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Title: The Hero with a Thousand Faces (Mythos Books) by Joseph Campbell ISBN: 0-691-01784-0 Publisher: Princeton Univ Pr Pub. Date: 01 March, 1972 Format: Paperback Volumes: 1 List Price(USD): $16.95 |
Average Customer Rating: 4.07 (58 reviews)
Rating: 2
Summary: A Child of Its Time - But not now
Comment: When this book was written, in 1948, the very idea of questioning the rightness of Freud or Jung, even though they had fallen out with each other, was (supposedly) something only an idiot would contemplate.
Today, thanks to studies such as Richard Webster's "Why Freud was Wrong", we have learnt to treat the teachings of these men with a great deal of caution, and the psychoanalytic movement as a whole enjoys nothing like the unquestioning acceptance it claimed for itself in the first half of the 20th century.
And the point is:
There are two main flaws in Campbell's book:
1. The style of the writing is hopelessly scholarly and pedestrian. In its time, no doubt this help to justify the book's claim to be academically respectable. Today it just makes it a very heavy-going read.
2. Campbell himself attaches terrific importance to the validity of Freud and Jung's work when he seeks to explain the elements of "The Hero's Journey". And since the credibility of Freudianism in particular has been seriously undermined over the last 50 years, that inevitably consigns Campbell's work to the outer fringes of valid interpretation of the material he covers.
As interesting as the basic material is, the dry-as-dust style of writing robbed it of most of its sparkle, as far as I was concerned. The highly questionable interpretive/psychoanalytical sections further interrupted the flow - whilst adding nothing of any value.
If I'd known then what I know now, I wouldn't have bothered with this book.
I reckon you'd learn just as much about the basic process of The Hero's Journey by watching all three "Lord of the Rings" films. And it would be a whole lot more fun, to boot.
Rating: 4
Summary: A classic treatise on the mythological hero
Comment: Joseph Campbell was undoubtedly one of the most influential mythologists of the twentieth century. This, his crowning achievement, celebrates the nature of myth, and in particular the nature of the mythological hero. Drawing from sources all over the globe, from primitive stories to complex pantheistic mythologies, and including many religions still extant today, such as Christianity and Buddhism, Campbell explains the archetypal elements of the hero myth, the different forms of the heroic quest, and the purpose of the hero's life work.
Campbell's work is important because of its attempt to resurrect myth--in other words, to restore its credibility in a technological society where science rules all--and to show the important function which myth can play, even in a society as complex as ours. He argues that "whenever the poetry of myth is interpreted as biography, history, or science, it is killed" (in Chapter IV of part one, "the keys"). In other words, myth should not be viewed literally, but rather allegorically for the lesson it can teach. Furthermore, Campbell argues that truth manifests itself in many different forms, ranging from a simple fairy-tale to a complex Egyptian ritual. For Campbell, the purpose of myth is to rise above the limits set by science and reasoning, and to provide mankind with a metaphysical form of fulfillment not attainable through modern technology.
Campbell's analysis of the various parts of the hero myth is very enlightening. There are shortcomings, of course (as there necessarily must be), and the archetypes he defines are not universal in nature. Still, he does a remarkable job of showing how myths from all parts of the globe often create essentially the same hero, albeit in different forms and with different attributes dependent on local customs. My only complaint with this book is that I believe Campbell takes the parallels of psychoanalysis and myth too far, especially in Part One of the book. His argument is made good by the many examples of similar myths from distinct parts of the globe, and the use of modern dreams as examples does only little to strengthen this hypothesis.
I believe this work is a necessary part of any study of mythology. It may be dated, true, but that does not entirely discredit it as a strong analysis of the universal hero. I certainly do not regard this work as authoritative on the subject of myth, but I do think Campbell's argument is one worth considering.
Rating: 3
Summary: A legendary work, better read than heard
Comment: As a devoted fan of the great Joseph Campbell, I was excited to add this audio CD to my travel audio collection. While I will keep the collection for a subsequent journey, a refresher of sorts, the audio version is no substitute for the printed mastery of Campbell's work.
I thought this guide to the mythical path of the hero would be an ideal accompaniment to the actual paths of freeway over the course of my roadtrip, but was disappointed in the audio version. The reading was hurried, to the point of me repeatedly checking if I had missed a "speed" setting.
Campbell presents a number of brilliant insights while using actual myths and legends from cultures around the world as examples. So many times, I felt rushed in considering a concept or even in organizing the distinct bullet-point criteria of the heroic journey.
In my opinion, Blum's pace does not do the material justice. So many of Campbell's examples, from different cultures and traditions, require taking a moment to virtually journey into the scenes of the mythical tale. Like the brilliant storyteller that he is, Campbell's writing brings the reader into that world, then enchants with the rhythms of the legend. To me, the rhythm of the writing gets lost in the reading.
A required challenge that makes this work difficult in any audio version is the variety of unfamiliar names and pronunciations that are necessary in descriptions of heroic tales from other tribes, languages and cultures. This factor alone would complicate any audio version of this type of anthology; however, there are employable methods to simplify or clarify the different characters to create a better organized audio image. I have traveled extensively and lived on six continents among a variety of tribes with difficult pronunciations -- I can easily imagine the extreme difficulty for someone only familiar with English names.
Like any good bedtime story reader knows, sometimes it takes a little effort to create a mental picture of a remote tale. Specifically, two simple recommendations would have improved these stories greatly: 1. SLOW DOWN, and 2. USE DIFFERENT VOICE TONES OR ACCENTS TO DISTINGUISH CHARACTERS.
1. Slow down - seems obvious, yet in several instances, there is little pause to help the listener structure the separate identities. At times, the main characters have similar sounding names (to the external audience, anyway). Imagine, for example, someone recounting the nuances of the nursery rhyme of "Jack" and "Jill" to an audience of local villagers in Thailand. Without even knowing the genders of each character by its spelling, a lot more effort is required to create the mental image of the allusion.
2. Vary Accent/Cadence - I can only recall one clear example of Blum assuming a noticeable accent among all the opportunities, and it was a butchered Irish accent for an ancient Irish myth. Unfortunately, it wasn't utilized as a way to distinguish characters, but rather as a way to make the entire tale "feel" Irish. While I believe the accent was poor in accuracy, at least its attempt allowed me to plunge into the tale fully.
In summary, I found the audio version a poor replacement for the written piece. I often found that the audio version required two or even three listening attempts to let the message sink in, but in the end, I felt like I gained from the experience. Use the audio version as a companion to your Joseph Campbell collection or a refresher. Listen to a chapter and discuss with others in the car. Listen, pause, repeat!
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Title: The Power of Myth by Joseph Campbell, Bill Moyers ISBN: 0385418868 Publisher: Anchor Pub. Date: 01 June, 1991 List Price(USD): $13.95 |
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Title: The Writer's Journey: Mythic Structure for Writers by Christopher Vogler ISBN: 0941188701 Publisher: Michael Wiese Productions Pub. Date: November, 1998 List Price(USD): $24.95 |
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Title: Myths to Live by by Joseph Campbell ISBN: 0140194614 Publisher: Arkana Pub. Date: February, 1993 List Price(USD): $16.00 |
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Title: The Masks of God: Creative Mythology by Joseph Campbell ISBN: 0140194401 Publisher: Arkana Pub. Date: March, 1995 List Price(USD): $18.00 |
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Title: Transformations of Myth Through Time by Joseph Campbell ISBN: 0060964634 Publisher: Perennial Pub. Date: 28 February, 1990 List Price(USD): $21.95 |
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