- Satan, Fin de Siecle Literature & Culture, Werewolves - Trials and Theoretical Demonology, Witchcraft (Magic), Black metal and religion, Occultism, and 25 moreWestern Esotericism (History), Literature and Esotericism, Neo-Paganism and Western Esotericism, Demonolatry and Satanism, Gothic Literature, Decadence (Literature), English Romanticism, Anarchist Studies, Japanese folklore, Lycanthropy, Lilith, H. P. Blavatsky, Theosophical Society, Theosophy, Black Metal, Nineteenth Century Occultism, Kenneth Grant, Martial Arts (Anthropology), Martial Arts, Western Esotericism (Anthropology), Satanism, Faeries, Faerie, Faerie & Fey Lore, and Western Esotericismedit
- Ph.D. and Docent in History of Religions. Senior lecturer/associate professor in Study of Religion at Södertörn Unive... morePh.D. and Docent in History of Religions. Senior lecturer/associate professor in Study of Religion at Södertörn University, Stockholm. My field of specialisation is Western esotericism, new religions and "alternative spirituality" (e.g. Satanism, ritual magic, Theosophy, Anthroposophy, New Age, the sacralization of physical excercise, etc), with a particular emphasis on how they are formed in tandem with processes of modernization (especially secularization). I have also worked from a sociological perspective with questions pertaining to strategies of legitimation, religious authority and identity formation. Other interests include religion and popular culture (reflecting my background in cinema studies), folk religion and folk magic, gender issues, globalization, and religion and violence. A key theme in my research is the relation between Western esotericism and art/literature.My doctoral dissertation (Satanic Feminism: Lucifer as the Liberator of Woman in Nineteenth-Century Culture, awarded the Donner Institute Prize for Eminent Research on Religion, and later re-published by Oxford University Press) addresses how anti-clerical feminists – primarily during the time period 1880–1930 – used Satan as a symbol of rejecting the patriarchal traits of Christianity. I emphasized how these women were inspired by the period's most influential new religion, Theosophy, and how the anti-religious discourses of secularism impacted feminism.The rest of my publications are mainly focused on contemporary groups, using methods like interviews and participant observation. Aside from the above topics, I am also interested in religious change in Vietnam (where I have lived for a year), Japan and other parts of East Asia. In total, I have published almost sixty articles and book chapters on these different topics. 2015–2017, I did a post-doc at Mid-Sweden University focusing on reworkings of the Lilith myth from the 1860s to present times. Since October 2017, I hold a tenured position as senior lecturer at Södertörn University, Stockholm. I am supervising two Ph.D. students at Södertörn and two at Stockholm University, and I am always open for more such projects if they deal with my areas of specialization.edit
According to the Bible, Eve was the first to heed Satan’s advice to eat of the forbidden fruit. The notion of woman as the Devil’s accomplice is prominent throughout the history of Christianity. During the nineteenth century, rebellious... more
According to the Bible, Eve was the first to heed Satan’s advice to eat of the forbidden fruit. The notion of woman as the Devil’s accomplice is prominent throughout the history of Christianity. During the nineteenth century, rebellious females performed counter-readings of this misogynist tradition. Hereby, Lucifer was reconceptualised as a feminist liberator of womankind, and Eve became a heroine. In these reimaginings, Satan is an ally in the struggle against a patriarchy supported by God the Father and his male priests.
This study delineates how such Satanic feminism is expressed in a number of nineteenth-century esoteric works, literary texts, autobiographies, pamphlets and journals, newspaper articles, paintings, sculptures and even artefacts of consumer culture such as jewellery.
In the material, four motifs in particular are prominent: 1) interpretations of Eve’s role in the fall of man as something positive, 2) the witch as a proto-feminist figure, 3) the demon lover as an emancipator, 4) a feminised Satan contrasted with an oppressive male God. A fifth and less central motif is conceptions of Lilith, according to Jewish lore the unruly first wife of Adam, as the first feminist.
The analysis focuses on interfaces between esotericism and the political realm, as well as the interdependence of literature and the occult. New light is thus shed on neglected aspects of the intellectual history of feminism, Satanism and revisionary mythmaking. The study is informed by theories concerning counter-readings, counter-discourses and counter-myths, and in particular highlights the complex interplay of such phenomena and the hegemonic discourses that demonised feminism. A key theme in this context is the limits and paradoxes of inversion as a subversive strategy.
http://www.molinsorgenfrei.se/
https://www.facebook.com/permalink.php?story_fbid=884921544867963&id=294090267284430
This study delineates how such Satanic feminism is expressed in a number of nineteenth-century esoteric works, literary texts, autobiographies, pamphlets and journals, newspaper articles, paintings, sculptures and even artefacts of consumer culture such as jewellery.
In the material, four motifs in particular are prominent: 1) interpretations of Eve’s role in the fall of man as something positive, 2) the witch as a proto-feminist figure, 3) the demon lover as an emancipator, 4) a feminised Satan contrasted with an oppressive male God. A fifth and less central motif is conceptions of Lilith, according to Jewish lore the unruly first wife of Adam, as the first feminist.
The analysis focuses on interfaces between esotericism and the political realm, as well as the interdependence of literature and the occult. New light is thus shed on neglected aspects of the intellectual history of feminism, Satanism and revisionary mythmaking. The study is informed by theories concerning counter-readings, counter-discourses and counter-myths, and in particular highlights the complex interplay of such phenomena and the hegemonic discourses that demonised feminism. A key theme in this context is the limits and paradoxes of inversion as a subversive strategy.
http://www.molinsorgenfrei.se/
https://www.facebook.com/permalink.php?story_fbid=884921544867963&id=294090267284430
Research Interests: Romanticism, Gay And Lesbian Studies, Lesbian Studies, Anarchism, Woman Suffrage, and 38 moreGothic Literature, Gothic Studies, History of Anarchism, Feminism, Vampire Literature, Constructions of femininity, John Milton, English Romanticism, Socialism, Western Esotericism (History), Occultism, Theosophical Society, Witchcraft, Religion and Magic, Literature and Esotericism, Occultism (Literature), Theosophy, Gay and Lesbian History, Demonolatry and Satanism, Nineteenth Century Occultism, Decadence (Literature), Sylvia Townsend Warner, Silent Cinema, Esotericism, J.-K. Huysmans, Jules Michelet, Witchcraft, Theosophy & Art, Devil, Satanism, Satan a Hero in Paradise Lost, Lucifer, Lilith, Félicien Rops, Romantic English poetry, Stanisław Przybyszewski, Lolly Willowes (novel by Sylvia Townsend Warner), Theda Bara, and Esoteric Movements
Read more here (in Swedish):
http://www.adlibris.com/se/product.aspx?isbn=9173271365
http://www.adlibris.com/se/product.aspx?isbn=9173271365
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A comprehensive (xvii+252 pp.) study, published in 2006, of which types of Satanism were present before the founding of the Church of Satan in 1966. Old myths about Satanic Gnostics, Cathars, Templars, etc are debunked. The part played by... more
A comprehensive (xvii+252 pp.) study, published in 2006, of which types of Satanism were present before the founding of the Church of Satan in 1966. Old myths about Satanic Gnostics, Cathars, Templars, etc are debunked. The part played by occultists like Lévi, Blavatsky and Crowley in the construction of a matrix for later Satanic forms of thought is explored, along with the literary Satanism flourishing among Romantic and Decadent authors.
The conclusion is that very few individuals or organisations prior to 1966 could reasonably be labelled Satanists, but that a few (and seldom discussed) examples can in fact be found, and that some of these should be considered important for the development of the forms of Satanism that we can observe today.
The conclusion is that very few individuals or organisations prior to 1966 could reasonably be labelled Satanists, but that a few (and seldom discussed) examples can in fact be found, and that some of these should be considered important for the development of the forms of Satanism that we can observe today.
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... Department of Ethnology, History of Religions and Gender Studies, History of Religions.Publication type: Chapter in book (Other academic). Language: English. In: Grotesque Femininities: Evil, women and the Feminine. Editor: Barrett,... more
... Department of Ethnology, History of Religions and Gender Studies, History of Religions.Publication type: Chapter in book (Other academic). Language: English. In: Grotesque Femininities: Evil, women and the Feminine. Editor: Barrett, M. Place of publ.: Oxford Publisher: Inter ...
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Research Interests: Anarchism, Magic, New Religions, Anarchist Studies, Mysticism, and 26 moreMagic and the Occult (Anthropology Of Religion), Occulture, Western Esotericism (History), Thelema, Occultism, Witchcraft, Religion and Magic, Symbolism (Art History), Literature and Esotericism, Occultism (Literature), Satan, Demonolatry and Satanism, Neo-Paganism and Western Esotericism, Nineteenth Century Occultism, Esotericism (Religion), Decadence (Literature), Witchcraft, Symbolist Painting, Satanism, Aleister Crowley, Symbolist Literature, Modern Satanism, Contemporary Satanism, Satan a Hero in Paradise Lost, decadent Literature, Occcult, and Esoteric Movements
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Research Interests: Feminist Theology, Feminism, Feminist activism, Esoteric Systems, Western Esotericism (History), and 9 moreLiterature and Esotericism, Satan, Demonolatry and Satanism, Neo-Paganism and Western Esotericism, Esotericism (Religion), Western Esotericism, Satanism, Modern Satanism, and Contemporary Satanism
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A seldom discussed fact concerning Blavatsky’s influential magnum opus "The Secret Doctrine" is that it contains passages of explicit Satanism. The almost total neglect of the Luciferian ideas present in Theosophy by scholars is probably... more
A seldom discussed fact concerning Blavatsky’s influential magnum opus "The Secret Doctrine" is that it contains passages of explicit Satanism. The almost total neglect of the Luciferian ideas present in Theosophy by scholars is probably caused by them deeming these ideas unimportant to Theosophy at large. It may also have something to do with simply not knowing what to make of the matter. This paper is a preliminary attempt to achieve a contextual understanding of Blavatsky's Satanism.
In particular, I focus on how evolutionism, conventions in anti-clerical political discourse, Feminism, Romantic Satanism and contemporary scholarship on Gnosticism may have influenced Blavatsky's view of Satan as a benevolent figure.
In particular, I focus on how evolutionism, conventions in anti-clerical political discourse, Feminism, Romantic Satanism and contemporary scholarship on Gnosticism may have influenced Blavatsky's view of Satan as a benevolent figure.
Research Interests: Esoteric Systems, Occulture, Western Esotericism (History), Occultism, Theosophical Society, and 13 moreTheosophy, Satan, Demonolatry and Satanism, Nineteent Century Occultism, Nineteenth Century Occultism, Esotericism (Religion), Occultism (Religion), Esotericism, Western Esotericism, History of the Occult, Devil, Satanism, and Occult Esoteric Magick Spirituality
As has been thoroughly studied by among others Bram Dijkstra, there existed a pervasive discourse during the 19th century in which women were portrayed as demonic and dangerous. In this context, older cultural artifacts where... more
As has been thoroughly studied by among others Bram Dijkstra, there existed a pervasive discourse during the 19th century in which women were portrayed as demonic and dangerous. In this context, older cultural artifacts where re-interpreted as expressions of these ideas, one interesting example being Leonardo da Vinci’s La Gioconda (Mona Lisa). The tradition of ascribing satanic traits to it was more or less initiated by French Romantic Théophile Gautier, and then taken up by writers like Walter Pater, Oscar Wilde, Algernon Swinburne and Georg Heym. The paper discusses the manner in which these authors – Symbolists, Decadents and early Expressionists – wrote about the painting as an icon of eternal feminine evil. More specifically, the emphasis on La Gioconda as literally an icon, a sort of altarpiece of wickedness, is explored.
Such a religiously influenced interpretation of an originally completely secular portrait is, the paper seeks to demonstrate, related to a contemporary tendency in pictorial art to blasphemously sacralize sin. Instances of this include the so-called altar to Sin in German Symbolist Franz von Stuck’s grand villa, as well as works by among others Edvard Munch. Further, the darkly numinous aura many felt La Gioconda exuded needs to be understood in a framework of 19th century "occulture" (a term developed – in a scholarly context – by Christopher Partridge, who however only applies it to post WWII phenomena) and romantic ideas concerning artists as seers, mystics and even magicians in a more literal sense.
Such a religiously influenced interpretation of an originally completely secular portrait is, the paper seeks to demonstrate, related to a contemporary tendency in pictorial art to blasphemously sacralize sin. Instances of this include the so-called altar to Sin in German Symbolist Franz von Stuck’s grand villa, as well as works by among others Edvard Munch. Further, the darkly numinous aura many felt La Gioconda exuded needs to be understood in a framework of 19th century "occulture" (a term developed – in a scholarly context – by Christopher Partridge, who however only applies it to post WWII phenomena) and romantic ideas concerning artists as seers, mystics and even magicians in a more literal sense.
Research Interests: History of Science, Alchemy, Literary Symbolism, Expressionism, Munch, German Expressionism, and 24 moreOscar Wilde, Occulture, Western Esotericism (History), Occultism, Symbolism (Art History), Literature and Esotericism, Occultism (Literature), Esoteric Art, Satan, Demonolatry and Satanism, Nineteent Century Occultism, Nineteenth Century Occultism, Esotericism (Religion), Leonardo da Vinci, Decadence (Literature), A. C. Swinburne, Walter Pater, Occultism (Religion), Popular Depictions of the Occult, Esotericism, Western Esotericism, Devil, Satanism, and Occult Esoteric Magick Spirituality
Contribution to a debate concerning Islam, ideology and generalizations.
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Introduction to an anthology that I co-edited.
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(Article is in English, but abstract in German) In diesem Aufsatz wird ein früher und ziemlich unbekannter Satanist namens Ben Kadosh behandelt (Carl William Hansen 1872-1936), der in Dänemark am Anfang des 20en Jahrhunderts tätig war.... more
(Article is in English, but abstract in German)
In diesem Aufsatz wird ein früher und ziemlich unbekannter Satanist namens Ben Kadosh behandelt (Carl William Hansen 1872-1936), der in Dänemark am Anfang des 20en Jahrhunderts tätig war. Kadosh hat in der Gründung mehreren Freimauerlogen teilgenommen und stand mit einer Reihe von wohlbekannten esoterischen und literarischen Persönlischkeiten in Verbindung. Als sein System eine eklektische Mischung darstellte, wo der griechische Gott Pan beispielsweise mit Gnostizismus, Freimauermystizismus und Lobpreisungen von Luzifer verbunden wird, können verschiedene möglische Influenzen auf seine Lehre angeführt werden. Es ist ganz unwahrscheinlich, daß Kadosch in seiner Zeit mehrere Anhänger gewonnen hat. Heutzutage sind aber seine Idéen von einer Gruppe rehabilitiert worden, die hauptsätzlich in Dänemark und Schweden aktiv ist. Wichtiger für die Anhänger dieser Gruppe erscheint die Verwendung von Kadosh als ein Werkzeug um ihre eigene Wirksamkeit Legitimität und historische Würzeln zu geben, als für die eigentliche Fortsetzung seiner Gedanken zu sorgen.
In diesem Aufsatz wird ein früher und ziemlich unbekannter Satanist namens Ben Kadosh behandelt (Carl William Hansen 1872-1936), der in Dänemark am Anfang des 20en Jahrhunderts tätig war. Kadosh hat in der Gründung mehreren Freimauerlogen teilgenommen und stand mit einer Reihe von wohlbekannten esoterischen und literarischen Persönlischkeiten in Verbindung. Als sein System eine eklektische Mischung darstellte, wo der griechische Gott Pan beispielsweise mit Gnostizismus, Freimauermystizismus und Lobpreisungen von Luzifer verbunden wird, können verschiedene möglische Influenzen auf seine Lehre angeführt werden. Es ist ganz unwahrscheinlich, daß Kadosch in seiner Zeit mehrere Anhänger gewonnen hat. Heutzutage sind aber seine Idéen von einer Gruppe rehabilitiert worden, die hauptsätzlich in Dänemark und Schweden aktiv ist. Wichtiger für die Anhänger dieser Gruppe erscheint die Verwendung von Kadosh als ein Werkzeug um ihre eigene Wirksamkeit Legitimität und historische Würzeln zu geben, als für die eigentliche Fortsetzung seiner Gedanken zu sorgen.
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Keywords:Edvard Munch, Theosophy, Vampires, Auras, Thought Forms, Psychic Energy.
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As is well known, Symbolism showed a considerable overlap with Western esotericism, and artists often genuinely considered themselves occult mystics pursuing an esoteric quest in their art. Many also displayed a special fascination for... more
As is well known, Symbolism showed a considerable overlap with Western esotericism, and artists often genuinely considered themselves occult mystics pursuing an esoteric quest in their art. Many also displayed a special fascination for darkly tinged occultism, a fact that is too often discussed only in a very superficial manner. Aiming to rectify this negligence somewhat, this paper explores a practice in Symbolist literature and art that can be termed imitatio satanae. This etiquette paraphrases the term for the Christian practice of trying to emulate Christ’s example (imitatio christi), but instead seeks to capture the sympathy for the Devil evinced by some Symbolists.
Symbolists and Decadents like Stanislaw Przybyszewski and Félicien Rops depicted themselves with demonic attributes, and hereby “followed the example of Satan”, viewed through the lens of the old Romantic re-interpretation of Milton’s Lucifer. This also fits in with a general tendency to sacralize symbols of sinfulness, typically in a manner part playful and part serious, that we find in artists as diverse as Franz von Stuck and Edvard Munch.
None of these artists were, of course, Satanists in any strict sense. There is, however, one exception: the Pole Przybyszewski, who openly confessed such an allegiance. The paper therefore pays special attention to his philosophy of art, which both embraces typical Symbolist ideas and points forward to Expressionism. In Przybysewski’s texts from the 1890’s, the artist-superman is celebrated as a symbolic Satan, who critiques bourgeoisie values and rises above the “mediocre lambs of God”. Artists like Gustav Vigeland are portrayed in Przybyszewski’s art criticism as Promethean, demonic figures who practice imitatio satanae, something that is to a great extent a projection of the Pole’s own endeavors.
The paper connects these ideas to practices in non-Satanist esoteric groups during the time period, such as The Golden Dawn in England and their assuming of “god-forms” in a ritual context. It also relates imitatio satanae, as a specifically Symbolist artistic concept, to the re-molding of the universe from a subjective position that the Romantics identified as a core theme in Milton’s Paradise Lost.
Symbolists and Decadents like Stanislaw Przybyszewski and Félicien Rops depicted themselves with demonic attributes, and hereby “followed the example of Satan”, viewed through the lens of the old Romantic re-interpretation of Milton’s Lucifer. This also fits in with a general tendency to sacralize symbols of sinfulness, typically in a manner part playful and part serious, that we find in artists as diverse as Franz von Stuck and Edvard Munch.
None of these artists were, of course, Satanists in any strict sense. There is, however, one exception: the Pole Przybyszewski, who openly confessed such an allegiance. The paper therefore pays special attention to his philosophy of art, which both embraces typical Symbolist ideas and points forward to Expressionism. In Przybysewski’s texts from the 1890’s, the artist-superman is celebrated as a symbolic Satan, who critiques bourgeoisie values and rises above the “mediocre lambs of God”. Artists like Gustav Vigeland are portrayed in Przybyszewski’s art criticism as Promethean, demonic figures who practice imitatio satanae, something that is to a great extent a projection of the Pole’s own endeavors.
The paper connects these ideas to practices in non-Satanist esoteric groups during the time period, such as The Golden Dawn in England and their assuming of “god-forms” in a ritual context. It also relates imitatio satanae, as a specifically Symbolist artistic concept, to the re-molding of the universe from a subjective position that the Romantics identified as a core theme in Milton’s Paradise Lost.
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A paper situating the early Danish Satanist Ben Kadosh (Carl William Hansen, 1872–1936) in the Occult milieu of his times, and presenting the biographical data available regarding him. Further, it discusses how his ideas have been revived... more
A paper situating the early Danish Satanist Ben Kadosh (Carl William Hansen, 1872–1936) in the Occult milieu of his times, and presenting the biographical data available regarding him. Further, it discusses how his ideas have been revived as a tool for legitimization in a present-day Luciferian group.
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A discussion of Stanislaw Przybyszewski's (1868-1927) Satanism and ideas about demonic women, situating them in the context of fin-de-siécle use of Satanic symbolism in connection with Anarchism and Feminism. My focus is primarily on two... more
A discussion of Stanislaw Przybyszewski's (1868-1927) Satanism and ideas about demonic women, situating them in the context of fin-de-siécle use of Satanic symbolism in connection with Anarchism and Feminism. My focus is primarily on two texts, Przybyszewski’s essay "Auf den Wegen der Seele" (“On the Paths of the Soul”, 1897) and his small historical monograph "Die Synagoge des Satan" (“The Synagogue of Satan”, 1897), but with sideward glances on several other texts as well, such as his novel "Satans Kinder" (“Satan’s Children”, 1897), the "Homo Sapiens" trilogy (1895-1896) and various short stories and essays.
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Vampire women were often used in 19th century literature as a metaphor for “improper” female behavior. The vampiress symbolized independence, active sexual desire and rejection of motherhood, and has been interpreted by scholars in our... more
Vampire women were often used in 19th century literature as a metaphor for “improper” female behavior. The vampiress symbolized independence, active sexual desire and rejection of motherhood, and has been interpreted by scholars in our own time as an allegorical representation of the “New Woman”.
This paper analyzes these themes as they are expressed in Théophile Gautier’s “La morte amoureuse” (1836), Sheridan Le Fanu’s “Carmilla” (1872) and Bram Stoker’s “Dracula” (1897). Becoming a vampire is described as an escape route from the confines of patriarchal society (whether or not the authorial voice believes women should be allowed to escape from it is another matter, of course). Dying and becoming a vampire could be read as a way to a fuller existence, as when Carmilla tells young Laura “Girls are caterpillars while they live in the world, to be finally butterflies when the summer comes”.
The vampire women are depicted as unholy and demonic creatures in all three narratives, often with parallels to traditional ideas about witches. In Stoker’s novel, Dracula plays the part of Satan. His female cohorts thus become the equivalents of members in a witch-cult, inverting the rules of society. Dracula’s castle emerges as a sort of Brocken or Blåkulla, a semi-mythological place where witches gather to worship the Devil, hold sexual orgies with him, and feast on the bodies of children.
Gautier's text is critical of Christian patriarchy, and Le Fanu's is somewhat ambiguous. Making Stoker's vampire women and their Satanic sire heroes takes considerably more manhandling of the text, and the paper discusses the parallels between how present-day Feminist scholars seek to make allies of the vampires and how the Romantics made a hero and ally of Milton's Satan. I contend that hailing the handmaidens of Satan to some extent makes these scholars contributors to a discourse of "Satanic Feminism".
This paper analyzes these themes as they are expressed in Théophile Gautier’s “La morte amoureuse” (1836), Sheridan Le Fanu’s “Carmilla” (1872) and Bram Stoker’s “Dracula” (1897). Becoming a vampire is described as an escape route from the confines of patriarchal society (whether or not the authorial voice believes women should be allowed to escape from it is another matter, of course). Dying and becoming a vampire could be read as a way to a fuller existence, as when Carmilla tells young Laura “Girls are caterpillars while they live in the world, to be finally butterflies when the summer comes”.
The vampire women are depicted as unholy and demonic creatures in all three narratives, often with parallels to traditional ideas about witches. In Stoker’s novel, Dracula plays the part of Satan. His female cohorts thus become the equivalents of members in a witch-cult, inverting the rules of society. Dracula’s castle emerges as a sort of Brocken or Blåkulla, a semi-mythological place where witches gather to worship the Devil, hold sexual orgies with him, and feast on the bodies of children.
Gautier's text is critical of Christian patriarchy, and Le Fanu's is somewhat ambiguous. Making Stoker's vampire women and their Satanic sire heroes takes considerably more manhandling of the text, and the paper discusses the parallels between how present-day Feminist scholars seek to make allies of the vampires and how the Romantics made a hero and ally of Milton's Satan. I contend that hailing the handmaidens of Satan to some extent makes these scholars contributors to a discourse of "Satanic Feminism".
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A discussion of how Anarchists like Bakunin and Proudhon developed the Satanic Anti-authoritarianism of the English Romantics, and how this tradition came to be utilized by early Swedish Social Democrats. Some reasons are also suggested... more
A discussion of how Anarchists like Bakunin and Proudhon developed the Satanic Anti-authoritarianism of the English Romantics, and how this tradition came to be utilized by early Swedish Social Democrats. Some reasons are also suggested for why nominally Atheist thinkers found a religious symbol like Satan so appealing.
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Some scholars have been keen to emphasize the gothic novel as a predominately female genre, created by a woman, Ann Radcliffe, and throughout the ages read mostly by women. Gothic literature is frequently centred on an ambivalent... more
Some scholars have been keen to emphasize the gothic novel as a predominately female genre, created by a woman, Ann Radcliffe, and throughout the ages read mostly by women. Gothic literature is frequently centred on an ambivalent discourse concering transgression, where the transgressive is often portrayed in a fashion not strictly condemning. The paper examines four major Gothic novels - William Beckford’s "Vathek" (1786), Matthew Lewis’ "The Monk" (1796), Charlotte Dacre’s "Zofloya, or The Moor" (1806), and Charles Maturin’s "Melmoth the Wanderer" (1820) - where females are given agency and power by colluding with Satan, something which is depicted in an ambivalent manner. The mostly female readership surely did not consist only of conservative individuals fully satisfied with traditional roles for women. The readers who had a more rebellious nature might have identified to some extent with the demonic females in the novels, since these are typically the only females in the narratives who have any agency and power to speak of. The paper attempts readings showing in what way the texts facilitate such identification.
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Martial arts are often connected with decidedly miraculous abilities and Asian spiritual wisdom. On closer inspection, some martial arts in fact have little to do with "spirituality", at least in their original context. Others, however,... more
Martial arts are often connected with decidedly miraculous abilities and Asian spiritual wisdom. On closer inspection, some martial arts in fact have little to do with "spirituality", at least in their original context. Others, however, can be registered as religions in Japan while they pass as a set of techniques for self-defense in the West. This exposé shows how most things in the world of martial arts are not what they would seem at first glance, and how organizations and clubs adapt themselves to the expectations of their would-be students in different countries.
An anecdote-filled discussion of the connections between meditation and martial arts in China and Japan, from a historical perspective, and how such connections can look today in these countries as well as in Western nations.