The Golden Age of Spanish mysticism has traditionally been read in terms of individual authors or theological traditions. God Made Word, however, considers early modern Spanish mysticism as a question of language and as a discourse that circulated in concrete social, institutional, and geographic spaces.

Proposing a new reading of early modern Spanish mysticism, God Made Word traces the struggles over the representation of interiorized spiritual union - the tension between making it known and conveying its unknowability - far beyond the usual canon of mystic literature. Dale Shuger combines a study of genres that have traditionally been the object of literary study, including poetry, theatre, and autobiography, with a language-based analysis of other areas that have largely been studied by historians and theologians. Arguing that these generic separations grew out of an increasing preoccupation with the cultivation and control of interiorized spirituality, God Made Word shows that by tracing certain mystic representations we come to understand the emergence of different discursive rules and expectations for a wide range of representations of the ineffable.

About the Author
Dale Shuger is an associate professor in the Department of Spanish and Portuguese at Tulane University.


Book Information
ISBN 9781487528805
Author Dale Shuger
Format Hardback
Page Count 336
Imprint University of Toronto Press
Publisher University of Toronto Press
Weight(grams) 604g
Dimensions(mm) 235mm * 159mm * 19mm