The Chalice and the Blade: Exploring Our Past to Shape Our Future

ashley pinay: A good education.
Great to relearn what history could have been..

Canada on Oct 27, 2021

Tim Murphey: It should be required reading in junior high schools/high schools for all, all over the world. Great history, positive active anthropology, sociology, and political-sexual, gender equity education. I am sorry that I found it so late in my life, I wish I could have read it in JHS.

Japan on Apr 12, 2021

E17: This is now my favourite book. Second is Gerder Lerner 'Creation of Patriarchy.'

Both books are KEY reading for everyone, especially women!

Want to know the true herstory?, then you must read this. How did our society begin? How did we live? How did this change? What is the pattern shown by cultural shifts and important events?... feminism or moves to embrace the feminine principle, have been occurring for centuries.

Powerful, fascinating and thoroughly researched.

United Kingdom on Oct 20, 2018

Amazon Customer: A really good book. Before I purchased this book I read through a lot of the 1-2 star reviews and this caused me hesitation, but I'm so glad that I decided to go for it. After reading the book I went back to read through those same reviews and I really think that they all missed the point.The biggest two reasons that the book was given lower ratings seemed to be that

1) the historical accuracy of Eisler's claims are contested and
2) it was perceived as an intentionally dichotomous (men vs. women or good vs. bad) and/or polarizing analysis.

Firstly, the historical narrative that Eisler posits is not to be interpreted as absolute truth and a big part of Eisler's message is that history is always written with intentions. For the past several thousand years, history has been written and rewritten by men in power so that said men in power can remain in power and/or the power structures that support them can continue to exist. The reason that Eisler's claims are so inflammatory is because instead of using sources of information that prioritize men's histories (which is pretty much all of the sources), she attempts to use sources of information that are prioritizing...

United States on Feb 15, 2018

Kalena: This book is even more relevant now than it was en it was written in 1987. The situation she describes then has only gotten worse. It's too bad, because her ideas on how to save our civilization and our planet are laid out clearly and are eminently doable. I'm glad I read it again almost 30 years later because it told me that I remembered it clearly and - if I didn't think she was then, I certainly don't now. How sad that we can't get her message out - it is NOT 'old news'. !!!

Canada on May 04, 2015

kpoling: This book, citing numerous learned sources from the fields of archaeology, theology, science, visual art, and literature, to name a few, vividly illustrates much that is missing in the dominant view of western historical perspectives. The central message of this book, presented in an engaging but no less thorough style, is that, with the relatively recent scientific approach in archaeology, new information about the history of civilization has come to light that clearly challenges the long-held assumption that civilization has always been based on the ranking of one half of humanity over the other: the familiar domination of men over women, masters over slaves, etc.

As we are presented with mounting archeological evidence from a great many Neolithic cultural sites that proves humanity was capable of peaceful social organization and technological advances, Eisler presents an excellent social analysis of what this new knowledge implies for our present and future.

The crux of her message, that human potential is stunted in dominator societies that use force to maintain their rigid social hierarchies, is supported by ample evidence from numerous sources. The new...

United States on Jul 02, 2014

katharina27: Gleich vorweg: Die ersten 100 Seiten sind etwas zäh, mühsam zu lesen, da muss man einfach durch. Denn es lohnt sich! Dieses Buch hat mir die Augen geöffnet, es ist das ideale Einstiegswerk für all jene, die mehr zur Geschichte der Menschheit erfahren wollen (ich meine jetzt, mehr als diese ewige Auflistung von Kriegen und Hungersnöten, Gewalt, Dominanz und Unterwerfung, die man im normalen Geschichtsunterricht zu hören bekommt).
Dieses Buch beweist, dass wir als Menschheit fähig sind, friedvoll und in Toleranz miteinander zu leben, und dass wir jahrtausendelang so gelebt haben. In gewisser Weise schöpft man Hoffnung, wenn man dieses Buch liest, denn wenn wir schon einmal so gelebt haben, können wir eines Tages doch wieder so leben! Dann gäbe es Hoffnung für diesen Planeten! Und wir würden aufhören, die Natur auszubeuten, Frauen zu erniedrigen (häusliche Gewalt, Schlechterbezahlung in Job, Dating-"Rituale" die unglücklich machen). Ich werde dieses Buch allen meinen Bekannten schenken und kann es jedem nur wärmstens empfehlen!

Germany on Feb 01, 2014