Myth and Geology

Myth and Geology PDF

Author: Luigi Piccardi

Publisher: Geological Society of London

Published: 2007

Total Pages: 366

ISBN-13: 9781862392168

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"This book is the first peer-reviewed collection of papers focusing on the potential of myth storylines to yield data and lessons that are of value to the geological sciences. Building on the nascent discipline of geomythology, scientists and scholars from a variety of disciplines have contributed to this volume. The geological hazards (such as earthquakes, tsunamis, volcanic eruptions and cosmic impacts) that have given rise to myths are considered, as are the sacred and cultural values associated with rocks, fossils, geological formations and landscapes. There are also discussions about the historical and literary perspectives of geomythology. Regional coverage includes Europe and the Mediterranean, Afghanistan, Cameroon, India, Australia, Japan, Pacific islands, South America and North America. Myth and Geology challenges the widespread notion that myths are fictitious or otherwise lacking in value for the physical sciences." -- BOOK JACKET.

The Legend of Atlantis and the Science of Geology

The Legend of Atlantis and the Science of Geology PDF

Author: Joseph O'Donoghue

Publisher:

Published: 2024-06-21

Total Pages: 0

ISBN-13:

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This book is the first of a series that is itself the first serious scientific and open minded treatment of Plato's Atlantis legend to have been written by a qualified geologist in the last one hundred years, at least. Contrary to most geologists, the author treats the legend in a balanced way, without preconceptions or the dismissals that so typify the usual academic attitude to the question. In parallel with this treatment of Atlantis, the author takes a critical approach to the orthodox science of geology, and its theories. There is a simple either/or question here; if geology has everything right, then Atlantis is a myth. If, on the other hand, the Atlantis legend can be shown to have some validity, then the science of modern geology could be potentially false, and the science of geology will be investigated throughout this series. Therefore, this book series endeavors to redress the imbalance in the way these two subjects have been officially treated. A thorough study of the Atlantis question should determine its reliability, while a critical analysis of the science of geology should do the same for the so-called story of our planet. This first volume focuses on the Atlantis legend itself, and analyzes it from a mythological point of view, including classical and modern scholarly opinion, language, structure, and what is known about Plato. Most importantly, the legend will be analyzed from a geological point of view and other myths about floods and catastrophes will also be investigated. Catastrophe and flood legends are prevalent the world over, but in this study, certain legends from the Pacific Northwest of the United States were discussed by academic geology in connection with the new discipline of geo-mythology. This volume takes a serious look at these legends and the orthodox treatment of them. The conclusions reached in this volume are that the Atlantis legend cannot easily be dismissed, and would appear to be based on real events in the distant past.

Legends of the Earth

Legends of the Earth PDF

Author: Dorothy B. Vitaliano

Publisher:

Published: 1973

Total Pages: 328

ISBN-13:

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The slower geologic processes are represented by myths associated with natural landforms, rocks and minerals, rivers and mountains, and other outstanding features of the landscape. Examples are also given to show some minor ways in which folklore and geology impinge on one another: misconceptions about geologic phenomena, such as earthquakes, which are so prevalent as to constitute a form of modern folklore, and conversely, ideas long considered to be pure folklore which may prove to have some basis in scientific fact. The most dramatic example of geomythology so far discovered is the theory the origin of the lost continent of Atlantis may be found in the Minoan civilization of Crete, which suddenly disappeared from view around 1450 B.C., about the time of a tremendous eruption know to have occurred in the nearby volcano, Santorin. This theory, variously developed by Marinatos and Galanopoulos, is examined in the light of new evidence gathered in Crete by Mrs.

Geomythology

Geomythology PDF

Author: Timothy J. Burbery

Publisher: Routledge

Published: 2021-05-25

Total Pages: 82

ISBN-13: 1000407772

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Gold-guarding griffins, Cyclopes, killer lakes, man-eating birds, and "fire devils" from the sky—such wonders have long been dismissed as fictional. Now, thanks to the richly interdisciplinary field of geomythology, researchers are taking a second look. It turns out that these and similar tales, which originated in pre-literate societies, contain surprisingly accurate, pre-scientific intuitions about startling or catastrophic earth-based phenomena such as volcanoes, earthquakes, tsunamis, and the unearthing of bizarre animal bones. Geomythology: How Common Stories Reflect Earth Events provides an accessible, engaging overview of this hybrid discipline. The introductory chapter surveys geomythology’s remarkable history and its core concepts, while the second and third chapters analyze the geomythical resonances of universal earth tales about dragons and giants. Chapter 4 narrows the focus to regional stories and discusses the ways these and other myths have influenced legends about griffins, Cyclopes, and other iconic creatures. The final chapter considers future avenues of research in geomythology, including geohazard management, geomythology databases, geomythical "cold cases," and ways the discipline might eventually set, rather than merely support, research agendas in science. Thus, the book constitutes a valuable asset for scientists and lay readers alike, particularly in a time of growing interest in monsters, massive climate change, and natural disasters.

Time’s Arrow, Time’s Cycle

Time’s Arrow, Time’s Cycle PDF

Author: Stephen Jay Gould

Publisher: Harvard University Press

Published: 1988-01-01

Total Pages: 242

ISBN-13: 0674263987

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Rarely has a scholar attained such popular acclaim merely by doing what he does best and enjoys most. But such is Stephen Jay Gould’s command of paleontology and evolutionary theory, and his gift for brilliant explication, that he has brought dust and dead bones to life, and developed an immense following for the seeming arcana of this field. In Time’s Arrow, Time’s Cycle his subject is nothing less than geology’s signal contribution to human thought—the discovery of “deep time,” the vastness of earth’s history, a history so ancient that we can comprehend it only as metaphor. He follows a single thread through three documents that mark the transition in our thinking from thousands to billions of years: Thomas Burnet’s four-volume Sacred Theory of the Earth (1680–1690), James Hutton’s Theory of the Earth (1795), and Charles Lyell’s three-volume Principles of Geology (1830–1833). Gould’s major theme is the role of metaphor in the formulation and testing of scientific theories—in this case the insight provided by the oldest traditional dichotomy of Judeo-Christian thought: the directionality of time’s arrow or the immanence of time’s cycle. Gould follows these metaphors through these three great documents and shows how their influence, more than the empirical observation of rocks in the field, provoked the supposed discovery of deep time by Hutton and Lyell. Gould breaks through the traditional “cardboard” history of geological textbooks (the progressive march to truth inspired by more and better observations) by showing that Burnet, the villain of conventional accounts, was a rationalist (not a theologically driven miracle-monger) whose rich reconstruction of earth history emphasized the need for both time’s arrow (narrative history) and time’s cycle (immanent laws), while Hutton and Lyell, our traditional heroes, denied the richness of history by their exclusive focus upon time’s arrow.

China Myth or History?

China Myth or History? PDF

Author: J.G. Cheock

Publisher: J.G. Cheock

Published: 2017-10-02

Total Pages: 237

ISBN-13:

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Viewing ancient China in world context, exploring the possibilities of international activities particularly in relation to the Philippines, during their classical dynasties based on the presence of abundant artifacts, ancient texts, and new archaeological discoveries.

World Myth or History?

World Myth or History? PDF

Author: J.G. Cheock

Publisher: J.G. Cheock

Published: 2017-10-02

Total Pages: 535

ISBN-13:

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World myth deciphered and organized into a coherent story of our past. It is almost impossible to read world mythology without noticing common threads and patterns that seem to paint a bigger picture. A story told by our ancient ancestors for future generations to remember and learn. What if the eyewitnesses to past events were taken seriously? What if we listen to their stories with unbiased ears, free of assumptions? What if their stories were backed up by scientific discoveries? What if the myths can explain the mysteries?

Routledge Library Editions: Myth

Routledge Library Editions: Myth PDF

Author: Various Authors

Publisher: Taylor & Francis

Published: 2022-07-30

Total Pages: 1142

ISBN-13: 1317548612

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Routledge Library Editions: Myth reissues four out-of-print classics that touch on various aspects of mythology. One book looks at the work of Martin Buber on myth, and another on the school of Gernet classicists. Another book studies comparative mythology and the work of Joseph Campbell, and the last book in the set looks at the role of the gods and their stories in Indo-European mythology. 1. Martin Buber on Myth S. Daniel Breslauer (1990) 2. The Methods of the Gernet Classicists: The Structuralists on Myth Roland A. Champagne (1992) 3. The Uses of Comparative Mythology Kenneth L. Golden (1992) 4. The War of the Gods Jarich G. Oosten (1985)

On the Origin of Myths in Catastrophic Experience, vol. 1: Preliminaries

On the Origin of Myths in Catastrophic Experience, vol. 1: Preliminaries PDF

Author: Marinus Anthony van der Sluijs

Publisher: All-Round Publications

Published: 2019-01-01

Total Pages: 442

ISBN-13: 1999438329

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Creation myths around the world reveal an intricate network of recurrent motifs. Many of these are counterintuitive and not widely known, describing a time when the sky was low, the stars did not yet shine, multiple suns appeared, the moon was brighter than the sun, no land existed, deities and mortals maintained frequent contact, a 'world axis' in the form of a tree, ladder or giant man connected the earth with the sky, a devastating flood or fire ended the old order, and so forth. The present work, in multiple volumes, aims to find an origin for this cross-culturally and internally consistent body of traditions in a series of extraordinary natural events relating especially to the earth's transition from the last glacial period to the Holocene. This first volume sets the stage for the interdisciplinary hypothesis. Essential lines of research receive a historical introduction: comparative mythology, catastrophism and the study of the mythical world axis in relation to the earth's rotation. Various astronomical and meteorological interpretations that are not strictly catastrophist are explored for several types of myths about the sun, the moon and the world axis, but leave many of the most intriguing traditions unexplained. It is argued that a structural core of the worldwide mythology of 'creation and destruction', in which the cosmic axis takes pride of place, points to a specific period of dramatic natural circumstances in real prehistoric time. A new synopsis is provided of this universal mythological substrate. It emerges that the mythical world axis cannot have been based on a single object seen or imagined at one of the poles, as has usually been supposed. This surprising conclusion paves the way for the innovative geomagnetic theory proposed in volume 2.

Myths and Ancient Stories

Myths and Ancient Stories PDF

Author: Kevin Mills

Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing

Published: 2024-05-02

Total Pages: 170

ISBN-13: 1350346861

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An introduction to ancient myths and the critical discussions that surround them, this book dives into the stories of pre-modern culture, taking a comparative look at how they have shaped the West and modern storytelling as we have come to understand it today. It makes texts and scholarship from near Eastern, Classical and Celtic disciplines engaging and accessible, and traces narrative meaning through stories from ancient Mesopotamia to the BritishMedieval Period, offering compelling pathways into such writings as The Epic of Gilgamesh, Genesis and Job, The Odyssey, The Mabinogi, The Life of St Cadoc and Sir Orfeo. Looking at each in detail, Myths and Ancient Stories also explores myth through a modern lens, probing at how, in this scientific age, it continues to inspire contemporary film, games and literary works such as those by, Margaret Atwood, Colm Tóibín, Madeleine Miller and Pat Barker. Impressive in breadth and bringing together a wide range of foundational texts from diverse traditions for the first time, this work is the ideal orientation to the ancient works central to English literary culture, shedding light on the mythological roots of storytelling and narrative.