Transcriber’s Notes Obvious typographical errors have been silently corrected. Variations in hyphenation and accents have been standardised but all other spelling and punctuation remains unchanged. Footnote 20 is referenced twice several pages apart in the text. Italics are represented thus _italic_. The cover was prepared by the transcriber and is placed in the public domain. NERVOUS AND MENTAL DISEASE MONOGRAPH SERIES, NO. 18 The Myth of the Birth of the Hero A Psychological Interpretation of Mythology BY DR. OTTO RANK of Vienna Authorized Translation by DRS. F. ROBBINS and SMITH ELY JELLIFFE NEW YORK THE JOURNAL OF NERVOUS AND MENTAL DISEASE PUBLISHING COMPANY 1914 NERVOUS AND MENTAL DISEASE MONOGRAPH SERIES Edited by Drs. SMITH ELY JELLIFFE and WM. A. WHITE Numbers Issued 1. Outlines of Psychiatry. (4th Edition) $3.00. By Dr. William A. White. 2. Studies in Paranoia. By Drs. N. Gierlich and M. Friedman. 3. The Psychology of Dementia Praecox. (Out of Print.) By Dr. C. G Jung. 4. Selected Papers on Hysteria and other Psychoneuroses. (2d Edition.) $2.50. By Prof. Sigmund Freud. 5. The Wassermann Serum Diagnosis in Psychiatry. $2.00. By Dr. Felix Plaut. 6. Epidemic Poliomyelitis. New York, 1907. (Out of Print.) 7. Three Contributions to Sexual Theory. $2.00. By Prof. Sigmund Freud. 8. Mental Mechanisms. $2.00. By Dr. Wm. A. White. 9. Studies in Psychiatry. $2.00. New York Psychiatrical Society. 10. Handbook of Mental Examination Methods. $2.00. By Shepherd Ivory Franz. 11. The Theory of Schizophrenic Negativism. $0.60. By Professor E. Bleuler. 12. Cerebellar Functions. $3.00. By Dr. André-Thomas. 13. History of Prison Psychoses. $1.25. By Drs. P. Nitsche and K. Wilmanns. 14. General Paresis. $3.00. By Prof. E. Kraepelin. 15. Dreams and Myths. $1.00. By Dr. Karl Abraham. 16. Poliomyelitis. $3.00. Dr. I. Wickmann. 17. Freud’s Theories of the Neuroses. $2.00. Dr. E. Hitschmann. 18. The Myth of the Birth of the Hero. $1.00. Dr. Otto Rank. Copyright, 1914, by THE JOURNAL OF NERVOUS AND MENTAL DISEASE PUBLISHING COMPANY, NEW YORK PRESS OF THE NEW ERA PRINTING COMPANY LANCASTER, PA. TABLE OF CONTENTS. Introduction 1 Sargon 12