James Frazer
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Sir James Frazer is one of the most influential figures in the early stages of the comparative religion and modern studies of mythology. Frazer was the first person to give a detailed description of rituals and myths. Frazer studies about myths, cults, and rites, including their meaning in religion, have been resourceful to the modern scholars of religion. The primary intent of choosing James Frazer is because his work is still applicable in the 21st century. Frazer argued that human progress follows three steps, including primitive magic, religion, and science. James Frazer goes ahead to explain why people are religious from an evolutionary point of view. While exploring and studying the societies that were regarded as less complicated, he claimed that civilization advances, and it is beyond doubt that the system of religion grows as well. The complexities of the religion are accompanied by how complex the society is. According to Frazer, every society demonstrates religious beliefs, which provide mythological explanations for the questions related to human origin, the afterlife, and purpose. More so, religion will eventually die out because scientific reasoning tends to offer answers to existential questions. In the Golden Bough, James Frazer holds that most people believe in religion because they have not evolved from magicians’ superstitious beliefs, including the gods and the priest. Individuals who have developed intellectually and psychologically dwell more on scientific reasoning. The paper will discuss how religion only functions as an early form of science, explaining existential questions.