Drawing upon a wealth of scientific, anthropological and historical date, the author examines man's efforts to understand himself and to deal with the problems of his universe through the creation and use of symbols. Analyzes the major symbolic forms of human enterprise: language, myth, art, religion, history and science. Discusses such subjects as the origins of language, doctrines of aesthetics, Frazer's theory of magic, the religious significance of taboo, the symbolic implications of philosophic thought from Heraclitus to Kierkegaard and Einstein.