Prehistoric Myths in Modern Political Philosophy PDF Download

Author: Karl Widerquist
Publisher: Edinburgh University Press
ISBN: 0748678697
Category : Philosophy
Languages : en
Pages : 272

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Book Description
How modern philosophers use and perpetuate myths about prehistoryThe state of nature, the origin of property, the origin of government, the primordial nature of inequality and war why do political philosophers talk so much about the Stone Age? And are they talking about a Stone Age that really happened, or is it just a convenient thought experiment to illustrate their points?Karl Widerquist and Grant S. McCall take a philosophical look at the origin of civilisation, examining political theories to show how claims about prehistory are used. Drawing on the best available evidence from archaeology and anthropology, they show that much of what we think we know about human origins comes from philosophers imagination, not scientific investigation.Key FeaturesShows how modern political theories employ ambiguous factual claims about prehistoryBrings archaeological and anthropological evidence to bear on those claimsTells the story of human origins in a way that reveals many commonly held misconceptions

Author: Karl Widerquist
Publisher: Edinburgh University Press
ISBN: 1474431208
Category : Electronic books
Languages : en
Pages : 274

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Book Description
This book looks at how modern philosophers pass on myths about prehistory. Why do political philosophers talk so much about the Stone Age? The state of nature, the origin of property, the origin of government, and the primordial nature of inequality and war are popular topics in political philosophy, but are they being used as more than just illustrative examples? Does the best available evidence from archaeology and anthropology support or conflict with the stories being passed on by political philosophers?This book presents a philosophical look at the origin of civilization, examining political theories to show how claims about prehistory are used and presents evidence that much of what we think we know about human origins comes not from scientific investigation but from the imagination of philosophers.

Author: Karl Widerquist
Publisher:
ISBN: 9781474430968
Category : Political science
Languages : en
Pages :

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Book Description
This book looks at how modern philosophers pass on myths about prehistory. Why do political philosophers talk so much about the Stone Age? The state of nature, the origin of property, the origin of government, and the primordial nature of inequality and war are popular topics in political philosophy, but are they being used as more than just illustrative examples? Does the best available evidence from archaeology and anthropology support or conflict with the stories being passed on by political philosophers? This book presents a philosophical look at the origin of civilization, examining political theories to show how claims about prehistory are used and presents evidence that much of what we think we know about human origins comes not from scientific investigation but from the imagination of philosophers.

Author: Robert Alan Segal
Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA
ISBN: 0198724705
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 161

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Book Description
This Very Short Introduction explores different approaches to myth from several disciplines, including science, religion, philosophy, literature, and psychology. In this new edition, Robert Segal considers both the future study of myth as well as the impact of areas such as cognitive science and the latest approaches to narrative theory.

Author: Helen Morales
Publisher: OUP Oxford
ISBN: 0191579335
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 168

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Book Description
From Zeus and Europa, to Diana, Pan, and Prometheus, the myths of ancient Greece and Rome seem to exert a timeless power over us. But what do those myths represent, and why are they so enduringly fascinating? Why do they seem to be such a potent way of talking about our selves, our origins, and our desires? This imaginative and stimulating Very Short Introduction goes beyond a simple retelling of the stories to explore the rich history and diverse interpretations of classical myths. It is a wide-ranging account, examining how classical myths are used and understood in both high art and popular culture, taking the reader from the temples of Crete to skyscrapers in New York, and finding classical myths in a variety of unexpected places: from arabic poetry and Hollywood films, to psychoanalysis, the bible, and New Age spiritualism. ABOUT THE SERIES: The Very Short Introductions series from Oxford University Press contains hundreds of titles in almost every subject area. These pocket-sized books are the perfect way to get ahead in a new subject quickly. Our expert authors combine facts, analysis, perspective, new ideas, and enthusiasm to make interesting and challenging topics highly readable.

Author: Jeffrey Andrew Barash
Publisher: University of Chicago Press
ISBN: 0226036898
Category : Philosophy
Languages : en
Pages : 244

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Book Description
In 1933 eminent philosopher Ernst Cassirer (1874–1945) fled Nazi Germany for the United States. His fame in Europe having already been established through a public debate with Martin Heidegger in 1929, Cassirer would go on to become a noteworthy influence on American culture. His most important early writings focused on the symbol and symbolic interaction, exploring how human cultures—from early myth-based ones to our own modern, scientifically oriented time—have used symbols to mediate the basic forms of experience. Following this work, Cassirer extended his insights to encompass a broad spectrum of philosophical themes: from investigations into Western epistemological and scientific traditions to aesthetics and the philosophy of history to anthropology and political philosophy. Reflecting this diversity in Cassirer’s own work, The Symbolic Construction of Reality collects eleven essays by a wide range of contributors from different fields. Each essay analyzes a different aspect of his legacy, reassessing its significance for our contemporary world and bringing much-needed attention to this seminal thinker.

Author: Karl Widerquist
Publisher: Screening Antiquity
ISBN: 9781474447423
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 308

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Book Description
Examining the origin and development of the private property rights system from prehistory to the present day This book debunks three false claims commonly accepted by contemporary political philosophers regarding property systems: that inequality is natural, inevitable, or incompatible with freedom; that capitalism is more consistent with negative freedom than any other conceivable economic system; and that the normative principles of appropriation and voluntary transfer applied in the world in which we live support a capitalist system with strong, individualist and unequal private property rights. The authors review the history of the use and importance of these claims in philosophy, and use thorough anthropological and historical evidence to refute them. They show that societies with common-property systems maintaining strong equality and extensive freedom were initially nearly ubiquitous around the world, and that the private property rights system was established through a long series of violent state-sponsored aggressions.

Author: Adrienne Mayor
Publisher: Princeton University Press
ISBN: 0691245606
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 400

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Book Description
The fascinating story of how the fossils of dinosaurs, mammoths, and other extinct animals influenced some of the most spectacular creatures of classical mythology Griffins, Centaurs, Cyclopes, and Giants—these fabulous creatures of classical mythology continue to live in the modern imagination through the vivid accounts that have come down to us from the ancient Greeks and Romans. But what if these beings were more than merely fictions? What if monstrous creatures once roamed the earth in the very places where their legends first arose? This is the arresting and original thesis that Adrienne Mayor explores in The First Fossil Hunters. Through careful research and meticulous documentation, she convincingly shows that many of the giants and monsters of myth did have a basis in fact—in the enormous bones of long-extinct species that were once abundant in the lands of the Greeks and Romans. As Mayor shows, the Greeks and Romans were well aware that a different breed of creatures once inhabited their lands. They frequently encountered the fossilized bones of these primeval beings, and they developed sophisticated concepts to explain the fossil evidence, concepts that were expressed in mythological stories. The legend of the gold-guarding griffin, for example, sprang from tales first told by Scythian gold-miners, who, passing through the Gobi Desert at the foot of the Altai Mountains, encountered the skeletons of Protoceratops and other dinosaurs that littered the ground. Like their modern counterparts, the ancient fossil hunters collected and measured impressive petrified remains and displayed them in temples and museums; they attempted to reconstruct the appearance of these prehistoric creatures and to explain their extinction. Long thought to be fantasy, the remarkably detailed and perceptive Greek and Roman accounts of giant bone finds were actually based on solid paleontological facts. By reading these neglected narratives for the first time in the light of modern scientific discoveries, Adrienne Mayor illuminates a lost world of ancient paleontology.

Author: Chris Gosden
Publisher: Oxford University Press
ISBN: 0198803516
Category : HISTORY
Languages : en
Pages : 153

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Book Description
Recent archaeological discoveries from China and central Asia have changed our understanding of how human civilization developed in the period of some 4 million years before the start of written history. In this new edition of his Very Short Introduction, Chris Gosden explores the current theories on the ebb and flow of human cultural variety.

Author: Barrett Williams
Publisher: Barrett Williams
ISBN:
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 74

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Book Description
Discover the timeless echoes of ancient myths that reverberate through our modern world with the ground-breaking eBook "Unraveling the Tapestry of Time." This thought-provoking tome meticulously weaves together the enduring threads of myth and legend that continue to shape and influence contemporary governance, political ideologies, and societal structures. Embark on a profound exploration of the ancient narratives that define the bedrock of our political landscape in Chapter 1, where you'll delve into the transformative role of myths and their evolution from past to present. Step into the world of political heroes in Chapter 2 and unveil the power of the Hero's Journey that from myth has traversed to become the archetype of political leadership. Witness the rise of modern Titans of Industry in Chapter 3 and peer into the deification of entrepreneurs within the mythology of wealth and success. Chapter 4 challenges you to dissect political ideologies as mythic tales, from Communism and Capitalism to the myth of the Nation-State. Traverse democracy’s historical roots and its Hellenic connections in Chapter 5, and rediscover the Roman influence on modern governance in Chapter 6. Enter the shadow realms of the Chthonic Power in Chapter 7 as secret societies and surveillance become a haunting reality. Grapple with the Myth of the Just War as Chapter 8 confronts the glorification and politicized use of militaristic force. Connect with the land in Chapter 9 through the lens of agricultural myths and understand environmental policies and land rights like never before. Witness the cunning of The Trickster in political strategy in Chapter 10, revealing the impact of populism and the political outsider. Chapter 11 presents a Tower of Babel, symbolizing the intersection of cultural diversity and political tension, before Chapter 12 invites you to decode political ceremonies as the new myth-making practices. Contemplate utopian and dystopian narratives in Chapter 13, and uncover the resurgence of the Feminine in Power with Chapter 14. Chapter 15 heralds a cyclic view of history, while Chapter 16 unwraps the immortal narratives that compose national identity. Chapter 17 evokes the submerged city of Atlantis as a metaphor for environmental politics, before digital realms offer new myths of power in Chapter 18. Chapter 19 dramatizes political scandals as contemporary tragedies, and finally, Chapter 20 concludes the odyssey by examining the myths driving expansionist politics and territorial conquests. "Unraveling the Tapestry of Time" offers a staggering panorama of how ancient paradigms persist and influence the modern arena of power and ideology. This book is a must-read for those enchanted by the union of past and present, the intellectual thrill-seekers looking to uncover the hidden powers of myth within the realities of our world. Embrace this journey through time and let the pages guide you through an enriching odyssey – a testament to humanity's unbreakable bond with its most primal stories.