Author: Francis Tobienne
Publisher: Cambridge Scholars Publishing
ISBN: 1443811599
Category : Literary Criticism
Languages : en
Pages : 125
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Book Description
It is difficult to assess an explanation of a belief, or a belief system in words, Tobienne begins, and harder still to assign signification to such inexplicable conviction s]. This book addresses the often blurred line s] between magic, religion, and
Author: Richard Kieckhefer
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
ISBN: 1108494714
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 305
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Book Description
A revised and expanded edition of this fascinating interdisciplinary study of magic in the Middle Ages.
Author: Francis Tobienne
Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield
ISBN: 1611496047
Category : Literary Criticism
Languages : en
Pages : 185
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Book Description
This book offers a critical methodology for analyzing travel literature. The subject of travel literature, as well as travel literatures, have not always been regarded with respect or given much critical attention. In order to amend this lack of positive reception, Francis Tobienne Jr. analyzes the late medieval text Mandeville’s Travels, specifically the Cotton MS. This text, though not overly popular currently, was among the most popular pieces of literature for well beyond its fourteenth-century inception in some three hundred manuscripts divided into three groups as well as early printed editions; further, this text offers a way in which to approach other pieces of travel literature. To facilitate this critical process Tobienne proposes a seven-part method: 1. Identify and Define the Problem, 2. Make Observations, 3. Look for Regularities, 4. Wonder Why Regularities Exist, 5. Propose a Hypothesis, 6. Use an Experiment and 7. Have Reproducible Results. Of note, Mandeville’s Travels is both the impetus behind this seven-part method, as well as the object of study. Thus, Tobienne showcases how each element of the seven-part method is at play in the text, even as he argues for the text’s importance within medieval studies. Also included in this examination is the application of this seven-part method to medieval and post-period pieces of literature. The book culminates in an argument for the canonization and importance of Mandeville’s Travels in and beyond medieval studies.
Author: Michael A. Ryan
Publisher: Cornell University Press
ISBN: 0801463157
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 231
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Book Description
Astrology in the Middle Ages was considered a branch of the magical arts, one informed by Jewish and Muslim scientific knowledge in Muslim Spain. As such it was deeply troubling to some Church authorities. Using the stars and planets to divine the future ran counter to the orthodox Christian notion that human beings have free will, and some clerical authorities argued that it almost certainly entailed the summoning of spiritual forces considered diabolical. We know that occult beliefs and practices became widespread in the later Middle Ages, but there is much about the phenomenon that we do not understand. For instance, how deeply did occult beliefs penetrate courtly culture and what exactly did those in positions of power hope to gain by interacting with the occult? In A Kingdom of Stargazers, Michael A. Ryan examines the interest in astrology in the Iberian kingdom of Aragon, where ideas about magic and the occult were deeply intertwined with notions of power, authority, and providence. Ryan focuses on the reigns of Pere III (1336–1387) and his sons Joan I (1387–1395) and Martí I (1395–1410). Pere and Joan spent lavish amounts of money on astrological writings, and astrologers held great sway within their courts. When Martí I took the throne, however, he was determined to purge Joan’s courtiers and return to religious orthodoxy. As Ryan shows, the appeal of astrology to those in power was clear: predicting the future through divination was a valuable tool for addressing the extraordinary problems—political, religious, demographic—plaguing Europe in the fourteenth century. Meanwhile, the kings' contemporaries within the noble, ecclesiastical, and mercantile elite had their own reasons for wanting to know what the future held, but their engagement with the occult was directly related to the amount of power and authority the monarch exhibited and applied. A Kingdom of Stargazers joins a growing body of scholarship that explores the mixing of religious and magical ideas in the late Middle Ages.
Author: Jacob M. Held
Publisher: John Wiley & Sons
ISBN: 111928077X
Category : Philosophy
Languages : en
Pages : 239
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Book Description
Wonder Woman and Philosophy: The Amazonian Mystique explores a wide range of philosophical questions surrounding the most popular female superhero of all time, from her creation as feminist propaganda during World War II up to the first female lead in the blockbuster DC movie-franchise. The first book dedicated to the philosophical questions raised by the complex and enduringly iconic super-heroine Fighting fascism with feminism since 1941, considers the power of Wonder Woman as an exploration of gender identity and also that of the human condition – what limits us and what we can overcome Confronts the ambiguities of Wonder Woman, from her roles as a feminist cause and fully empowered woman, to her objectification as sexual fantasy Topics explored include origin stories and identity, propaganda and art, altruism and the ethics of care, Amazonians as transhumanists, eroticism and graphic novels, the crafting of a heroine, domination, relationships, the ethics of killing and torture, and many more.
Author: Vern Neufeld Redekop
Publisher: Lexington Books
ISBN: 0739168991
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 350
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Book Description
For half a century René Girard’s theories of mimetic desire and scapegoating have captivated the imagination of thinkers and doers in many fields as an incisive look into the human condition, particularly the roots of violence. In a 1993 interview with Rebecca Adams, he highlighted the positive dimensions of mimetic phenomena without expanding on what they might be. Now, two decades later, this groundbreaking book systematically explores the positive side of mimetic theory in the context of the multi-faceted world of creativity. Several authors build on Adams’ insight that loving mimesis can be understood as desiring the subjectivity of the other, particularly when the other may be young or wounded. With highly nuanced arguments authors show how mimetic theory can be used to address child and adult development, including the growth of consciousness and a capacity to handle complexity. Mimetic theory is brought to bear on big questions about creativity in nature, evolutionary development, originality, and religious intrusion into politics.
Author: Galen A. Foresman
Publisher: John Wiley & Sons
ISBN: 1118615999
Category : Philosophy
Languages : en
Pages : 191
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Book Description
No doubt the years hunting monsters and saving the universe have had their toll on the Winchesters, but their toughest and most gruesome battles are contained in this book. Think Lucifer was diabolically clever? Think again. No son is more wayward than the one who squanders his intellect and academic career pursuing questions as poignant as “Half-awesome? That’s full-on good, right?” Gathered here for the first time since the formation of Purgatory, a collection of research so arcane and horrific that it would make even the late, great Bobby Singer blush. Supernatural and Philosophy tackles all the big ideas in the long-running hit show Supernatural, covering thorny issues in a fun and accessible way. Even those unfamiliar with the show will find fascinating insights into Heaven, Hell, Angels, Demons, God, and Lucifer. A unique collection of insights into the many philosophical, religious, and paranormal topics in the hit TV show, Supernatural Accessible treatment of thorny issues for a general audience Written by philosophical fans of the show, for philosophical fans of the show Those unfamiliar with the show will still find fascinating insights into Heaven, Hell, Angels, Demons, God, Lucifer, and Good and Evil Contributors tackle issues ranging from the biological classifications of monsters, to the epistemological problems of ghost hunting
Author: Arthur James Wells
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Bibliography, National
Languages : en
Pages : 2744
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Book Description
Author: Harold C. Raley
Publisher: Halcyon Press Ltd.
ISBN: 0970605498
Category : Europe
Languages : en
Pages : 222
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Book Description
The Spirit of Spain brims with apercus and revelations, many of them controversial, others startling, all engrossing. From Roman Hispania to the most recent Spanish trends, Professor Raley narrates the unique story of Spanish civilization. Examples of his original thinking include a phenomenology of Spanish history, a new theory of the Spanish Renaissance, new concepts of Spanish patriotism and nationalism, and a reinterpretation of Spanish Stoicism. As the book unfolds he also takes many sidelong looks into Hispanic America and offers a new explanation of Spain's relationship to Moslem Al-Andalus and modern Europe. The book culminates in a radical analysis of Quixotic life and its unsuspected significance for the post-modern age.
Author: Benedek Lang
Publisher: Penn State Press
ISBN: 0271033789
Category : Literary Criticism
Languages : en
Pages : 352
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Book Description
During the Middle Ages, the Western world translated the incredible Arabic scientific corpus and imported it into Western culture: Arabic philosophy, optics, and physics, as well as alchemy, astrology, and talismanic magic. The line between the scientific and the magical was blurred. According to popular lore, magicians of the Middle Ages were trained in the art of magic in &“magician schools&” located in various metropolitan areas, such as Naples, Athens, and Toledo. It was common knowledge that magic was learned and that cities had schools designed to teach the dark arts. The Spanish city of Toledo, for example, was so renowned for its magic training schools that &“the art of Toledo&” was synonymous with &“the art of magic.&” Until Benedek L&áng&’s work on Unlocked Books, little had been known about the place of magic outside these major cities. A principal aim of Unlocked Books is to situate the role of central Europe as a center for the study of magic. L&áng helps chart for us how the thinkers of that day&—clerics, courtiers, and university masters&—included in their libraries not only scientific and religious treatises but also texts related to the field of learned magic. These texts were all enlisted to solve life&’s questions, whether they related to the outcome of an illness or the meaning of lines on one&’s palm. Texts summoned angels or transmitted the recipe for a magic potion. L&áng gathers magical texts that could have been used by practitioners in late fifteenth-century central Europe.
