Cultural Hero Systems and Religious Beliefs: The Ideal-Real Social Science of Ernest Becker

Ernest Becker formulated a theory of human behavior based on the premise that the fear of death is the motivating principle of human behavior. Becker's "ideal-real" social science combined psychology with a mythico-religious perspective to provide a model that would insure the fullest...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Author: Scimecca, Joseph A. (Author)
Format: Electronic Article
Language:English
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Published: Springer 1979
In: Review of religious research
Year: 1979, Volume: 21, Issue: 1, Pages: 62-70
Online Access: Presumably Free Access
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Summary:Ernest Becker formulated a theory of human behavior based on the premise that the fear of death is the motivating principle of human behavior. Becker's "ideal-real" social science combined psychology with a mythico-religious perspective to provide a model that would insure the fullest liberation of man. A social phenomenologist, Becker believed that human beings needed to create a meaningful world. Traditional social science had failed man in that it did not provide the basis for a meaningful existence. Only by embracing a religious perspective could individuals overcome and transcend the crippling fear of death. This paper analyzes Becker's "ideal-real" social science.
ISSN:2211-4866
Contains:Enthalten in: Review of religious research
Persistent identifiers:DOI: 10.2307/3510156