlock Your Leadership Abilities With Timeless Lessons From Gettysburg - cover

    MAX YOUR LEADERSHIP! - Unlock...

    Paul Lloyd Hemphill

    • 0
    • 0
    • 0 
    The Battle of Gettysburg, fought from July 1 to 3, 1863, is the ideal template for recognizing and maximizing your leadership abilities. 
This pivotal event, the most written-about in American history, offers a rich narrative, emotional insights, and complex strategies that make it an unparalleled resource for understanding leadership. 
Here’s why Gettysburg stands out and why citing other historical events for our purpose would be unnecessarily redundant. Perhaps surprisingly, this isn’t a history book. Instead, it’s a powerful guide that harnesses the lessons from a significant historical event to illuminate vital life principles. This book not only enhances your leadership skills but also demonstrates how understanding human nature can turn to your advantage. 
The author offers a groundbreaking approach to history - one that moves beyond mere facts and statistics to use historical insights and challenging questions as a catalyst for your personal growth. In a paraphrase of historian John Toland, he wisely suggests, “History doesn’t repeat itself, human nature does.” 
Embrace this novel perspective and let the lessons from Gettysburg energize your life’s journey. 
    Show book
  • Doctors at War - The Clandestine Battle Against the Nazi Occupation of France - cover

    Doctors at War - The Clandestine...

    Ellen Hampton

    • 0
    • 0
    • 0 
    Doctors at War tells the stories of physicians in France working to impede the German war effort and undermine French collaborators during the Occupation from 1940 to 1945. Determined to defeat the Third Reich's incursion, one group of prominent Paris doctors founded a medical network to treat injured Resistance fighters who they then secretly transported to Allied countries to avoid forced labor in Germany. Another team of medics organized a cabal focused on intelligence gathering and sabotage that became one of the largest in wartime France, even after the Gestapo arrested and imprisoned its leaders. Deported to concentration camps, these physicians continued to frustrate Nazi efforts by rendering aid and keeping their fellow prisoners alive. Others joined rural guerrilla camps to care for the young conscripts fighting to block German reinforcements from reaching Normandy after the D-Day landing. 
 
 
 
These stories add a crucial dimension to the history of Occupied France. Written for both historians and general listeners of World War II history, Doctors at War stands as a dramatic, character-driven account of physicians' courage and resilience in the face of evil. It serves as a window into life under a fascist regime and the travails of doctors who negotiated the terrifying moral labyrinth that was the German military's occupation of France.
    Show book