Pals offers brief and cogent introductions to seven classic theories of religion. Included are chapters on Freud, Durkheim, Marx, and Eliade.
Modelled on Oxford's highly successful Seven Theories of Human Nature by Leslie Stevenson, this book offers brief and cogent introductions to seven classic theories of religion. Accessibly written, this is the first brief yet critical survey of the most important modern figures in the modern scientific study of religion, and as such fills and important gap. For each chapter Pal offers a biographical sketch of the theorist and his world, explains how each one saw religion as an issue or intellectual problem, and finally shows how they came to a viable understanding of religion. Finally he appraises the influence and strengths of each theory as well as its critics. Pals focuses especially on the arguments themselves, and tries to offer and accessible and meaningful account of the general structures and assumptions of their theories.
Modelled on Oxford's highly successful Seven Theories of Human Nature by Leslie Stevenson, this book offers brief and cogent introductions to seven classic theories of religion. Accessibly written, this is the first brief yet critical survey of the most important modern figures in the modern scientific study of religion, and as such fills and important gap. For each chapter Pal offers a biographical sketch of the theorist and his world, explains how each one saw religion as an issue or intellectual problem, and finally shows how they came to a viable understanding of religion. Finally he appraises the influence and strengths of each theory as well as its critics. Pals focuses especially on the arguments themselves, and tries to offer and accessible and meaningful account of the general structures and assumptions of their theories.