“Return of the Gods” and mythopoetics as the cultural program of Romanticism: Ware O. Return of the Gods. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2025: Book review
Abstract
The monograph under review, Owen Ware’s “Return of the Gods: Mythology in Romantic Philosophy and Literature”, is dedicated to the Romantic rehabilitation of myth as a cultural-philosophical project aimed at overcoming the crisis of Enlightenment rationalism. Drawing on German and English Romanticism, the author demonstrates how the idea of a “new mythology” is conceived as a synthesis of philosophy, poetry, and religious experience. Furthermore, the study explores how this orientation transforms the epistemological status of myth – shifting it from a mere “archaic remnant” to a productive form of imagination and meaning-making. The book is of interest to researchers in the history of philosophy, Romantic studies, cultural studies, mythopoetics, and the philosophy of religion.
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Publication history
- Received: February 25, 2026.
- Published: April 1, 2026.
Keywords
- мифология в романтической философии
- мифология в романтической литературе
- немецкий романтизм
- английский романтизм
- идея «новой мифологии»
- mythology in Romantic philosophy
- mythology in Romantic literature
- German Romanticism
- English Romanticism
- idea of a “new mythology”
Copyright
© 2026 The Author(s)
© 2026 Gramota Publishing, LLC