Q: Critically compare the views of E.B. Tylor and Max Muller on Religion.

Model Answer:

E.B. Tylor and Max Muller: Comparison of Views on Religion

E.B. Tylor and Max Muller pioneered 19th-century evolutionary theories of religion, tracing the origins of the sacred via Animism and Naturism, respectively.

Comparative Analysis

• Origins & Methodology: Tylor (Primitive Culture) used anthropology to root religion in psychological phenomena (dreams/death), creating Animism. Muller used philology (textual study), tracing origins to human awe of external natural forces (Naturism).
• Mechanism: Tylor saw unilinear evolution toward monotheism, with older practices persisting as “Survivals”. Muller cited a “Disease of Language”, where ancient metaphors for nature were literally personified into deities (Henotheism).

Sociological Critique

In The Elementary Forms of Religious Life, Emile Durkheim rejected both theories for ignoring religion’s social essence. He critiqued Tylor for reducing religion to mere illusions/hallucinations, and Muller for failing to explain the worship of insignificant objects (like totems).

Elements of Animism and Naturism find modern resonance in global Deep Ecology and Neo-Paganism movements, which re-sacralize nature to combat climate change.

Conclusion

Despite their ethnocentric unilinear assumptions, Tylor and Muller’s frameworks established the foundational groundwork for the comparative and scientific study of religion.