Maori Myths and Tribal Legends PDF
Preview Maori Myths and Tribal Legends
retold by NTONY ALPERS illustrated by PATRICK HASlLY $6.50 MAORI MYTHS and TRIBAL LEGENDS Retold by Antony Alpers Illustrated by Patrick Hanly The Maori people — those Polynesians who migrated to the cooler islands of New Zealand and became its first inhabi- tants — have over the centuries developed a mythology that matches their own great qualities. They have a Creation myth of surpassing beauty, a pantheon of gods and heroes worthy of the Greeks, and a store of splendid tribal histories that re- cord their wars and the epic journeys they made across the southern ocean to escape them — as they thought. Previous English versions of these myths have been bowdlerized and watered down, but in this book Antony Alpers preserves all the racy vitality of the origi- nals, with their mixture of humor and violence, tenderness and tragedy, and above all their superb artistry. He care- fully avoids telling the legends from a Western point of view. He retains the original spirit of the Maori, yet American readers will be astonished to recognize elements common to men of all cultures. Patrick Hanly, a New Zealander, has illustrated the legends in a style that blends Maori myth and Western traditions with the utmost success. His drawings capture immediately the spirit of the stories, where heroes taunt the gods, know enough mag- ic to transform themselves into animals when need arises, and generally perform feats to delight the heart. The rich world of the Maori is well worth knowing. - \ MAORI MYTHS & TRIBAL LEGENDS BY THE SAME AUTHOR Katherine Mansfield: A Biography Dolphins: The Myth and the Mammal MAORI MYTHS & TRIBAL LEGENDS RETOLD BY ANTONY ALPERS Illustrated by Patrick Hanly HOUGHTON MIFFLIN COMPANY BOSTON The Riverside Press Cambridge 1966 TO JOSEPH CAMPBELL First American Edition 1966 © Antony Alpers 1964 All rights reserved including the right to reproduce this book or parts thereof in any form Library of Congress Catalog Card Number: 65-19292 Printed in Great Britain
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