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A Short History of Myth

A Short History of Myth: Text Myth Series

Karen Armstrong

  • award* INTERNATIONAL MYTHS SERIES
  • Human beings have always been mythmakers.

    So begins Karen Armstrong’s concise yet compelling investigation into myth; what it is, how it has evolved, and why we still so desperately need it.

    She takes us from the Palaeolithic period and the myths of the hunters right through to the ‘Great Western Transformation’ of the last 500 years and the discrediting of myth by science. The history of myth is the history of humanity; our stories and beliefs, our curiosity and attempts t understand the world, link us to our ancestors and each other. Myths help us make sense of the universe.

    Heralding a major series of retellings of international myths by authors from around the world, Armstrong’s characteristically insightful and eloquent book serves as a brilliantly thought-provoking introduction to myth in the broadest sense?and why, if we dismiss it, we do so at our peril.

    About the Author

    Karen Armstrong was born in Worcestershire. She spent seven years in the Society of the Holy Child Jesus during the 1960s and later wrote a tell-all book, Through the Narrow Gate (1982) that bemoaned the restrictive life. She explored what Islam, Judaism and Christianity have in common in A History of God (1993), Jerusalem: One City, Three...

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    Extent:
    168pp
    Format:
    Paperback
    Text publication date:
    26 September 2005
    ISBN:
    9781920885878
    AU Price:
    $23.95
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    Praise for Karen Armstrong
    andA Short History of Myth

    ‘Witty, informative and contemplative: Ms Armstrong can simplify complex ideas, but she is never simplistic.’

    ‘Armstrong writes with sensitivity and wisdom. She employs a breadth of learning that reflects the scintillating, shifting light and shade of human experience.’

    Other editions ofA Short History of Myth
    • A Short History of Myth
      ebook
      ISBN: 9781921799525
      6 September 2010
      Buy ebook