Mythography: The Study of Myths and Rituals

By William G. Doty

Book Overview

This new edition of William Doty's critically acclaimed study provides a comprehensive guidebook to the many schools of interpretation in this burgeoning field

William Doty's popular text has been hailed as the most comprehensive work of its kind. Extensively rewritten and completely restructured, the new edition provides further depth and perspective and is even more accessible to students of myth. It includes expanded coverage of postmodern and poststructuralist perspectives, the Gernet Center, mythic iconography, neo-Jungian approaches, and cultural studies, and it summarizes what is new in the study of Greek myth, iconography, French classical scholarship, and ritual studies. It also features a comprehensive index of names and topics, a glossary, an up-to-date annotated bibliography, and a guide to myth on the Internet.

Presenting all major myth theorists from antiquity to the present, Mythography is an encyclopedic work that offers a cross-disciplinary approach to the study of myth. By reflecting the dramatic increase in interest in myth among both scholars and general readers since publication of the first edition, it remains a key study of modern approaches to myth and
an essential guide to the wealth of mythographic research available today.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0817310061
• ISBN13: 9780817310066
• Release Date: March 2000
• Publisher: University Alabama Press
• Length: 600 Pages
• Weight: 2.15 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.8" x 6.3" x 9.4"

Customer Reviews

Studying myth: the starting point

If you want to understand what 'myth' is about you need a starting point: this is William Doty's 'Mythography'. Put boldly and simply there is none of the kind. What makes this book unique, is not only the toolkit provided for reading 'myth', but the relatively detailed and clear presentation of the different schools of thought and thinkers that have been concerned with understanding what 'myth' is about. This is exactly what the title 'Mythography' suggests: an outline of conceptualisations of 'myth'. As an outline though it is not just a list: it brings into perspective the historical development of the notion of 'myth' itself. But where William Doty has particularly succeeded is to take us further than the mere historical listing of notions of 'myth': he takes us across the disciplines. He goes beyond those traditionally concerned with 'myth' (i.e. religious studies, anthropology, depth psychology) in those we never imagined would be concerned with such controversial a notion (i.e. linguistics, literary studies, cultural studies, arts, science), since for better or for worse, to use Edgar Morin, the notion of 'myth' is found everywhere.

Scholarly substance and extensive reference value.

This work is indispensable as perhaps the only comprehensive and encyclopedic overview of the analytical study of myth and ritual. Every significant theoretical perspective is covered in depth and placed within a systematic context. I found the author's philosophic and discursive approach valuable as he provides both a broad conceptual framework and the specific tools and resources necessary for deeper investigation and study. The personalized style-- at times lighthearted, wry, or ironic-- leavens the deep insights and consistent scholarly substance of this updated edition.