First Words
The Gods of the Greeks. By Carl Kerdnyi. (Penguin Books, 4s.)
PROFESSOR KERgNYI is a learned Hungarian, who came to Switzerland during the war and has collaborated with Professor Jung. He has pub- lished numerous -studies of ancient religion and mythology, which he approaches from the point of view of Jungian psychology. The present work, he tells us in the introduction, is meant for adult readers; readers 'whose understanding has been matured by the literature and the psychology of our time; readers who do not find too difficult to adopt Thomas Mann's attitude towards the archaic massiveness and freedom, the monotony and desultory extravagance of that unsurpassably spontaneous documentation of human nature which is known as Greek Mythology.' If the entire mythological legacy of the Greeks is freed from the superficial psychology of previous presentations and is revealed in its original con- text as material sui generis and having its own laws, then, as an inevitable result, this mythology will itself have exactly the same effect as an activity of the psyche externalised in images and caused by something supra-individual.'
To a reacrer whose mind has not been inatured' by contemporary psychology and who does find it difficult to adopt Thomas Mann's attitude to the subject, this approach may seem a little alarming. In order to appreciate the importance of Greek mythology for the understanding of Greek, and indeed of modern, literature and religion, or to acknowledge its intrinsic interest, it is not neces- sary to treat it as a collection of data illustrating the psychological history of the race; and the language in which this point of view is set out in the introduction will cause many English readers to shiver with apprehension. But when one turns
to the book itself, these fears prove ill-founded. Professor Kerdnyi thinks it important to keep as close as possible to the words in which the stories are told by their original authors, and to free them from the accretions of modern commentary. This . method is not only suitable for the purpose of his own theories; it makes for a clear and attractive presentation; and since an appendix gives in the most compendious possible way a great number of references to the original texts; the book is at once clear, lively and accurate. The ancient stories are recounted with unusual elegance and vivacity. Like many scholars who are given to bold specula- tion, Professor Kerdnyi is a far better stylist than many of his more cautious colleagues; and the translation by Mr. Norman Cameron is a first- class piece of work, which makes the book more attractive in English than it is in the original. Since the author keeps closely to the actual texts and gives references, his presentation is remark- ably little affected by the unconventional nature of many of his views. There is one unfortu, exception to this rule. The author has persisteo including on equal terms with myths of, impeachable antiquity a number of tales. to `Orphic' literature which appear only at a date and which are in all probability of late_Ap sophisticated origin. On page 11 of the lel° tion he justifies this practice by referring 10 other works of his; but the reader must be ltis that the arguments there advanced would seer° most classical scholars highly dubious. Still, in spite of Orpheus and in spite the book is a most valuable piece of work; illustrations make it even more so. Besides tqc line drawings of Greek vases, there are 0 excellent,photographic plates; and the ()Olio deserve high praise for having been able t0.40 it out at such a price. It deserves to find .71 readers, and not only among those INIIo". author would recognise as being 'adults.'
HUGH LLOYD.
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