Rating: 
Summary: Captivating
Review: Joseph Campbell was among the sharpest of human minds in the 20th century, and his unique style and wisdom can be found throughout this magnificent book. In Myths to Live By, he concentrates on the myths of various global traditions which apply to our day to day life. The stories set forth in myth truly encapsulate the human experience; the way we both see the world as well as respond to it are all there in these ancient stories. Campbell explores Christianity, Buddhism, Sufism, and Zoroastrianism - all within the contents of this deceivingly thin book. This is a must have for any Joe Campbell fan, as well as anyone looking to unearth the rich meaning of this thing we call life. Get pleasure from this book, and have fun on your mythic journey!
Rating:
Summary: Womb with a view....
Review: MYTHS TO LIVE BY consists of a dozen essays/talks Joseph Campbell prepared between 1961 and 1971. He described the period as a "new age" where "..we are...participating in one of the very greatest leaps of the human spirit to a knowledge not only of outside nature but also of our own deep inward mystery." At the time he wrote these essays, Campbell was a professor on a campus, surrounded by young people whom he found hard to understand at times. For example, in his essay "The Moon Walk--the Outward Journey" he relates his own feelings of awe on viewing the Apollo moon landing and contrasts them with the reaction of a student who wrote "So What" on a photo of the moon landing posted on a campus bulletin board. In another essay "Schizophrenia--the Inward Journey" he contrasts the use of mind-altering drugs by shamans and psychotics (including the LSD induced version) as the difference between divers and non-swimmers in "the waters of the unviersal archetypes of mythology." I find Campbell's essays are very relevant, 30 years later. The most obvious example is "Mythologies of War and Peace" which addresses the underlying belief systems of participants in the Mideast crises. Campbell says the cruel fact is that "killing is the precondition of all living whatsoever: life lives on life, eats life, and would not otherwise exist...it is the nations, tribes, and peoples bred to mythologies of war that have survived to communicate their life-supporting mythic lore to descendents." He suggests that "we" in the West "have been bred to one of the most brutal war mythologies of all time." He then goes on to cite Deuteronomy and Isaiah and follows with excerpts from the Koran such as Sura 2, verse 216.."Fighting is prescribed for you." Campbell does not condemn myths nor does he say myths are not literally true. He suggests creation myths and myths about love and war and peace contain the essence of the truth. Myths are to humans what kangaroo pouches are to baby kangaroos, they provide a "womb with a view." Being born simply isn't enough. We need myths to help us organize and guide our lives. However, our current myths arose in another era and were shaped by tribal mentalities that sustain the notion of GROUP differences. We need new myths for the journey of life.
Rating: 
Summary: Western-centric and dated writings on Myth
Review: The problem here is not with Campbell's writing but with the place from which his writing originates. It is a 1960's academia entrenched in a Western cannon, believing itself capable of interpreting the cultural relevance of myth to non-Western peoples through the same lens it uses to critique western, and specifically Biblical, myth. Repeated references to "primitive cultures," a complete dismissal of African myth tradition, and a clear implication of a Western superiority make the insightful commentary on myth a challenge to isolate. If you are really interested in comparative study of myth, look at some original texts and avoid internalizing Campbell's bias; Campbell schematically interprets the Indian Vedas, Zen texts, Navajo stories, Norse mythology, the Bible, and works by Dante, Jung and Freud. A discussion on the mythical implications of "last year's" moonwalk, or the Kennedy assassination, for instance, don't help much.
Rating: 
Summary: As Relevent Today as When Campbell lectured
Review: This book is a series of Lectures given by Professor Campbell.
Campbell's writing style is very accessible to scholars and non scholars alike tho. For anyone interested in not only research and theory on world mythology, but also human pyschology and any kind of insight into the human condition should read this book.
Although there is no clear thesis stated in the beginning the lectures/chapters have a very nice and logical flow to them. To conclude I can't say this book changed my life, but it made me think and as his writing/lectures progressed it became obvious he had clear objective in mind which he met an a concise and clear manner. An interesting read.
Rating:
Summary: Useful and beautiful
Review: This book reads like an essential afterword to the great video series. The chapters on mythologies of love, and of war and peace are especially effective. Campbell's teaching is direct, and honed to a useful, beautiful glow. He's a courageous thinker, able to order considerable insights with impeccable ease. Leaves us the richer. He's hailed for the scope of his vision, yet it's the inevitable intimacy of Campbell's teaching genius that makes his books so effective. Read this book and find a realm vaster and more intimate than one that brung ya! --that's effective spiritual reading, the fruit of clearly intense scholarship, and Campbell makes it immediate and consoling. Delivers what it promises. It's difficult to be disappointed by stuff this fine.
Rating:
Summary: Useful and beautiful
Review: This book reads like an essential afterword to the great video series. The chapters on mythologies of love, and of war and peace are especially effective. Campbell's teaching is direct, and honed to a useful, beautiful glow. He's a courageous thinker, able to order considerable insights with impeccable ease. Leaves us the richer. He's hailed for the scope of his vision, yet it's the inevitable intimacy of Campbell's teaching genius that makes his books so effective. Read this book and find a realm vaster and more intimate than one that brung ya! --that's effective spiritual reading, the fruit of clearly intense scholarship, and Campbell makes it immediate and consoling. Delivers what it promises. It's difficult to be disappointed by stuff this fine.
Rating:
Summary: Eye Opening
Review: This book, like other Campbell works really speaks to your soul to help you grasp the nature of our times. As one reviewer said, if you read it at the right time of your life, it can completely change you. I highly reccomend this or any Campbell work.
Rating:
Summary: Eye Opening
Review: This book, like other Campbell works really speaks to your soul to help you grasp the nature of our times. As one reviewer said, if you read it at the right time of your life, it can completely change you. I highly reccomend this or any Campbell work.
Rating:
Summary: A new mythology
Review: What is a mythology? What role does it play in modern society? Does it have any positive effects in our culture? Campbell's book explores these questions, by giving a clear account of the different mythologies around the world and throughout the ages. This comparative study of our ancestral and modern beliefs and views of the universe not only enlighten us as to how our forefathers confronted reality but it, as well, teaches us how we can deal with the world of experience around us.
To state it bluntly: our adventures in the world teach us about ourselves, just as going into ourselves we learn about the world. By going into one you simultaneously explore the other.
Please enjoy this delightful book as it will engage you in a journey of over 10,000 years and the voyage of inner discovery.
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