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Opposing Viewpoints Series
Astrology: Opposing Viewpoints
Discusses the history and uses of astrology and presents opposing viewpoints on its validity.
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December 17, 2010
Bibliography:
Royer, Mary Paige. Astrology, Opposing Viewpoints.
San Diego, California: Greenhaven, 1991. Print.
* * * *
Review:
Have you ever wondered if there was a reason behind some of your personality traits? Or if there could be a reason to certain events or emotions that come upon you or happen to you? Well, according to some people, astrologers and followers, every action we take, every personality trait that we have is written in the stars and planets. I read the book Astrology, by Mary Paige Royer, which is obviously about astrology. Astrology is considered to be an ancient science or art, depending on who you ask. It is basically the study of predicting the future, and learning things about oneself or others through the stars, which makes it a very debatable topic.
My book was mainly about the history of astrology, from 3000 bce in Babylon, until current times around the world. In ancient Greece, astrologers were regarded highly, and astrology was part of everyday life. It was mainly used to communicate with gods, and to predict important events to come. When the Roman Empire started however, astrology soon became much more than that. Pretty soon, people used astrology to determine peoples personalities and most importantly, fates. But when the Roman Empire crumpled, and barbarians took over bringing the Dark Ages, astrological studies ceased to exist. After the Dark Ages, astrology was still considered a science in the Far Eastern part of the world, but no longer held with high respect and honor in the 1600’s in Europe. As the Renaissance spread in Europe, and people became more interested in “scientific inquiry”, astrology started to “unravel”. However, in the 1900’s astrology became popular once more. “But despite its renewed popularity, astrology would never again be so interwoven in the fabric of society as it had been in ancient times” (p. 45, Astrology). This remains how astrology is looked upon today in the modern world.
After a chapter about the history of astrology, my book went on to include two chapters about argument for and against astrology. Some people say that its nonsense, some say it totally works, and is true. My personal opinion is that astrology is partially true, and overall I thought that the book did a very nice job of showing both sides of this argument. The book was a really good springboard into my future studies of astrology.
In Astrology, there was a table of contents, four chapters, plus a introduction, prologue, epilogue, and chart for casting you own horoscope. The chapters ranged in length from 30 to 10 pages each, with pictures and astrological charts scattered here and there. I thought that it was very helpful that at the end of the book, they had an appendix with information on each zodiac sign, and a chart to calculate your ascendant/rising sign. This not only helped to understand the book better, but also provided more information for those who were a bit more curious, and wanted to know about their astrological sign and natal chart. Overall, I felt that the layout of the book and the way that the information was provided through the book and after the epilogue was very helpful. It really got a sense of a side of astrology that I wouldn’t otherwise have looked at, in a organized, understandable way. I thought Astrology was a successful book, with great formatting.
Although I thought that Astrology was a successful book packed with information, I did not see much of a writers voice in it. I thought that the style of writing was more textbook style itself was not. A lot of times I even felt the need to take a snooze. But somehow, this boring than fiction, and even though the facts that this book included were interesting, the writing style writing style made the author seem much more credible. Something about facts being fed to you in every sentence makes an author seem like an expert on that certain subject. Along with that, Mary Paige Royer, the author, also cited a lot of sources and put in quotes from many other experts’ books on astrology. This helps prove a point, and lets readers know that many other sources hold similar opinions on that subject. Lastly, Mary Paige Royer didn’t seem biased in any way, which made her information even more believable. Whenever she stated information for why astrology couldn’t possibly work, she also always gave contradicting information, so that it didn’t seem that she was opinionated. To conclude, I think that Mary Paige Royer was a very credible source, who gave a fact packed un-biased view on astrology.
Going along with the textbook style, I couldn’t find any grammatical or mechanical errors. It really seemed like the more the Astrology resembled a textbook, the less errors it seemed to contain. While the written work didn’t have that much of a natural flow to it, it did seem to be grammatically correct. That was one of the things that I thought the author could have worked on though; making her writing flow better would have made the book more interesting, and easier to read. But since the facts were so enhancing, it pretty much made up for the poor writing style. That’s the main thing that I think the author could have worked on, but I also think that Mary (the author) could have explained and expanded more on certain subjects. For example, I am still a little confused on what exactly astrology is. I definitely think that Mary could have added a chapter just to simply explain it. Finally, I think that everybody that's interested in astrology should read this book, because it provides a great backbone for future learning. Also, I think that it gives good background information to people who have never really heard about astrology before, and to people who are really knowledgeable about it and know most of the basics. It teaches about the history of astrology, what it is in a basic format, and arguments that have come up for and against it ever since 3000 bce. Overall, there is a nice range of information in Astrology, enough so that young children, adults, teens, experts, and beginners will all be able to read and enjoy it.
I really enjoyed reading Astrology, and got a sense of a deeper me, and another dimension to the world. This book is great for those who not only want to learn more “scientifically” about the solar system, but also want to learn more spiritually about themselves.
Royer, Mary Paige. Astrology, Opposing Viewpoints.
San Diego, California: Greenhaven, 1991. Print.
* * * *
Review:
Have you ever wondered if there was a reason behind some of your personality traits? Or if there could be a reason to certain events or emotions that come upon you or happen to you? Well, according to some people, astrologers and followers, every action we take, every personality trait that we have is written in the stars and planets. I read the book Astrology, by Mary Paige Royer, which is obviously about astrology. Astrology is considered to be an ancient science or art, depending on who you ask. It is basically the study of predicting the future, and learning things about oneself or others through the stars, which makes it a very debatable topic.
My book was mainly about the history of astrology, from 3000 bce in Babylon, until current times around the world. In ancient Greece, astrologers were regarded highly, and astrology was part of everyday life. It was mainly used to communicate with gods, and to predict important events to come. When the Roman Empire started however, astrology soon became much more than that. Pretty soon, people used astrology to determine peoples personalities and most importantly, fates. But when the Roman Empire crumpled, and barbarians took over bringing the Dark Ages, astrological studies ceased to exist. After the Dark Ages, astrology was still considered a science in the Far Eastern part of the world, but no longer held with high respect and honor in the 1600’s in Europe. As the Renaissance spread in Europe, and people became more interested in “scientific inquiry”, astrology started to “unravel”. However, in the 1900’s astrology became popular once more. “But despite its renewed popularity, astrology would never again be so interwoven in the fabric of society as it had been in ancient times” (p. 45, Astrology). This remains how astrology is looked upon today in the modern world.
After a chapter about the history of astrology, my book went on to include two chapters about argument for and against astrology. Some people say that its nonsense, some say it totally works, and is true. My personal opinion is that astrology is partially true, and overall I thought that the book did a very nice job of showing both sides of this argument. The book was a really good springboard into my future studies of astrology.
In Astrology, there was a table of contents, four chapters, plus a introduction, prologue, epilogue, and chart for casting you own horoscope. The chapters ranged in length from 30 to 10 pages each, with pictures and astrological charts scattered here and there. I thought that it was very helpful that at the end of the book, they had an appendix with information on each zodiac sign, and a chart to calculate your ascendant/rising sign. This not only helped to understand the book better, but also provided more information for those who were a bit more curious, and wanted to know about their astrological sign and natal chart. Overall, I felt that the layout of the book and the way that the information was provided through the book and after the epilogue was very helpful. It really got a sense of a side of astrology that I wouldn’t otherwise have looked at, in a organized, understandable way. I thought Astrology was a successful book, with great formatting.
Although I thought that Astrology was a successful book packed with information, I did not see much of a writers voice in it. I thought that the style of writing was more textbook style itself was not. A lot of times I even felt the need to take a snooze. But somehow, this boring than fiction, and even though the facts that this book included were interesting, the writing style writing style made the author seem much more credible. Something about facts being fed to you in every sentence makes an author seem like an expert on that certain subject. Along with that, Mary Paige Royer, the author, also cited a lot of sources and put in quotes from many other experts’ books on astrology. This helps prove a point, and lets readers know that many other sources hold similar opinions on that subject. Lastly, Mary Paige Royer didn’t seem biased in any way, which made her information even more believable. Whenever she stated information for why astrology couldn’t possibly work, she also always gave contradicting information, so that it didn’t seem that she was opinionated. To conclude, I think that Mary Paige Royer was a very credible source, who gave a fact packed un-biased view on astrology.
Going along with the textbook style, I couldn’t find any grammatical or mechanical errors. It really seemed like the more the Astrology resembled a textbook, the less errors it seemed to contain. While the written work didn’t have that much of a natural flow to it, it did seem to be grammatically correct. That was one of the things that I thought the author could have worked on though; making her writing flow better would have made the book more interesting, and easier to read. But since the facts were so enhancing, it pretty much made up for the poor writing style. That’s the main thing that I think the author could have worked on, but I also think that Mary (the author) could have explained and expanded more on certain subjects. For example, I am still a little confused on what exactly astrology is. I definitely think that Mary could have added a chapter just to simply explain it. Finally, I think that everybody that's interested in astrology should read this book, because it provides a great backbone for future learning. Also, I think that it gives good background information to people who have never really heard about astrology before, and to people who are really knowledgeable about it and know most of the basics. It teaches about the history of astrology, what it is in a basic format, and arguments that have come up for and against it ever since 3000 bce. Overall, there is a nice range of information in Astrology, enough so that young children, adults, teens, experts, and beginners will all be able to read and enjoy it.
I really enjoyed reading Astrology, and got a sense of a deeper me, and another dimension to the world. This book is great for those who not only want to learn more “scientifically” about the solar system, but also want to learn more spiritually about themselves.
October 16, 2018
Little there to warrant a reading.
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews