Victorian comparative religion writing

Primitive Manners and Customs

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.