Why is animism universal?

Question

I am still pondering with this question, I have the answer to it, but don't quite understand the answer by Sir Edward Tylor.

Answer 1

For me it's clear why is animism universal: because people anywhere have the ability to project their own personality into other subjects - and they were used to do it in social interaction, so they just "extended" the praxis. And they maybe felt such world is more comprehensible.

I understand Sir Taylor's answer like this:

Basic, universal experiences (perception, which is common for all the people regardless of their origin) caused that the belief is basic and universal, occurring anywhere the people occur.

Answer 2

I believe what Tylor was saying was that if every society evinced some sort of animism, it means that it's not just chance. It's not just a conincidence that there was some oddball in every human society who thought some god made it rain. It means that the existence of animism suggests something universal in the human experience.

I think animism is a sign of people looking for meaning in the world around them, people looking for a way to understand and control forces of nature, and people recognizing and organizing their knowledge of the world.

And there are lots of good theories out there now on how imbuing these sorts of phenomena with meaning, on how some sort of religion or seeking of meaning, really are part of what makes us human, along with language and tools and bipedalism. Perhaps we, as homo sapiens, thrived as a species because we sought to question the world around us or give value and meaning to otherwise everyday items.

Answer 3

i believe it is universal just because animals can be found wherever humans are found so why not surely diffusion took place

Answer 4

Animism is a type of religion but I really cant define it.