Carlos Castaneda Summary

Castaneda, Carlos (1925-1998) Little consensus has been reached about Carlos Castaneda, whose books detailing his apprenticeship to the Yaqui Indian shaman Don Juan Matus have sold over eight millio... Read more

Critical Essay by Dudley Young The fundamental issue which ["The Teachings of Don Juan"] confronts is as old as civilization, and of the utmost importance. Throughout his history man ha... Read more

Critical Essay by Elsa First Carlos Castaneda has [placed us inside the shaman's consciousness] and this is why his work is original and important…. In order to show us a world in wh... Read more

Critical Essay by H. S. Mcallister The fourth and final book of the don Juan series, Tales of Power, answers some of the questions the books have raised, leaves many other questions unanswered, and e... Read more

Critical Essay by Sam Keen Does Don Juan exist? Yes or no? The skeptical mind insists on the facts. Strip the legendary hero of the adornment of miracle and find the core of historical truth. Placed ... Read more

Critical Essay by Thomas Leclair Reading [The Second Ring of Power] I felt like the man going to St. Ives. Don Juan has gone by, leaving a band of apprentice sorceresses and their magical cats and ki... Read more

Critical Essay by Edward H. Spicer [The Teachings of Don Juan] achieves three things: (1) it presents a description of personal experience with peyote, datura, and hallucinogenic mushrooms; (2) it de... Read more

Critical Essay by Joseph Grange The full significance of drugs as an alternative metaphysics of existence awaits something more than the pseudo-apocalyptic prose of Leary or its neo-Zen endorsement b... Read more

Critical Essay by Paul Riesman Taken together—and they should be read in the order they were written—[Carlos Castaneda's books] form a work which is among the best that the scien... Read more

Critical Essay by Joyce Carol Oates Paul Riesman's review of Carlos Castaneda's three books ("The Teachings of Don Juan," "A Separate Reality," and "J... Read more

[In the following essay based on an interview with Castaneda, Epstein discusses Castaneda's teachings and views on religion.] One of the most elusive figures of modern times, Castaneda recen... Read more

[In the following obituary, Thompson, an author, discusses the trickster role Castaneda played.] When I heard that the coroner's certificate listed his occupation as Beverly Hills schoolteac... Read more

[In the following essay, Riesman, an anthropology professor at Carleton College, discusses what Casianeda's books reveal about the short-comings of anthropology.] Anthropology is, for many o... Read more

[In the following review of Journey to Ixtlan, Howes, an English professor at Northeastern University, states that the least satisfying part of this account is Castaneda's description of psyche... Read more

[In the following review of The Fire From Within, Peters, a poet and critic teaching at University of California at Irvine, finds Castaneda's writing and ideas dated.] In the mid-'70s... Read more

[In the following review of The Power of Silence, Chickering, executive editor for the Institute for Contemporary Studies in San Francisco, makes a connection between Castaneda's search for a n... Read more

[In the following review of Practical Wisdom of the Shamans of Ancient Mexico, the reviewer explains Castaneda's "tensegrity," a combination of tension and integrity, to describe ... Read more