Understanding Religious Sacrifice A Reader [Paperback]

This volume provides a thorough introduction to the major classic and modern writings dealing with religious sacrifice. Collected here are twenty five influential selections, each with a brief introduction addressing the overall framework and assumptions of its author. As they present different theories and examples of sacrifice, these selections also discuss important concepts in religious studies such as the origin of religion, totemism, magic, symbolism, violence, structuralism and ritual performance. Students of comparative religion, ritual studies, the history of religions, the anthropology of religion and theories of religion will particularly value the historical organization and thematic analyses presented in this collection.

1. General Introduction Jeffrey Carter2. Primitive Culture: researches in the Development of Mythology, Philosophy, Religion, Language, Arts and Custom Sir Edward B. Tylor3. the Principles of Sociology, Vol 1 Herbert Spencer4. The Religion of the Semites: The Fundamental Institutions W. Robertson Smith5. The Golden Bough: A Study in Magic and Religion James G. Frazer6. Sacrifice: Its Nature and Function Henri Hubert and Marcel Mauss 7. The Origin and Development of the Moral Ideas, Vol 1 Edward A. Westermarck8. The Elementary Forms of the Religious Life Emile Durkheim9. Totem and Taboo: Some Points of Agreement Between the Mental Lives of Savages and Neurotics Sigmund Freud10. Religion in Essence and Manifestation Gerardus van der Leeuw11. Myth and Cult Among Primitive Peoples Adolf Jensen12. Nuer Religion E.E. Evans-Prichard13. The Savage Mind Claude Levi-Strauss14. Violence and the Sacred Rene Girard15. Homo Necans: The Anthropology of Ancient Greek Sacrificial Ritual and Myth Walter Burkert16. Theory of Religion Georges Bataille17. Sacrifice as Quintessential Process: Prophylaxis or Abandonment? Victor Turner18. Kingship and Sacrifice: Ritual and Society in Ancient Hawaii Valerio Valeri19. Sacrifice in Africa: A StructuralãX