Page:The Mythology of the Aryan Nations.djvu/18

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xiv

CONTENTS.

CHAPTER III.
THE SOURCE OF MYTHICAL SPEECH.
PAGE
The Infancy of Mankind 20
Earliest Condition of Thought and its Consequences 20
Primary Myths 22
Secondary Myths 23
Polyonymy, as affecting the Growth of Mythology 23
Use of Abstract and Concrete Names 25
Myths arising from the Use of Equivocal Words 26
Disintegration of Myths 28
CHAPTER IV.
THE DEVELOPEMENT OF MYTHS.
Elasticity of Mythical Speech 29
Results of Mythical Language 30
Evidence of this Developement furnished by the Rig-Veda 31
Relative Age of Greek Myths 31
Solar Myths 32
Changeful Action of the Sun 33
Repulsive Developements of Solar Legends 34
Origin of these Developements 34
Tendency to localize Mythical Incidents 35
Vitality of the Mythopoeic Faculty 35
Constant Demand for New Mythical Narratives 36
Transmutation of Names really Historical 37
Groundwork of the Mythology of Northern Europe 37
Groundwork of the " Homeric" Mythology 39
Comparison of Greek and Norse Mythology 40
Special Characteristics of Greek Mythology 41
Full Developement of Greek Mythology 42
Arrested Growth of Northern Mythology 43
Light thrown on both by the Vedic Hymns 44
Stages in the Growth of Mythical Systems 44
CHAPTER V.
DIFFUSION OF MYTHS.
The Common Element in Aryan Mythology 47
The Greek Mythology of itself explains the Nature of this Common Element 48
The Norse Mythology points in precisely the same Direction 49
The Missing Link is supplied in the Older Vedic Poems 50
The Key to all Aryan Mythology 50
Germs of Mythical Tales 52
Truthfulness of Mythical Description 53
Groundwork of Aryan Mythology 53
Greek Dynastic Legends 54
Growth of Popular Traditions 55
Aryan Folklore 56
Legends seemingly not resolvable into Phrases relating to Physical Phenomena 56