John Fiske

Through Nature to God John Fiske

Publisher Marketing: The legend in which the serpent is represented as giving this counsel to the mother of mankind occurs at the beginning of the Pentateuch in the form which that collection of writings assumed after the return of the Jews from the captivity at Babylon, and there is good reason for believing that it was first placed there at that time. Allusions to Eden in the Old Testament literature are extremely scarce, and the story of Eve's temptation first assumes prominence in the writings of St. Paul. The marks of Zoroastrian thought in it have often been pointed out. This garden of Eden is a true Persian paradise, situated somewhere in that remote wonderland of Aryana Vaejo to which all Iranian tradition is so fond of pointing back. The wily serpent is a genuine Parsee serpent, and the spirit which animates him is that of the malicious and tricksome Ahriman, who takes delight in going about after the good creator Ormuzd and spoiling his handiwork. He is not yet identified with the terrible Satan, the accusing angel who finds out men's evil thoughts and deeds. He is simply a mischief-maker, and the punishment meted out to him for his mischief reminds one of many a curious passage in the beast epos of primitive peoples. As in the stories which tell why the mole is blind or why the fox has a bushy tail, the serpent's conduct is made to account for some of his peculiar attributes. As a punishment he is made to crawl upon his belly, and be forever an object of especial dread and loathing to all the children of Eve. Contributor Bio:  Fiske, John John Fiske (1842-1901), born Edmund Fisk Green, was an American philosopher and historian, born at Hartford, Connecticut. He graduated from Harvard College in 1863 and at the Harvard Law School in 1865. He practiced as a lawyer for a brief interval, before dedicating himself to popularisation and philosophical interpretation of Darwin's work and producing many books and essays on this subject. In books such as Outlines of Cosmic Philosophy, Fiske aimed to show that "in reality there has never been any conflict between religion and science, nor is any reconciliation called for where harmony has always existed. " Fiske was a popular lecturer on these topics in his early career. Later he turned to historical writings, publishing books such as The Discovery of America (1892). Amongst his other works are: Myths and Myth-Makers (1873), The Unseen World (1876), The Destiny of Man, Viewed in the Light of His Origin (1884), American Political Ideas Viewed from the Standpoint of Universal History (1885), The Beginnings of New England (1889), Civil Government in the United States Considered with Some Reference to its Origins (1890), The Meaning of Infancy (1909), and The War of Independence.