Demonic History

Author : Kirk Wetters
Publisher : Northwestern University Press
Page : 270 pages
File Size : 55,8 Mb
Release : 2014-08-31
Category : Literary Criticism
ISBN : 9780810129764

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Demonic History by Kirk Wetters Pdf

In this ambitious book, Kirk Wetters traces the genealogy of the demonic in German literature from its imbrications in Goethe to its varying legacies in the work of essential authors, both canonical and less well known, such as Gundolf, Spengler, Benjamin, Lukács, and Doderer. Wetters focuses especially on the philological and metaphorological resonances of the demonic from its core formations through its appropriations in the tumultuous twentieth century. Propelled by equal parts theoretical and historical acumen, Wetters explores the ways in which the question of the demonic has been employed to multiple theoretical, literary, and historico-political ends. He thereby produces an intellectual history that will be consequential both to scholars of German literature and to comparatists.

Author : Mark R. E. Meulenbeld
Publisher : University of Hawaii Press
Page : 290 pages
File Size : 51,9 Mb
Release : 2015-01-31
Category : Literary Criticism
ISBN : 9780824838454

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Demonic Warfare by Mark R. E. Meulenbeld Pdf

Revealing the fundamental continuities that exist between vernacular fiction and exorcist, martial rituals in the vernacular language, Mark Meulenbeld argues that a specific type of Daoist exorcism helped shape vernacular novels in the late Ming dynasty (1368–1644). Focusing on the once famous novel Fengshen yanyi ("Canonization of the Gods"), the author maps out the general ritual structure and divine protagonists that it borrows from much older systems of Daoist exorcism. By exploring how the novel reflects the specific concerns of communities associated with Fengshen yanyi and its ideology, Meulenbeld is able to reconstruct the cultural sphere in which Daoist exorcist rituals informed late imperial "novels." He first looks at temple networks and their religious festivals. Organized by local communities for territorial protection, these networks featured martial narratives about the powerful and heroic deeds of the gods. He then shows that it is by means of dramatic practices like ritual, theatre, and temple processions that divine acts were embodied and brought to life. Much attention is given to local militias who embodied "demon soldiers" as part of their defensive strategies. Various Ming emperors actively sought the support of these local religious networks and even continued to invite Daoist ritualists so as to efficiently marshal the forces of local gods with their local demon soldiers into the official, imperial reserves of military power. This unusual book establishes once and for all the importance of understanding the idealized realities of literary texts within a larger context of cultural practice and socio-political history. Of particular importance is the ongoing dialog with religious ideology that informs these different discourses. Meulenbeld's book makes a convincing case for the need to debunk the retrospective reading of China through the modern, secular Western categories of "literature," "society," and "politics." He shows that this disregard of religious dynamics has distorted our understanding of China and that "religion" cannot be conveniently isolated from scholarly analysis.

Author : Anita Croy
Publisher : The Rosen Publishing Group, Inc
Page : 48 pages
File Size : 43,6 Mb
Release : 2019-07-15
Category : Juvenile Nonfiction
ISBN : 9781725346505

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Demonic Possessions in History by Anita Croy Pdf

Possession by a malevolent spirit sounds like a horrific nightmare or bizarre fiction, but history has certainly shown that it isn't such a far-fetched concept. The fear of these possessions stems from Christianity and other religions. They had treacherous repercussions, such as witch hunts in Europe and the United States, and attempted exorcisms. Murderers even used the guise of demonic possession as an excuse for their crimes. Readers poring through these engrossing, extensive accounts can decide for themselves what may have a ring of truth to it.

Author : Sharon Packer MD,Jody Pennington
Publisher : Bloomsbury Publishing USA
Page : 704 pages
File Size : 54,9 Mb
Release : 2014-07-15
Category : Social Science
ISBN : 9798216097419

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A History of Evil in Popular Culture by Sharon Packer MD,Jody Pennington Pdf

Evil isn't simply an abstract theological or philosophical talking point. In our society, the idea of evil feeds entertainment, manifests in all sorts of media, and is a root concept in our collective psyche. This accessible and appealing book examines what evil means to us. Evil has been with us since the Garden of Eden, when Eve unleashed evil by biting the apple. Outside of theology, evil remains a highly relevant concept in contemporary times: evil villains in films and literature make these stories entertaining; our criminal justice system decides the fate of convicted criminals based on the determination of their status as "evil" or "insane." This book examines the many manifestations of "evil" in modern media, making it clear how this idea pervades nearly all aspects of life and helping us to reconsider some of the notions about evil that pop culture perpetuates and promotes. Covering screen media such as film, television, and video games; print media that include novels and poetry; visual media like art and comics; music; and political polemics, the essays in this book address an eclectic range of topics. The diverse authors include Americans who left the United States during the Vietnam War era, conservative Christian political pundits, rock musicians, classical linguists, Disney fans, scholars of American slavery, and experts on Holocaust literature and films. From portrayals of evil in the television shows The Wire and 24 to the violent lyrics of the rap duo Insane Clown Posse to the storylines of the Lord of the Rings and Harry Potter books, readers will find themselves rethinking what evil is—and how they came to hold their beliefs.

Author : Hazel Johannessen
Publisher : Oxford University Press
Page : 260 pages
File Size : 42,8 Mb
Release : 2016
Category : History
ISBN : 9780198787242

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The Demonic in the Political Thought of Eusebius of Caesarea by Hazel Johannessen Pdf

"The Demonic in the Political Thought of Eusebius of Caesarea" explores how Eusebius of Caesarea's ideas about demons interacted with and helped to shape his thought on other topics, particularly political topics. Hazel Johannessen builds on and complements recent work on early Christian and early modern demonology. Eusebius' political thought has long drawn the attention of scholars who have identified in some of his works the foundations of later Byzantine theories of kingship. However, Eusebius' political thought has not previously been examined in the light of his views on demons. Moreover, despite frequent references to demons throughout many of Eusebius' works, there has been no comprehensive study of Eusebius' views on demons, until now, as expressed throughout a range of his works. The originality of this study lies both in an initial examination of Eusebius' views on demons and their place in his cosmology, and in the application of the insights derived from this to consideration of his political thought. As a result of this new perspective, Johannessen challenges scholars' traditional characterization of Eusebius as a triumphal optimist. Instead, she draws attention to his concerns about a continuing demonic threat, capable of disrupting humankind's salvation, and presents Eusebius as a more cautious figure than the one familiar to late antique scholarship. - back of book

Author : Christopher Nugent
Publisher : Burns & Oates
Page : 232 pages
File Size : 53,8 Mb
Release : 1983
Category : Religion
ISBN : UOM:39015046349968

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Masks of Satan by Christopher Nugent Pdf

Author : Jimena Canales
Publisher : Princeton University Press
Page : 416 pages
File Size : 48,5 Mb
Release : 2022-08-09
Category : Science
ISBN : 9780691241685

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Bedeviled by Jimena Canales Pdf

How scientists through the ages have conducted thought experiments using imaginary entities—demons—to test the laws of nature and push the frontiers of what is possible Science may be known for banishing the demons of superstition from the modern world. Yet just as the demon-haunted world was being exorcized by the enlightening power of reason, a new kind of demon mischievously materialized in the scientific imagination itself. Scientists began to employ hypothetical beings to perform certain roles in thought experiments—experiments that can only be done in the imagination—and these impish assistants helped scientists achieve major breakthroughs that pushed forward the frontiers of science and technology. Spanning four centuries of discovery—from René Descartes, whose demon could hijack sensorial reality, to James Clerk Maxwell, whose molecular-sized demon deftly broke the second law of thermodynamics, to Darwin, Einstein, Feynman, and beyond—Jimena Canales tells a shadow history of science and the demons that bedevil it. She reveals how the greatest scientific thinkers used demons to explore problems, test the limits of what is possible, and better understand nature. Their imaginary familiars helped unlock the secrets of entropy, heredity, relativity, quantum mechanics, and other scientific wonders—and continue to inspire breakthroughs in the realms of computer science, artificial intelligence, and economics today. The world may no longer be haunted as it once was, but the demons of the scientific imagination are alive and well, continuing to play a vital role in scientists' efforts to explore the unknown and make the impossible real.

Author : Damian Catani
Publisher : A&C Black
Page : 233 pages
File Size : 47,9 Mb
Release : 2013-05-30
Category : Literary Criticism
ISBN : 9781441185563

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Evil: A History in Modern French Literature and Thought by Damian Catani Pdf

An up-to-date, comprehensive and interdisciplinary interpretationof notions of evil in French literature and thought.

Author : Nathaniel Berman
Publisher : BRILL
Page : 326 pages
File Size : 50,7 Mb
Release : 2018-09-24
Category : Religion
ISBN : 9789004386198

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Divine and Demonic in the Poetic Mythology of the Zohar by Nathaniel Berman Pdf

Divine and Demonic in the Poetic Mythology of the Zohar offers a new interpretation of the Kabbalistic “Other Side,” exploring the intimacies and antagonisms of divine and demonic, and showing how the Zoharic literature contributes to thinking about alterity generally.

Author : Daniel Pickering Walker
Publisher : Penn State Press
Page : 260 pages
File Size : 42,5 Mb
Release : 2000
Category : Body, Mind & Spirit
ISBN : 9780271020457

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Spiritual and Demonic Magic by Daniel Pickering Walker Pdf

First published by the Warburg Institute in 1958, this book is considered a landmark in Renaissance studies. Whereas most scholars had tended to view magic as a marginal subject, Walker showed that magic was one of the most typical creations of the late fifteenth and sixteenth centuries. Walker takes readers through the magical concerns of some of the greatest thinkers of the Renaissance, from Marsilio Ficino, Giovanni Pico della Mirandola, and Jacques Lefevre d&’Etaples to Jean Bodin, Francis Bacon, and Tommaso Campanella. Ultimately he demonstrates that magic was interconnected with religion, music, and medicine, all of which were central to the Renaissance notion of spiritus. Remarkable for its clarity of writing, this book is still considered essential reading for students seeking to understand the assumptions, beliefs, and convictions that informed the thinking of the Renaissance. This edition features a new introduction by Brian Copenhaver, one of our leading experts on the place of magic in intellectual history.

Author : David Frankfurter
Publisher : Princeton University Press
Page : 286 pages
File Size : 44,8 Mb
Release : 2018-06-05
Category : Religion
ISBN : 9780691186979

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Evil Incarnate by David Frankfurter Pdf

In the 1980s, America was gripped by widespread panics about Satanic cults. Conspiracy theories abounded about groups who were allegedly abusing children in day-care centers, impregnating girls for infant sacrifice, brainwashing adults, and even controlling the highest levels of government. As historian of religions David Frankfurter listened to these sinister theories, it occurred to him how strikingly similar they were to those that swept parts of the early Christian world, early modern Europe, and postcolonial Africa. He began to investigate the social and psychological patterns that give rise to these myths. Thus was born Evil Incarnate, a riveting analysis of the mythology of evilconspiracy. The first work to provide an in-depth analysis of the topic, the book uses anthropology, the history of religion, sociology, and psychoanalytic theory, to answer the questions "What causes people collectively to envision evil and seek to exterminate it?" and "Why does the representation of evil recur in such typical patterns?" Frankfurter guides the reader through such diverse subjects as witch-hunting, the origins of demonology, cannibalism, and the rumors of Jewish ritual murder, demonstrating how societies have long expanded upon their fears of such atrocities to address a collective anxiety. Thus, he maintains, panics over modern-day infant sacrifice are really not so different from rumors about early Christians engaging in infant feasts during the second and third centuries in Rome. In Evil Incarnate, Frankfurter deepens historical awareness that stories of Satanic atrocities are both inventions of the mind and perennial phenomena, not authentic criminal events. True evil, as he so artfully demonstrates, is not something organized and corrupting, but rather a social construction that inspires people to brutal acts in the name of moral order.

Author : Jared Poley
Publisher : Berghahn Books
Page : 226 pages
File Size : 53,7 Mb
Release : 2016-02-01
Category : History
ISBN : 9781785331275

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The Devil's Riches by Jared Poley Pdf

A seeming constant in the history of capitalism, greed has nonetheless undergone considerable transformations over the last five hundred years. This multilayered account offers a fresh take on an old topic, arguing that greed was experienced as a moral phenomenon and deployed to make sense of an unjust world. Focusing specifically on the interrelated themes of religion, economics, and health—each of which sought to study and channel the power of financial desire—Jared Poley shows how evolving ideas about greed became formative elements of the modern experience.

Author : Brian Evenson
Publisher : Coffee House Press
Page : 201 pages
File Size : 48,5 Mb
Release : 2016-02-01
Category : Fiction
ISBN : 9781566894234

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Father of Lies by Brian Evenson Pdf

"[Evenson's] scary fictional treatment of church hypocrisy has the feeling of a reasoned attack on blind religious obedience."—Publishers Weekly Provost Eldon Fochs may be a sexual criminal. His therapist isn't sure, and his church is determined to protect its reputation. Father of Lies is Brian Evenson's fable of power, paranoia, and the dangers of blind obedience, and a terrifying vision of how far institutions will go to protect themselves against the innocents who may be their victims.

Author : Gerrit C. Vreugdenhil
Publisher : BRILL
Page : 507 pages
File Size : 44,9 Mb
Release : 2020-07-13
Category : Religion
ISBN : 9789004427891

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Psalm 91 and Demonic Menace by Gerrit C. Vreugdenhil Pdf

In Psalm 91 and Demonic Menace Gerrit Vreugdenhil offers a thorough analysis of Psalm 91, a text that already in its earliest interpretations has been associated with the demonic realm.

Author : Kat Simons
Publisher : T&D Publishing
Page : 80 pages
File Size : 41,8 Mb
Release : 2023-09-05
Category : Fiction
ISBN : 8210379456XXX

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Demonic Dates by Kat Simons Pdf

Some houses have history…and demons. After receiving a mysterious invitation to visit the home of an infamous seventeenth century witch, Lexie Alexander hurries north from New York to Salem, Massachusetts, eager to explore and learn every hidden secret kept about this witch. As a historian, she’s one of the few people alive who knows exactly what this ancestor witch’s powers could do, and how dangerous all witches like her could be. But even Lexie isn’t prepared for what she finds in the huge, eclectic, creepy house. She’s even less prepared for the home’s current owner. Miles Reid didn’t ask to be related to a notorious witch. He certainly didn’t want to inherit her former home, a cursed house passed down through his family from one unlucky relative to the next. Now trapped in the house, barely able to leave without being dragged back, Miles desperately searches for any solution that will get him out of the family curse. And as the anniversary of his ancestor’s death approaches, his desperation grows. His only hope, another witch. Together, Lexie and Miles must confront a historical horror and face not only their own demons, but demons from the past, still locked in a house… That doesn’t want to let them go. Author’s Note: This novella is also published in the collection HAUNTS AND HOWLS WHERE DEMONS DWELL. keywords: Haunted houses; Urban fantasy; paranormal urban fantasy; contemporary fantasy; magic fantasy; action and adventure; short story collections; witches and wizards; demons and devils; demon witch series; urban fantasy magic; magic and mayhem; monsters and demons; paranormal fantasy; dark fantasy; horror fantasy