A Short History of Myth by Karen Armstrong

This is about 400 pages of content crammed into a 150 page book. As such, it's quite dense. Honestly, 10 years ago (and pre-officemate who slings around terms like logoi and mythos for fun in everyday conversation) I'd have had a hard time following and sorting through all the ideas. Even with the reading I've done and the conversations on religion, story, and myth I've had, I found A Short History of Myth a challenge.

Armstrong sets out to trace the phenomenon and purpose of myth creation over the entirety of human development. She divides it up by sociological shifts: neolithic to paleolithic to early civilization and so on. The idea is that myth and the creation of myth is a sort of mass psychological coping mechanism. As society shifts and changes so do the myths. What was a satisfying way of coping with the fear of the unknown in the paleolithic probably wouldn't help a city inhabitant nor a soldier in WWI. 

All this makes sense. Where it gets interesting to me is when Armstrong gets to the axial age and beyond. She takes on Christianity, Islam, and Judaism in a way that is both detached and respectful. I found her take on the historical influences on religious interpretation very interesting. Ultimately, it seems like she wants to sit down all the literalists and say, "look guys, you just aren't doing it right."

It was a good read, but I think I will have to reread it before I really get it all absorbed.