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In course of time the slow advance of knowledge, which has dispelled so many cherished illusions, convinced at least the more thoughtful portion of mankind that the alterations of summer and winter, of spring and autumn, were not merely the result of their own magical rites, but that some deeper cause, some mightier power, was at work behind the shifting scenes of nature.

— James Frazer The Golden Bough (1890)

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More quotes by James Frazer

If mankind had always been logical and wise, history would not be a long chronicle of folly and crime.

The Golden Bough (1890)

The scapegoat upon whom the sins of the people are periodically laid, may also be a human being.

The Golden Bough (1890)

We seem to move on a thin crust which may at any moment be rent by the subterranean forces slumbering below.

The Golden Bough (1890)

The temple of the sylvan goddess, indeed, has vanished, and the King of the Wood no longer stands sentinel over the Golden Bough.

The Golden Bough (1890)

The consideration of human suffering is not one which enters into the calculations of primitive man.

The Golden Bough (1890)

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Quote text and notes from Wikiquote: James Frazer (page history), available under CC BY-SA 4.0. Source quality and labels are our own summary of what Wikiquote records.