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 | | Myth: A Very Short Introduction (Very Short Introductions) by Robert A. Segal ISBN-10: 9780192803474 ISBN-10: 0-19-280347-6 ISBN-13: 9780192803474 ISBN-13: 978-0-19-280347-4 Paperback 2004-10-21 Oxford University Press, USA Find Lowest Price |
Editorials | ||
Product Description A survey of the past 300 years of theorizing on myth, this book takes into account the work of such prominent thinkers as Albert Camus, Claude Levi-Strauss, C. G. Jung, and Sigmund Freud. It focuses on different approaches to myth, from all of the major disciplines--including science, religion, philosophy, literature, and psychology. Robert Segal considers the future study of myth, and the possible function of myth in the world as the adult equivalent of play. In order to analyze the different theories of myth, Segal focuses on the fable concerning the fate of the preternaturally beautiful Adonis. Where one theory does not work, he substitutes another myth, showing that, for all their claims to all-inclusiveness, certain theories, in fact, only apply to specific kinds of myths. A uniform set of questions is provided to elucidate both the strengths and the weaknesses of the conjectures. | ||
Reviews | ||
A study of study of myth Robert A Segal is Professor of Theories of Religion at the University of Lancaster, England, my Alma Mater, which has long had a very good reputation for Religious Studies. So it is not surprising that he is regarded as a foremost authority in his field, that of the history of myth scholarship. It is important to know that that is what this book is about -- it is not a book of myth, or even about myth, but a book about theories of myth. Put another way, it is a book not of myth scholarship, but about myth scholarship. That is an unusual subject, being two steps removed from its principal data, rather like a history of historiography. However, if the subject interests you, this is the book for you. Segal examines approaches to myth in eight different contexts or disciplines: Science, philosophy, religion, ritual, literature, psychology, structuralism, and sociology. He uses the myth of Adonis, which he relates at the beginning of the book, as a subject for each theory he examines. This is both a strength and a weakness. The good thing is that it makes comparisons between theories more meaningful, the bad thing is that some theories just aren't appropriate to that particular myth. For the latter, Segal is reduced to saying something like, "It is not clear how this could be applied to Adonis". Perhaps not, but that does not mean the theory has no value. A more flexible approach, with two or three example myths, might have been better. Admittedly, he does also reference the Oedipus myth, where the theory in question explicitly concerns that. In each of the eight sections, Segal lists some principal theorists, summarizes their theories in that particular area, and tests them against the Adonis myth. Naturally, several names recur in several different sections. After a half dozen or so thinkers, it gets a little bewildering, and you are not always going to remember who thought what. This would serve as an excellent reference work and springboard for further reading, but by itself is rather like a series of appetizers with no main course. The book rather fizzles out at the very end. There is a short section at the end of the Myth and Society chapter which gives Segal's own interpretation of the Adonis myth, followed by a Conclusion on the future study of myth. None of this follows naturally from the rest of the book, and comes across as a determined attempt by the author, having spent so much time discussing other people's ideas, to get in some of his own. The Conclusion in particular, which likens movie stars to gods, is unconvincing, as it does not take into account how fans can turn on their idols, and relish having them torn to shreds in the gossip columns. Despite those objections, there is a great weight of scholarship in this book, and if you are pursuing a thorough understanding of myth - its functions, origins and so on - then you will find it invaluable and probably indispensible. | ||