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Jim Tresner, 33°, Grand Cross
P.O. Box 70, Guthrie, Oklahoma 73044–0070
Book Reviews Editor, The Scottish Rite Journal
Man is the symbol-using creature. You don't have to be a Mason
to know that's true. Business logos, stop signs, traffic arrows,
flowers given to a loved one-let alone double-headed eagles, trowels,
and plumblines-we are surrounded each day by symbols, we regulate
our lives by symbols, and we express our deepest feelings with
symbols.
The largest section of my Masonic library is devoted to books
about symbols and symbolism. But most of the best books are out
of print, and it's hard for a man just starting his life as a
Mason to find them. That's why I was delighted when I opened the
latest catalogue from Dover Publications and found some of the
best works back in print.
A quick word about Dover books, in case you aren't familiar with
this company. Its publications are all softbound, but they are
sewn together, just like a hardbound book, and they will take
punishment. I've given some of them 30 years hard use. Also, they
are printed on acid-free paper that won't yellow. Each book is
a good value. Ordering information is below.
Count Eugene Goblet d'Alviella, Symbols:
Their Migration and Universality, Dover, 320 pages, $9.95,
catalogue #41437-X
Discussing the ways symbols arise in a culture, acquire meanings,
and move from culture to culture with the meanings undergoing
changes, this book is a foundation work. When someone asks me
how they can start learning about symbols, I suggest Symbols:
Their Migration and Universality as a beginning. It was written
long ago, and in a few areas more recent research has superseded
it, but it is still a good place to start.
J. E. Cirlot, A Dictionary of Symbols,
Dover, 452 pages, illustrations, $21.95, catalogue #42523-1
When I'm trying to understand a symbol or look for richer meanings
in a symbol I know, this is the first book I pick up. Cirlot includes
symbols from the world's religions, alchemy, philosophy, astrology,
pre-historic art, and much more. It's a good reference book for
researching specific symbols, of course, but it's also enjoyable
just to browse.
Paul Radin, Primitive Man as Philosopher,
Dover, 512 pages, $19.95, catalogue #42495-2
In 1956, Radin published this groundbreaking study in which he
quotes from hundreds of hours of interviews with people living
in essentially primitive societies. The book was one of the very
first in which representatives of the cultures were allowed to
speak for themselves, and the results were astonishing. The universal
questions really are universal-what is the purpose of man's life,
how does he know when he is fulfilling that purpose, how are we
to understand death, how are we to relate to others? It expands
one's mind to see how people in cultures as diverse as those of
the Sioux and the Tahitian so often agree.
Jessie L. Weston, From Ritual to
Romance, Dover, 220 pages, $7.95, catalogue #29680-6
This is a very useful study of the grail legends, tracing much
of their imagery and showing how the stories interrelate. There
is a great deal of grail imagery in Freemasonry, and this book
will make it easier to find and interpret. I return to this book
frequently. It is easy to read and as good for relaxed reading
as for research.
TO ORDER any of these books, write to Dover Publications, 31
East 2nd Street, Mineola, NY 11501-3582. Give them your name and
address, the name and catalogue number of the books you want,
and enclose shipping (orders up to $19.99 = $5.00 S&H; orders
from $20.00 to $49.99 = $6.50 S&H; orders of $50.00 or more
= $8.00 S&H). But it is much easier to order from the Dover
web site. Go to www.doverpublications.com.
You can type the catalogue number in the search box and go straight
to the book, or you can browse in the electronic catalogue.
I hope these books prove as useful to you as they have to me.
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