Man into Wolf


Book Description

First published in 1951, Man into Wolf attempts to suggest the possibility of historical, or rather prehistorical, evolutionist derivation of all crimes of violence, from the individual attack on life known as murder or manslaughter to the collective organized killing which we call war. The author has tried to show that the evidence from prehistory can be made intelligible on the theory of Jung’s archetypes surviving in the collective conscience and revealing themselves all over the world in legends, myths and rites. He discusses, in the notes on the lecture, every possible aspect of the subject ranging from the perverseness of the Marquis de Sade to the Grecian Bacchantes, and from the Green Men and the agricultural ceremonies to a case study of John George Haigh. This book will be of interest to students of anthropology, gender studies, and psychology.




Man Into Wolf


Book Description

This work has been selected by scholars as being culturally important, and is part of the knowledge base of civilization as we know it. This work is in the "public domain in the United States of America, and possibly other nations. Within the United States, you may freely copy and distribute this work, as no entity (individual or corporate) has a copyright on the body of the work. Scholars believe, and we concur, that this work is important enough to be preserved, reproduced, and made generally available to the public. We appreciate your support of the preservation process, and thank you for being an important part of keeping this knowledge alive and relevant.




Man Into Wolf


Book Description




Robert Eisler and the Magic of the Combinatory Mind


Book Description

Robert Eisler, the polymathic Jewish Austrian scholar and Holocaust survivor, faded into obscurity after his death in 1949. A contemporary and associate of Walter Benjamin, Aby Warburg, and Gershom Scholem, Eisler spent his early years in fin-de-siècle Vienna and trained as an art historian and economist. In this book, the first in English devoted to Eisler’s life and thought, Brian Collins takes us through the development of Eisler’s ideas about the philosophy of values, comparative mythology, Christianity, psychoanalysis, monetary policy, and anthropology. Collins also explores the bizarre and sometimes tragic events that defined Eisler’s life, including his arrest for art theft in 1907, his controversial reconstruction of a physical description of Jesus, and the fifteen months he spent in Dachau and Buchenwald, the inspiration for his final book, Man into Wolf: An Anthropological Interpretation of Sadism, Masochism, and Lycanthropy.




Painful pleasures


Book Description

This timely volume ventures into the subject of sadomasochism in varied aspects of medieval life. Saint’s Lives and mystical treatises provide evidence of failed sadism and empowering masochism. Literary culture in the form of epics and courtly tales preserve stories of eroticised power. These exciting chapters join together to form a picture of medieval culture that is kinky in its practice and deeply psychological at its core.







The Body of Frankenstein's Monster


Book Description

Frankenstein. Werewolves. Dracula. These images aren't just imaginary creatures -- they're also powerful symbols of the body. The body can be thought of as a machine made up of parts like Frankenstein's monster, or as a creature ruled by animalistic urges, or as an entity that's vulnerable to infection from a diseased fiend. In "The Body of Frankenstein's Monster," Cecil Helman, M.D., expands our view of our bodies by exploring its cultural and artistic representations.




The Lycanthropy Reader


Book Description

Our understanding of lycanthropy is limited by our association of it with contemporary portrayals of werewolves in horror films and gothic fiction. No rational person today believes that a human being can literally be metamorphosed into a wolf; therefore, in the absence of an historical context, the study of werewolves can appear to be a wayward pursuit of the perversely irrational and the sensational. This Reader provides the historical context. Drawing on primary sources, it is a comprehensive survey of all aspects of lycanthropy, with a focus on the medieval and Renaissance periods. Lycanthropes were on trial in the courtrooms of Europe, and on examination in medical offices and mental hospitals; they were the objects of communal fear and pity, and the subjects of sermons and philosophical treatises. In the Introduction to the Reader, Charlotte Otten shows that the study of lycanthropy uncovers basic issues in human life the significance of violence and criminality, the role of the demonic in aberrant behavior, and ultimately the nature of good and evil. The implications for modern life are immediately apparent. The Reader is divided into six sections: (I) Medical Cases, Diagnoses, Descriptions; (2) Trial Records, Historical Accounts, Sightings; (3) Philosophical and Theological Approaches to Metamorphosis; (4) Critical Essays on Lycanthropy (Anthropology, History, and Medicine); (5) Myths and Legends; and (6) Allegory. Each section has an introduction that summarizes and interprets the materials.




Werewolves, Witches, and Wandering Spirits


Book Description

Bringing together scholars from Europe, America, and Australia, this volume explores the more fantastic elements of popular religious belief: ghosts, werewolves, spiritualism, animism, and of course, witchcraft. These traditional religious beliefs and practices are frequently treated as marginal in more synthetic studies of witchcraft and popular religion, yet Protestants and Catholics alike saw ghosts, imps, werewolves, and other supernatural entities as populating their world. Embedded within notarial and trial records are accounts that reveal the integration of folkloric and theological elements in early modern spirituality. Drawing from extensive archival research, the contributors argue for the integration of such beliefs into our understanding of late medieval and early modern Europe.




Shapeshifters


Book Description

Shapeshifters are real. You're about to meet them, in all their savage and sinister glory. While most people think of shapeshifters as little more than the werewolves and vampires of mythology and pop culture, the truth is much more fascinating. And dangerous. Shapeshifters are real, they come in all kinds and sizes, and they have existed for countless millennia. This thrilling guide invites you to meet each of them...if you dare. Shapeshifters presents a menagerie of otherworldly creatures and half-human monsters, from were-cats to blood-suckers to aliens. Discover legends and lore from around the world and experience first-hand encounters with shape-changing beasts that lurk in the night. Nick Redfern takes you deep into their domain, opening your eyes to paranormal secrets and cryptozoological wonders. Just be sure to keep some silver bullets close at hand.