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Cover of The Golden Bough by James George Frazer

The Golden Bough

  • 675 pages · about 11 hours
  • First published 1890
  • 374 editions
  • Free to read

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1 About this book

The Golden Bough: A Study in Comparative Religion (retitled The Golden Bough: A Study in Magic and Religion in its second edition) is a wide-ranging, comparative study of mythology and religion, written by the Scottish anthropologist Sir James George Frazer. The Golden Bough was first published in two volumes in 1890; in three volumes in 1900; and in twelve volumes in the third edition, published 1906–1915.

It has also been published in several different one-volume abridgments. The work was for a wide literate audience raised on tales as told in such publications as Thomas Bulfinch's The Age of Fable, or Stories of Gods and Heroes (1855). The influence of The Golden Bough on contemporary European literature and thought has been substantial.

Good for readers who want: mythology, history, a classic, and a long read.

  • Mythology
  • Magic
  • History
  • Classics
  • Sports Medicine
  • Philosophy & Religion
  • Social science
  • Philosophy

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3 About James George Frazer

1854–1941

Sir James George Frazer (; 1 January 1854 – 7 May 1941) was a Scottish social anthropologist and folklorist influential in the early stages of the modern studies of mythology and comparative religion.

Bio adapted from Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0)

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