Parallel Myths

This is an extremely well-researched and well-organized volume comparing the mythological stories of past civilizations and showing similarities and trends within humanity. Mr. Bierlein provides an insightful examination of these parallel myths and shows the common threads all humans have. This was a wonderful journey not only into the past, but also into the present, and shows how we have shaped certain aspects of our current world. Highly recommend. Its is educational at its core and thought-provoking in its purpose.

It's no secret that many mythologies from all over the globe contain similar elements. This book dives into those similarities, to explore the necessity (if there is such) of myth for mankind.The mythologies and pantheon covered in this book range from the Norse to the Polynesian to the Aztecs to the monotheism of the Middle East, and many more in between.The book begins by exploring what myth is - and what it is not. Myth doesn't mean a story that is inherently untrue; rather, a myth is a story that gives meaning and purpose to man.Armed with this definition, we plunge into the parallel myths. Here you will find uncannily similar myths relating to such topics as creation, morality, the flood, death, love, and more.The concluding chapters examine what it is about these topics that have so captured man's imagination since time immemorial. Are these myths part of our collective unconscious, as suggested by C.G. Jung? Or are they merely facets of individual fancy, written and passed down?Ultimately, it is up to us to decide the measure of myth, having been presented with the parallels and theories regarding them.I would very highly recommend this book to anyone with an interest in religion or anthropology, or merely curious about the wonders of Human imagination (thus this review's title). Very much worth the read.

this was a valuable read for the purpose of introducing yourself to the study of mythology.biggest con: much of the texts themselves lack basic information - their authors, translators, dating, etc. i had so many background questions about the texts that were never annotated or explained.biggest pros: the author provides an abundant about of texts throughout the world for comparison. the author arranges them in a logical order and allows the reader to explore them together.but the biggest pro about this book were the final two chapters, where the author sketches the major theories of Mythology and the history of academic demythologization. fascinating stuff and worth the effort to understand if you’re new to the subject.this was an excellent read. if the author ever annotated the background information to the primary texts, this thing would be absolute gold. still, it proved to be very valuable for me nonetheless.

I'm reading this book for a college course on Mythology that I'm taking, and I'm finding it very interesting, and a fun read. The author makes the myths very easy to read and understand, and also goes into detail about the history of myths, and why all cultures share the same themes and stories, even though they are separated from each other. Definitely give this one a try if you are interested in getting into the study of mythology at all.

Encludes some myths that I've never even read about. I highly recommend this to anyone with an interest in mythologies from around the world. The only problem I had was at the end of the book when the author, who had a religious bias, misqoutes Joseph Campbell. He makes it sound as if Mr. Campbell was a religious man, when he clearly stated on a t.v. show concerning his book THE POWER OF MYTH that he was a skeptic. The author believes that the parallel themes are an innate idea placed there byGod. The author I felt wasn't qualified in the field of neurobiology to make such sweeping claims. Still the myths in this book seemed to be "untouched" by the author's religious bias.

I READ THIS BOOK BECAUSE IT WAS REQUIRED FOR A COURSE I AM TAKING AT OLLI-UGA. I THINK THAT ALL PEOPLE, THROUGH INSTINCT, RECOGNIZE A SINGLE ULTIMATE POWER WHO IS UNEXPLAINABLE AND WHO CREATED ALL THINGS. THIS BOOK MANAGES TO SHOW THAT MANY DIVERSE CULTURES THROUGHOUT THE WORLD ACKNOWLEDGE SUCH A BEING. I REALLY ENJOYED THE BOOK. I AM EVEN MORE CONVINCED THAT THERE IS A GOD WHO SENT HIS SON TO EARTH TO PROVIDE US A WAY TO HEAVEN.

The book was cheaper than the school bookstore & in great shape!

I'm a student of mythology and this was excellent I read it along with primal myths by Barbara Sproul it was like a mini course at home

This book works for me. It provides me with a succinct account of mythological heros the world over. I 1st heard of it by Bobby Hemmitt

This is undoubtedly the finest primer to Comparative Mythology that one can access. In it, the discussion has been arranged under the following heads~Part One: An Invitation to Myth—1. An Introduction;2. The Cast of Characters;Part Two: The Myths—3. Beginnings— The Creation Myths;4. The Earliest Times;5. The Flood Myths;6. Tales of Love;7. Morality Tales from the Myths;8. Four Parallel Stories;9. Some Brief Myths of the Hero;10. The Journey to the Underworld and the Path of Death;11. The End— Visions of the Apocalypse;Part Three: The Modern Readings of Myth—12. Views of Myth and Meaning;13. Parallel Myths and Ways of Interpreting Them;14. Myth— Yours, Mine, and Ours.These are followed by Bibliography and Index.Best thing about this book apart from its encyclopaedic nature? The simplicity of language, lucidity, and brevity in presentation. Most importantly, unlike other celebrity authors Bierlein didn't fall into the trap of over-analysing everything into Jungian archetypes. Instead, he has left the readers to draw their own conclusions and tell their own stories.Highly Recommended.

Very interesting read

i like it. Easy read!

Needed this book for an Elective course for school. So far, so good. I wish the author would have included how to pronounce some names in parenthesis. Takes me a good minute to sound out and guess some of the names but it's interesting! The book is also a great size! I love wider books so I can hold them easier.