| Title | : | Work on Myth (Studies in Contemporary German Social Thought) |
| Author | : | |
| Rating | : | |
| ISBN | : | 0262521334 |
| ISBN-10 | : | 9780262521338 |
| Language | : | English |
| Format Type | : | Paperback |
| Number of Pages | : | 727 |
| Publication | : | First published January 1, 1979 |
In this rich examination of how we inherit and transform myths, Hans Blumenberg continues his study of the philosophical roots of the modern world. Work on Myth is in five parts. The first two analyze the characteristics of myth and the stages in the West's work on myth, including long discussions of such authors as Freud, Joyce, Cassirer, and Valéry. The latter three parts present a comprehensive account of the history of the Prometheus myth, from Hesiod and Aeschylus to Gide and Kafka. This section includes a detailed analysis of Goethe's lifelong confrontation with the Prometheus myth, which is a unique synthesis of "psychobiography" and history of ideas. Work on Myth is included in the series Studies in Contemporary German Social Thought, edited by Thomas McCarthy.
Work on Myth (Studies in Contemporary German Social Thought) Reviews
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Here is the best reason I can find for reading this book:
"the author undertakes...the task of overcoming the antithesis between scientific rationality and mythical thinking...extracting from the Enlightenment its kernel of truth and from the Romantic movement the same kernel of truth...the desire to make human existence possible." (page viii)
Taken separately each movement makes human existence impossible. -
started out 4-star strong, focusing on the origin of myth as intimately tied to reason and man's need to make legible the world around him. turned to goethe and his lifelong dealings with the prometheus myth, and then sputtered and died.
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the nether that is neither origin nor end.
