The classic work on the meaning of myths and legends.

It's important to note that the abridged version of this book, aside from being abridged, omits Frazer's most groundbreaking and controversial (at the time) thesis, regarding Christianity's relationship to the rest of humankind's myriad religions. ( )

This is an impressive collection of global customs that is tainted by the author’s racism, and ignorance. Sometimes they brush with brilliance but the reader must come with enough updated knowledge to get anything of value out if this book. ( )

So far, while it does a lot of mythological name-dropping, and the very thin veil of a theme seems accurate, I'm tempted to say that this book is a real mess. Goddesses with mixed up attributes, bald-faced assumptions about ancient societies, and rampant misspellings almost turn me off. And yet, I have stamina. I have fortitude. I shall endure another escaped slave trying to murder me so he can break off the branch of my sacred tree and so take my place.

Some random, albeit unfortunate, quotes:

"And they were forced to lay upon some erections."

"And she was given the gift of a cock."


Seriously enough, I've been very impressed by the work. Ok, so on my ebook reader, it only runs up to a little under 1500 pages, and there are at least a dozen accounts as proof of each point. I cannot, in good faith, find fault with much of his conclusions. I was astonished to realize how many assumptions I had held about Osiris were completely balderdash. At least I've been put to rights about the real reason he was worshiped. Hint: it wasn't because they never found his penis.

Overall, the main themes are drilled into our skulls so thoroughly that there's no way we could ever forget them, even if we tried. The best and the worst that I can say for this work is that it is very thorough. I can honestly say I've heard discussions of the many themes, as I'm sure most of us have; fertility deities, all manifestations thereof.

What I was most astonished to feel, after reading this work, was a great sadness. I look back at all of the thousands of cultures that have independently worshiped the same principles over time and see how they were systematically wiped out as "poppycock", and I wonder about the now-lost depth of understanding that is now lost to time and chronos... and I wonder if Uranus ever did find his penis. ( )

This is a great and fascinating work, steeped in detail and careful scholarship, and very well-written.

The pity is that the underlying assumption of the work, that the customs it details are evidence of a primitive, pan-European, primitive culture was not in fact well founded. There is evidence enough that many of Frazier's pagan survivals were in fact developments of the high middle ages, perhaps immemorial but not antique.

It's still a wonderful and compelling book, as long as one keeps in mind that the patterns it documents are more widely spread in time, and less primitive, than Frazier thought. ( )