Project Gutenberg 2004-11-17 Public domain in the USA. 181 Lang, Andrew 1844 1912 Lang, Walter Andrew Custom and Myth Transcribed from the 1884 Longmans, Green and Co. edition by David Price "Custom and Myth" by Andrew Lang is a collection of essays exploring comparative mythology and folklore, written in the late 19th century. The work critically examines the conventional methods of understanding myths, particularly those rooted in linguistic analysis, arguing that such approaches are often inadequate. Lang delves into various mythologies—including Greek, Indian, and indigenous traditions—to propose that many stories share common origins and themes, shaped by the human experience rather than being mere products of language. At the start of the book, Lang dedicates his collection to E.B. Tylor and outlines his motivation for the essays, noting his dissatisfaction with the prevalent scholarly methods of comparing myths. He critiques the idea that myths arise purely from corruptions of language and discusses the importance of examining folklore and savage beliefs to uncover deeper meanings. Lang introduces the anthropological perspective, suggesting that myths can be better understood by studying their persistence across cultures, highlighting their ties to humanity’s primal instincts and shared experiences. The opening sets the stage for the subsequent essays, which promise a journey through the intricacies of myth and cultural expression. (This is an automatically generated summary.) Reading ease score: 66.6 (8th & 9th grade). Neither easy nor difficult to read. en Religion Folklore Mythology Manners and customs BL Text Mythology Category: Mythology, Legends & Folklore Category: Essays, Letters & Speeches Category: Archaeology & Anthropology 551814 2025-08-06T08:18:32.717667 text/html 558403 2020-12-18T16:44:42 text/html 1724453 2025-08-06T08:18:42.355594 application/epub+zip 1723426 2025-08-06T08:18:35.908579 application/epub+zip 275616 2025-08-06T08:18:34.563603 application/epub+zip 2776569 2025-08-06T08:18:47.402554 application/x-mobipocket-ebook 2726686 2025-08-06T08:18:41.079603 application/x-mobipocket-ebook 415395 2022-09-07T14:29:06.083004 application/x-mobipocket-ebook 494839 2025-08-06T08:18:31.767634 text/plain; charset=us-ascii 494613 2020-12-18T16:44:42 text/plain; charset=us-ascii 19555 2025-08-06T08:18:47.573521 application/rdf+xml 12360 2025-08-06T08:18:35.082589 image/jpeg 3248 2025-08-06T08:18:34.820603 image/jpeg 1525965 2020-12-18T16:44:42 application/octet-stream application/zip 188115 2020-12-18T16:44:42 application/octet-stream application/zip 1701585 2025-08-06T08:18:32.842600 application/octet-stream application/zip Archives containing the RDF files for *all* our books can be downloaded at https://book.klll.cc/wiki/Gutenberg:Feeds#The_Complete_Project_Gutenberg_Catalog en.wikipedia