| Mathbatu The Cyber Dwelling of a Canaanite Pagan |
| Literature Comments |
Stories from Ancient Canaan by Michael David Coogan Stories from Ancient Canaan is a relatively unassuming book; small and thin, the simple cover art depicting the god El was the only thing that initially caught my attention (well, that and its extremely cheap price on Amazon). Overall, I found this book to have its uses as well as its flaws. The several-page introduction gives a basic background of the Canaanites, the city of Ugarit, the ancient tablets that were discovered, the main gods of the Canaanite pantheon, how the language in the stories works, and some comparisons between Canaanite myths and biblical scripture. The introduction to how the language in the myths works was the most helpful section for me, personally. Coogan explains in layman�s terms how parallelism (lines that are repeated with slightly different wording) works and what the use of common numbers that show up time and again may mean. This was refreshing after getting bogged down by complicated linguistic terms in other books and discussions. Before each translation, there is an introduction to the myth. His insightful biblical parallels and explanations were generally useful. Coogan makes it clear in his introduction that he has taken quite a bit of liberty with his translations in order to make the story flow smoother. For making a clear note of this I give him credit. I am not a fan of the text translations though. Yes, they are easier to read because many of the gaps are filled in and the language style was adjusted for modern readers, but a lot of detail is lost because of this too. The one thing that bothered me especially is that some of the gods� names are changed. Mot becomes �Death� and Yam is called �Sea�, for example. The fact that this text is nearly 30 years old means that some of the information is going to be incorrect. The recommended reading list, glossary, and some of the concepts the author addresses (such as the misinformed statement that Anath is the wife/lover of Baal) are outdated in light of new discoveries since the book�s publication. Readers should check with more current academic sources before concluding that particular facts in this book are still considered accurate. Conclusion: Stories from Ancient Canaan is an affordable starting point for someone interested in learning the basics behind the Canaanite epics and has some useful insights for intermediate students as well, but it should be emphasized that this is not the be-all and end-all of information on the myths by far. Anyone interested in learning more or delving into finer detail should seek out newer academic texts on the Canaanite myths. Interested in this book? Check it out at Amazon.com |
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