Goddesses In You illuminates how archetypal patterns are the doorway into a hidden universe, the key to who you truly are. From Greta Thunberg to Jacqueline Kennedy, influential women of today can be understood by looking at the 12 ancient goddess archetypes. Together, they span the panorama of features, the fullness of femininity, that exists in human imagination and the collective unconscious. Using an intuitive blend of mythology, psychology, feminism and spirituality and as a psychic lens, Goddesses In You reveals how you can better connect with these powerful inner forces that shape our lives. With profiles of sixty well-known women from celebrities to activists, creatives to pioneers, Goddesses In You highlights how these underlying archetypes are the powerful invisible threads, the DNA, that shape the roles and govern the beliefs, drives, motivations, actions and emotions of most women at some stage in their lives. Discovering how these mythological goddesses from a patriarchal past and their feminine archetypes shape behaviour and personality, influence emotions and relationships, and are responsible for the major differences in women, can awaken us to a new way of seeing ourselves and the world around us. The truth is every woman is a goddess, and therefore innately divine. Goddesses In You will help you discover the myths and archetypes that are your reality.

Hawaiian Legends of Volcanoes (1916) explores Hawaiian folktales and myths collected by W. D. Westervelt. Connecting the origin story of Hawaii to the traditions of other Polynesian cultures, Westervelt provides an invaluable resource for understanding the historical and geographical scope of Hawaiian culture. Beginning with the origin story of Pele, the goddess of volcanoes, Westervelt introduces his groundbreaking collection of legends on the volcanic nature of the Hawaiian Islands. When the goddess Pele comes to the island of Hawaii seeking a permanent home, she finds Ai-laau, another god of fire, already in possession of the territory. Despite his fearsome power over creation and destruction, Ai-laau disappeared the moment he became aware of Pele's presence. Having traveled across the limitless ocean, her name was already known far and wide, along with her reputation for strength, anger, and envy. Establishing herself within the crater of Kilauea, Pele quickly took command over the gods, ghost-gods, and the people inhabiting the islands. Central to Hawaiian history and religion, Pele continues to be celebrated in Hawaii and across the Pacific today. With a professionally designed cover and manuscript, this edition of W. D. Westervelt's Hawaiian Legends of Volcanoes is a classic of Hawaiian literature reimagined for modern readers. Add this beautiful edition to your bookshelf, or enjoy the digital edition on any e-book device.

The Masks of God is the summation of Joseph Campbell's lifelong study of the origins and function of myth. In this volume, Primitive Mythology, Campbell examines the primitive roots of spiritual beliefs among our ancient ancestors. Drawing on anthropology, archaeology and psychology Primitive Mythology confirms the fundamental unity of mankind (not only biologically but in shared spiritual history). As a whole, the landmark quartet The Masks of God traces mankind's history as a search for meaning through ideas, themes and quests of culture and religion.

Placing heroes from a wide range of medieval traditions shoulder to shoulder, this title provides the opportunity to examine what is common across medieval mythic, legendary, and folkloric traditions, as well as what seems unique. Myths of gods, legends of battles, and folktales of magic abound in the heroic narratives of the Middle Ages. Mythology in the Middle Ages: Heroic Tales of Monsters, Magic, and Might describes how Medieval heroes were developed from a variety of source materials: Early pagan gods become euhemerized through a Christian lens, and an older epic heroic sensibility was exchanged for a Christian typological and figural representation of saints. Most startlingly, the faces of Christian martyrs were refracted through a heroic lens in the battles between Christian standard-bearers and their opponents, who were at times explicitly described in demonic terms. The book treats readers to a fantastic adventure as author Christopher R. Fee guides them on the trail of some of the greatest heroes of medieval literature. Discussing the meanings of medieval mythology, legend, and folklore through a wide variety of fantastic episodes, themes, and motifs, the journey takes readers across centuries and through the mythic, legendary, and folkloric imaginations of different peoples. Coverage ranges from the Atlantic and Baltic coasts of Europe, south into the Holy Roman Empire, west through the Iberian peninsula, and into North Africa. From there, it is east to Byzantium, Russia, and even the far reaches of Persia. Each chapter begins with historical context, includes examination of key terms, and ends with suggestions for further reading A chronology and bibliography are also included

A colorful illustration of Hawaii's most cherished origin story, the myth of Pele and Hiiaka. Pele and Hiiaka: A Myth From Hawaii (1915) is a collection of folktales by Nathaniel B. Emerson. Drawing from written histories, personal experience, and extensive interviews, Emerson provides a lyrical account of the myth surrounding these goddess sisters. Pele, the goddess of volcanoes and ruler of Kilauea, and her sister Hiiaka encounter adventure, tragedy, and love during their respective journeys. These stories are not only appreciated for their beauty, but also their deep religious and cultural impact. With a professionally designed cover and manuscript, this edition of Nathaniel B. Emerson's Pele and Hiiaka: A Myth From Hawaii is a classic of Hawaiian literature reimagined for modern readers.

This volume comprises selected papers from a Tristan symposium held at the Institute of Germanic Studies in London. The symposium was conceived by the organizers as an experiment in transatlantic dialogue and the papers represent the views of scholars from a variety of North American and British universities. The main focus of attention is Gottfried's Tristan. Familiar assumptions about the text are questioned and fresh perspectives are offered on many contentious issues: those disagreements which persist are themselves a reflection posed by Gottfried's masterpiece. In addition, new light is thrown on the treatment of the Tristan theme in medieval and modern times.Contributors are: MICHAEL CURSCHMANN, W.J. MCCANN, MARGARET BROWN, C. STEPHEN JAEGER, M.H. JONES, ADRIAN STEVENS, ARTHUR GROOS, THOMAS KERTH, MICHAEL BATTS, MARIANNE WYNN, JANET WHARTON, GEORGE GILLESPIE, JOAN M. FERRANTE, LESLIE SEIFFERT, SIDNEY M. JOHNSON, PETRUS W. TAX, AUGUST CLOSS, H.B. WILLSON, ROY WISBEY.

In the twenty-first century, American culture is experiencing a profound shift toward pluralism and secularization. In Fairy Tales in Contemporary American Culture: How We Hate to Love Them, Kate Koppy argues that the increasing popularity and presence of fairy tales within American culture is both indicative of and contributing to this shift. By analyzing contemporary fairy tale texts as both new versions in a particular tale type and as wholly new fairy-tale pastiches, Koppy shows that fairy tales have become a key part of American secular scripture, a corpus of shared stories that work to maintain a sense of community among diverse audiences in the United States, as much as biblical scripture and associated texts used to.

Comprising three parts, this book is a companion volume to The Boggart: Folklore, History, Place-Names and Dialect. Part one, 'Boggart Ephemera', is a selection of about 40,000 words of nineteenth-century boggart writing (particularly material that is difficult to find in libraries). Part two presents a catalogue of 'Boggart Names' (place-names and personal names, totalling over 10,000 words). Finally, part three contains the entire 'Boggart Census' - a compendium of ground-breaking grassroots research. This census includes more than a thousand responses, totalling some 80,000 words, from older respondents in the north-west of England, to the question: 'What is a boggart?' The Boggart Sourcebook will be of interest to folklorists, historians and dialect scholars. It provides the three corpora on which the innovative monograph, The Boggart, is based.

Pull up a chair or gather round the campfire and get ready for thirty creepy tales of ghostly hauntings, eerie happenings, and other strange occurrences in Pennsylvania. Set in the Keystone State's big cites, rural communities, rugged mountains, and vast woodlands, the stories in this entertaining and compelling collection will have readers looking over their shoulders again and again. Pennsylvania's folklore is kept alive in these expert retellings by master storyteller S. E. Schlosser and in artist Paul Hoffman's evocative illustrations. Readers will meet the phantom drummer of Valley Forge, cheer on the ghost who haunts a bowling alley in Allentown, search for the mysterious jail cell handprint in Carbon County, and feel an icy wind on the back of their necks on a warm Pennsylvania evening. Whether read around the campfire on a dark and stormy night or from the backseat of the family van on the way to grandma's, this is a collection to treasure.

Dictionary of Authentic American Proverbs offers a comprehensive reference guide for distinctly American proverbs. Compiled by Wolfgang Mieder, a key figure in the field of proverb studies, this compendium features nearly 1,500 proverbs with American origins, spanning the 17th century to present day, including a scholarly introduction exploring the history of proverbs in America, the structure and variants of these proverbs, known authors and sources, and cultural values expressed in these proverbs. Along with a comprehensive bibliography of proverb collections and interpretive scholarship, this dictionary offers a glimpse into the history of American social and cultural attitudes through uniquely American language.

Monsters, Law, Crime, an edited collection composed of essays written by prominent U.S. and international experts in Law, Criminology, Sociology, Anthropology, Communication and Film, constitutes a rigorous attempt to explore fertile interdisciplinary inquiries into "monsters" and "monster-talk," and law and crime. "Monsters" may refer to allegorical or symbolic fantastic beings (as in literature, film, legends, myths, etc.), or actual or real life monsters, as well as the interplay/ambiguity between the two general types of "monsters." This edited collection thus explores and updates contemporary discussions of the emergent and evolving fronts of monster theory in relation to cutting-edge research on law and crime, and may be seen as extensions of a Gothic Criminology, generally construed. Gothic Criminology refers to a theoretical framework initially developed by Caroline Joan "Kay" S. Picart, a Philosophy and Film professor turned Attorney and Law professor, and Cecil Greek, a Sociologist (Picart and Greek 2008). Succinctly paraphrased, noting the proliferation of Gothic modes of narration and visualization in American popular culture, academia and even public policy, Picart and Greek proposed a framework, which they described as a "Gothic Criminology" to attempt to analyze the fertile lacunae connecting the "real" and the "reel" in the flow of Gothic metaphors and narratives that abound around criminological phenomena that populate not only popular culture but also academic and public policy discourses.

Sir James George Frazer originally set out to discover the origins of one ancient custom in Classical Rome - the plucking of the Golden Bough from a tree in the sacred grove of Diana, and the murderous succession of the priesthood there - and was led by his invetigations into a twenty-five year study of primitive customs, superstitions, magic and myth throughout the world. The monumental thirteen-volume work which resulted has been a rich source of anthropological material and a literary masterpiece for more than half a century. Both the wealth of his illustrative material and the broad sweep of his argument can be appreciated in this very readable single volume.

What does it mean if a cat sits and washes itself in your doorway? And why should women have their hair cut only when the moon is waxing? Belief in superstitions links us to a time when everyday events and objects had magical significance, and knowledge of these could change your fate. If you avoid anything with the number thirteen and cross the road to avoid walking under ladders, then you would be wise to learn about the many other signs that surround us. Whether you wish to increase your good fortune, ward off bad luck, or simply desire to know what today has in store, A Dictionary of Omens and Superstitions provides a complete guide to hundreds of portents, signs and customs from around the world, tracing the origins of our superstitions and explaining their rich symbolism.

Spanning more than 400 years of America's past, this book brings together, for the first time, entries on the ways Americans have mythologized both the many wars the nation has fought and the men and women connected with those conflicts. Focusing on significant representations in popular culture, it provides information on fiction, drama, poems, songs, film and television, art, memorials, photographs, documentaries, and cartoons. From the colonial wars before 1775 to our 1997 peacekeeper role in Bosnia, the work briefly explores the historical background of each war period, enabling the reader to place the almost 500 entries into their proper context. The book includes particularly large sections dealing with the popular culture of the American Revolution, the Civil War, the Indian Wars West of the Mississippi, World War II, and Vietnam. It has been designed to be a useful reference tool for anyone interested in America's many wars, to provide answers, to teach, to inspire, and most of all, to be enjoyed.

What's in a name? Using the example of a famous monster from Greek myth, this book challenges the dominant view that a mythical symbol denotes a single, clear-cut 'figure' and proposes instead to define the name 'Scylla' as a combination of three concepts - sea, dog and woman - whose articulation changes over time. While archaic and classical Greek versions usually emphasize the metaphorical coherence of Scylla's components, the name is increasingly treated as a well-defined but also paradoxical construct from the late fourth century BCE onward. Proceeding through detailed analyses of Greek and Roman texts and images, Professor Hopman shows how the same name can variously express anxieties about the sea, dogs, aggressive women and shy maidens, thus offering an empirical response to the semiotic puzzle raised by non-referential proper names.

When David Thomson took a journey to the sea coasts of Scotland and Ireland to seek out the legend of the selchies - mythological creatures who transform from seals into humans - a magical world emerged. Men were rescued by seals in stormy seas, took seal-women for their wives and had their children suckled by seal-mothers. Timeless and haunting, The People of the Sea retains its spellbinding charm and brings to life the enchanting stories of these mysterious creatures of Celtic folklore.

Actress, storyteller, and priestess Luisah Teish dramatically re-creates centuries-old African-American traditions with music, memoir, and folk wisdom.

This book explores Icelandic spirit work, known as andleg mal, which features trance and healing practices that span earth and spirit realms, historical eras, and scientific and supernatural worldviews. Based on years of fieldwork conducted in the northern Icelandic town of Akureyri, this book excavates andleg mal's roots in layers of Icelandic history, and examines how the practice mixes modern science with the supernatural and even occasionally crosses the Atlantic Ocean. Weaving personal stories and anecdotes with accessibly written accounts of Icelandic religious and cultural traditions, Corinne Dempsey humanizes spirit practices that are usually demonized or romanticized. While andleg mal may appear remote and exotic, those who practice it are not. Having endured extremely harsh conditions until recent decades, Icelanders today are among the most highly educated people on the planet, well-connected to global technologies and economies. Andleg mal practitioners are no exception, as many of them are members of mainstream society who work day jobs and keep their spirit involvement under wraps. For those who claim the "gift" of openness to the spirit world, andleg mal even offers a means of daily spiritual support, helping to diminish fear and self-doubt and providing benefits to those on both sides of the divide.

A fascinating and colourful social history of the nighttime. 'A wonderful revelation of a vanished age of darkness' SPECTATOR 'Fascinating' SUNDAY TIMES 'A splendid book ... great entertainment' Sir Patrick Moore 'A triumph of social history. Almost every page contains something to surprise the reader ... one of the most enjoyable literary experiences of the year' MAIL ON SUNDAY From blanket fairs to night kings, curfews to crime, At Day's Close is an intriguing and captivating investigation into the night. Until now, this rich and complex universe in which we spend nearly half of our lives was a world long-lost to historians. Here, Ekirch explores how the night was lived in the past, through travel accounts, memoirs, letters, folklore, poems, court records and coroner's reports. More than this, it is a passionate argument in the case for less artificial light in an increasingly bright world.

Swifts live almost entirely in the air. They eat, drink, sleep, mate and gather their nesting materials on the wing, fly thousands of miles across the world, navigating their way around storms, never lighting on tree, cliff or ground, until they return home with the summer. Sarah Gibson has written a fascinating story of discovery, exploring what is known about these mysterious birds, their ancient ancestry and how they have been regarded through history. But the swifts are in real danger: often unintentionally, we are sealing our homes against wildlife of any kind. Cracks, gaps and crevices which for thousands of years have offered nesting space in buildings, are being closed off, while new housing rarely offers entry holes for nesting birds. Loss of breeding places is considered to be a significant factor in the steep decline of these birds over the last twenty years. Thankfully, there are people in the UK and across Europe striving to ensure a future for swifts. Their actions and stories are woven into the narrative, demonstrating how change is brought about by passionate, determined individuals, whose actions show that everyone can do something to keep these superb birds screaming through our skies.