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Primitive Manners & Customs
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Victorian comparative religion writing

Primitive Manners and Customs

James Anson Farrer1879
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A major Victorian study in comparative ethnology that examines the origins of human culture through 'survivals' of primitive behavior in modern civilization. Farrer investigates a wide array of topics, from marriage customs and funeral rites to early theories of justice and the origins of belief in the supernatural. He emphasizes the underlying unity of the human mind across different races and ages, arguing that the seemingly irrational customs of 'savages' are actually logical precursors to modern institutions. The work is noted for its extensive catalog of global ethnographic data.

Also known asFarrer's Customs
This edition1879
EditionChatto & Windus, London
Anthropologycomparative anthropologyPrimitive BeliefsSocial InstitutionsVictorian Anthropology / Comparative Ethnologyritual practicesEuropean folkloreComparative Mythologyritual documentationComparative ReligionAmulets and charmssympathetic magicFolklore StudiesFolklore & Superstition

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Contents15 chapters

  1. 01PRIMITIVE MANNERS AND CUSTOMS
  2. 02INTRODUCTION.
  3. 03CONTENTS.
  4. 04I. SOME SAVAGE MYTHS AND BELIEFS.
  5. 05II. SAVAGE MODES OF PRAYER.
  6. 06III. SOME SAVAGE PROVERBS.
  7. 07IV. SAVAGE MORAL PHILOSOPHY.
  8. 08V. SAVAGE POLITICAL LIFE.
  9. 09VI. SAVAGE PENAL LAWS.
  10. 10VII. EARLY WEDDING CUSTOMS.
  11. 11VIII. THE FAIRY-LORE OF SAVAGES.
  12. 12IX. COMPARATIVE FOLK-LORE.
  13. 13FOOTNOTES
  14. 14THE FULL PROJECT GUTENBERG LICENSE
  15. 15"Cover"

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