The Devil in the Convent

Sluhovsky, Moshe

doi:10.1086/532851

Cited by 13 publications

(4 citation statements)

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“…By being possessed, the nuns could project their panic outside themselves, as the historian Moshe Sluhovsky, among others, suggests. 58 No need to say that this is not exactly the kind of explanation that Teresa de Jesús and Jeanne des Anges gave to themselves for understanding their experiences of possession. 59 They thought that the devil affected their feelings and behaviors but as a real entity.…”

Section: The Subversive Interpretationsmentioning

confidence: 98%

The historical understanding of female premodern possessions. Problematizing some gender assumptions in the historiography on Teresa de Ávila and Jeanne des Anges

Balltondre

2019

Women's History Review

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This paper discusses how to approach the history of female possessions today. By analyzing some recent contributions applied to two well-known historical figures: Teresa de Ávila (1515-1582) and Jeanne des Anges (1602-1665), I will problematize some of the ongoing history of female possessions. I intend a reflection on two of the current conceptual frameworks that feature the way history explains the subjective experience of these premodern possessed individuals. I focus on two kinds of interpretation: one I call the 'neurotic' interpretation, and the other the 'subversive' interpretation. Both constructions underpin explanations of women's divine and demonic possessions, involving historiographical gender prejudices and ahistorical assumptions.

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Section: The Subversive Interpretationsmentioning

confidence: 98%

The historical understanding of female premodern possessions. Problematizing some gender assumptions in the historiography on Teresa de Ávila and Jeanne des Anges

Balltondre

2019

Women's History Review

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“…Such mechanisms enabled our male and female ancestors to cement their unions to one another in order to ensure mutual investment in the resultant offspring, and are perhaps activated when ToM templates associated with lovers or objects of romantic desire are co-opted by concepts of incorporeal entities such as gods or spirits. Further evidence for the activation of these mechanisms during moments of transcendence comes from late medieval and early modern accounts of sexualized unions with Christ (as well as an assortment of angelic and demonic figures) experienced by Catholic nuns in the thralls of orgasmic ecstasy (Sluhovsky 2002). Such instances of religion-inspired sexual hysteria spread across Europe in a pandemic fashion, as convent after convent was exposed to rumors of these spectacles.…”

Section: Theory Of Mind and Transcendencementioning

confidence: 99%

The Evolution of Transcendence

Gorelik

2016

Evolutionary Psychological Science

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The transcendent experience, often described as an ego-dissolving encounter with something greater than one's self, is cross-cultural and pan-historical. I present a model describing the evolution and function of various evolved modes of transcendence, such as group-directed transcendence, theory of mind (ToM)-evoking transcendence, aesthetic transcendence, and epistemic transcendence. I then discuss the vulnerability of these modes of transcendence to costly exploitation by selfish individuals who activate the transcendent state in others for their own reproductive benefit. In the ensuing section, I discuss the relationship between transcendence and human development across the lifespan, and conclude with some thoughts on the epistemic and ethical utility of transcendence.

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“…Também durante esse período há relatos de freiras que agiam de forma como se estivessem possuídas por um demônio. Elas imitavam animais, tinham convulsões, gritavam e afirmavam ter relações carnais com a divindade (Sluhovsky, 2002).…”

Section: De Acordo Comunclassified

Estudo dos traços histéricos de personalidade em pacientes portadores de crises não-epiléticas psicogênicas

Guater¹

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GUATER, E. C. (2010). A study of hysterical personality traits in patients with psychogenic nonepileptic seizures. Dissertation of the masters, Institute of Psychology of the University of São Paulo. A psychogenic nonepileptic seizure is defined as a physical manifestation similar to that of epileptic seizures, but lacking a neurological correlation to justify its occurrence. Its etiology is attributed to psychological factors although subjective questions concerning the origin of symptoms are barely studied. This research aims to investigate hysterical personality traits in two patients forwarded for psychoanalytic psychotherapy after receiving this medical diagnosis, as well as analyze latent affective contents associated with the symptomatic manifestations in these case studies. The material collected during the patient consultation served as a file and source of information through which elements relative to hysterical personality and unconscious mechanisms linked to the symptoms are described and studied. This work has psychoanalysis as a reference and the case studies were carried out considering its conceptual assumptions of symptoms, conflict, conversion and hysteria. The material obtained during the sessions evidenced elements, such as erotization of the analytic space, continuous demands to occupy the place of an object of beauty, as well as refusal to abandon discontentment and search for a contented state. Investment in infantile fantasies with an unconscious desire of exclusive union with parental figures was also observed.

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The Devil in the Convent

Cited by 13 publications

References 0 publications

The historical understanding of female premodern possessions. Problematizing some gender assumptions in the historiography on Teresa de Ávila and Jeanne des Anges

The historical understanding of female premodern possessions. Problematizing some gender assumptions in the historiography on Teresa de Ávila and Jeanne des Anges

The Evolution of Transcendence

Estudo dos traços histéricos de personalidade em pacientes portadores de crises não-epiléticas psicogênicas

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