What is religion? When and how did motives have created it? Does its origin ne mu emotional needs of individuals or the social demands of communities? Can it be traced to economic injustice, to cultural patterns, or perhaps even to human reason? For at least two centuries, scholars and critics have grappled with these difficult questions in an effort to frame a scien- tific theory of religion. Their labors have left an intriguing record of ambitious speculation, original insight, and fierce controversy.

Seven Theories of Religion introduces a sequence of "classic" attempts to explain religion scientifically, presenting each in brief outline and in non-technical language. It considers first the views of E.B. Tylor and James Frazer, two Victorian pioneers in anthropol- ogy and the comparative study of religion. It explores the contro- versial "reductionist" approaches of Freud, Marx, and Emile Durkheim, then explains the program of their most outspoken opponent, the Romanian-American scholar Mircea Eliade. Further on, it examines certain newer methods and ideas advanced by the English ethnographer E.E. Evans-Pritchard and by the American Clifford Geertz, two of the present century's most celebrated names in fieldwork anthropology. Each chapter offers biographical back- ground, exposition of the theory, comparative analysis, and critical assessment. Easily accessible to both students and general readers, Seven Theories of Religion is an enlightening treatment of this con- troversial and fascinating subject.