Joseph Campbell: Goddesses: Mysteries of the Feminine Divine (Book Review)
Joseph Campbell, perhaps best known for The Power of Myth and The Hero With a Thousand Faces, has a list of other titles to his credit: Thou Art That: Transforming Religious Metaphor; The Inner Reaches of Outer Space: Metaphor as Myth and as Religion; Sake & Satori: Asian Journals–Japan; Baksheesh & Brahman: Asian Journals–India; and several more.
Now, when you’re dealing with an Expert, there’s always a danger of all that Knowledge being presented as dusty-dry facts–because, god, the sheer volume of information that Expert holds in his head and in his files is daunting. Presenting it in a format that’s accessible to the layperson without making it madly oversimplified–that’s not so much a skill as a gift.
Campbell had that gift. Oh, my yes. A couple of his books sold enviably well (into the millions of copies). He went on TV (PBS, with Bill Moyer), and gave lectures and workshops. He wasn’t just an extraordinary scholar; he was a storyteller in his own right, able to turn the esoteric into clearly understandable terms.
So now that I’ve explained the background of the author, I’ll get on with talking about this particular book. Goddesses: Mysteries of the Feminine Divine is based on a collection of Campbell’s lectures from 1972 – 1986. It is “the only book in Campbell’s collected works,” notes the publicist for this book (Kim Corbin), “that focuses on his ideas and study of goddess mythologies through time and culture.”
It may be his only book on the topic of goddess mythologies, but let me tell you, it is one densely packed offering. It should weigh more. It should probably weigh as much as the old school encyclopedia sets. And yet, it’s only 264 pages, not including the front and back matter. Even more astounding, it’s readable. Enjoyable, even. Compelling.
http://sleepinghedgehog.com/books/joseph-campbell-goddesses-mysteries-of-the-feminine-divine/
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