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The Hero's Journey: Joseph Campbell on His Life and Work Paperback – Illustrated, 11 March 2014
by Joseph Campbell (Author)
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"A fascinating series of dialogues with Joseph Campbell, revealing at every turn fresh aspects of his genius, wisdom, and understanding. I hope this much-needed book will be widely read and pondered."
--Richard Adams, author of Watership Down
"We don't have enough personal history regarding Joseph Campbell, so [this] book fills a real need."
--Michael Murphy, cofounder of the Esalen Institute
"Blissful! Illuminating! The voice of the master storyteller himself...An outstanding introduction to the great teacher and personalizer of our myths and muses."
--Noel Riley Fitch, author of Sylvia Beach and the Lost Generation
"These stories reveal how [Campbell's] sense of the oneness of mythology began and grew over the course of his long and event-filled life journey. As we read them, we experience the warm human presence of a man who spent his life learning from others as well as teaching. Recommended."
--Library Journal
About the Author
Joseph Campbell (1904-1987) is widely credited with bringing mythology to a mass audience. His works, including the four-volume The Masks of God and The Power of Myth (with Bill Moyers), rank among the classics in mythology and literature.
Phil Cousineau is an award-winning writer and filmmaker, teacher and editor, lecturer and travel leader, storyteller and TV host. He has written and co-written numerous books on religion, travel, and mythology, including The Art of Pilgrimage and Once and Future Myths. He lives in San Francisco.
Stuart L. Brown was the executive producer of (and driving force behind) the popular documentary film The Hero's Journey: The World of Joseph Campbell. He lives in Northern California.
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Product details
Publisher : New World Library; 3rd ed. edition (11 March 2014)
Language : English
Paperback : 352 pages
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Joseph Campbell
Joseph Campbell (1904–1987) was an American author and teacher best known for his work in the field of comparative mythology. He was born in New York City in 1904, and from early childhood he became interested in mythology. He loved to read books about American Indian cultures, and frequently visited the American Museum of Natural History in New York, where he was fascinated by the museum's collection of totem poles. Campbell was educated at Columbia University, where he specialized in medieval literature, and continued his studies at universities in Paris and Munich. While abroad he was influenced by the art of Pablo Picasso and Henri Matisse, the novels of James Joyce and Thomas Mann, and the psychological studies of Sigmund Freud and Carl Jung. These encounters led to Campbell's theory that all myths and epics are linked in the human psyche, and that they are cultural manifestations of the universal need to explain social, cosmological, and spiritual realities.
After a period in California, where he encountered John Steinbeck and the biologist Ed Ricketts, he taught at the Canterbury School, and then, in 1934, joined the literature department at Sarah Lawrence College, a post he retained for many years. During the 40s and '50s, he helped Swami Nikhilananda to translate the Upanishads and The Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna. He also edited works by the German scholar Heinrich Zimmer on Indian art, myths, and philosophy. In 1944, with Henry Morton Robinson, Campbell published A Skeleton Key to Finnegans Wake. His first original work, The Hero with a Thousand Faces, came out in 1949 and was immediately well received; in time, it became acclaimed as a classic. In this study of the "myth of the hero," Campbell asserted that there is a single pattern of heroic journey and that all cultures share this essential pattern in their various heroic myths. In his book he also outlined the basic conditions, stages, and results of the archetypal hero's journey.
Throughout his life, he traveled extensively and wrote prolifically, authoring many books, including the four-volume series The Masks of God, Myths to Live By, The Inner Reaches of Outer Space and The Historical Atlas of World Mythology. Joseph Campbell died in 1987. In 1988, a series of television interviews with Bill Moyers, The Power of Myth, introduced Campbell's views to millions of people.
For more on Joseph Campbell and his work, visit the web site of Joseph Campbell Foundation at JCF.org.
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Cerrin
5.0 out of 5 stars So glad I found Jo.Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 15 December 2020
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Wow. Just wow. I wish I had read this in my 20's. It would have saved me years of stumbling around in the religious dark seeking an answer. This book has confirmed for me everything I have come to understand from all my years of investigating different spiritual and religious dogmas and opened the door to clarity. What an amazing man he was. Mr Joseph Campbell how I wish I had been privileged to listen to one of your lectures. Never mind. I have access to your books!😀
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Ben Warden
5.0 out of 5 stars Enjoyed thisReviewed in the United Kingdom on 29 October 2021
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Very thought-provoking and entertaining sideways angle on Campbell's work that illuminates further his previous work and develops further understanding of it. Some books in this collection have rehashed too much the previous books, but this one feels fresher and is definitely worth the read.
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Paul T
5.0 out of 5 stars I'm just at the end of the book and feel sad that it's coming to a closeReviewed in the United Kingdom on 13 May 2016
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Not your average personal development book at all this... I'm just at the end of the book and feel sad that it's coming to a close. I can't remember that last time I felt that way. So, as well as making it on to my list of books to read again, I'll be digging into several of Campbell's books too!
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J. Baker/ d baker
4.0 out of 5 stars A little beyond my understanding in some partsReviewed in the United Kingdom on 1 October 2021
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Book was fine quality. It was recommended to me but the subject a bit difficult to get my head round.
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Stuart Hall
2.0 out of 5 stars Interesting but dryReviewed in the United Kingdom on 19 February 2021
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Not the kind of subject matter I would normally read up on but I found this an interesting book although ultimately unsatisfying and a very dry read.
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