Description
In the conventional dichotomy of chaste, pure Madonna and libidinous whore, the former has usually been viewed as the ideal form of femininity. However, there is a modern religious movement in which the negative stereotype of the harlot is inverted and exalted. The Eloquent Blood focuses on the changing construction of femininity and feminine sexuality in interpretations of the goddess Babalon. A central deity in Thelema, the religion founded by the notorious British occultist Aleister Crowley (1875-1947), Babalon is based on Crowley's favorable reinterpretation of the biblical Whore of Babylon, and is associated with liberated female sexuality and the spiritual ideal of passionate union with existence. Analyzing historical and contemporary written sources, qualitative interviews, and ethnographic fieldwork in the Anglo-American esoteric milieu, the study traces interpretations of Babalon from the works of Crowley and some of his key disciples--including the rocket scientist John "Jack" Whiteside Parsons, and the enigmatic British occultist Kenneth Grant--until the present. From the 1990s onwards, this study shows, female and LGBTQ esotericists have challenged historical interpretations of Babalon, drawing on feminist and queer thought and conceptualizing femininity in new ways. Tracing the trajectory of a particular gendered symbol from the fin-de-siecle until today, Manon Hedenborg White explores the changing role of women in Western esotericism, and shows how evolving constructions of gender have shaped the development of esotericism. Combining research on historical and contemporary Western esotericism with feminist and queer theory, the book sheds new light on the ways in which esoteric movements and systems of thought have developed over time in relation to political movements.
About the Author
Manon Hedenborg White holds a PhD in the History of Religions from Uppsala University (Sweden). Awarded an international postdoctoral grant from the Swedish Research Council, she is a Postdoctoral Research Fellow at Soedertoern University (Sweden). She is currently a guest researcher at the Center for History of Hermetic Philosophy and Related Currents at the University of Amsterdam. Her research explores issues of gender and sexuality in modern Western esotericism, occultism, and new religious movements.
Reviews
Eloquent Blood is a rich, courageous book, with many layers of concept and debate... A text to be read, considered carefully, and debated by all scholars of modern and contemporary esotericism. * Jay Johnston, University of Sydney, Sydney, Australia, Brill *
This book is an excellent contribution to the researchon esotericism, gender, and their intersections. * Patricia Sophie Mayer, University of Vienna, Religious Studies Review *
... the overall clarity of Hedenborg White's narrative, her mastery in the use of relevant sources and data, and her ability to combine these with a sound theoretical basis. The Eloquent Blood, therefore, is certain to be recognized as one of the most important contributions to the field of contemporary occultism and alternative spiritualities in recent years, as well as to the intersections between gender and contemporary forms of religion more broadly. To that should be added the overall beauty of Hedenborg White's writing as reflected both throughout the book and particularly in its final passage (342), making The Eloquent Blood true to its title. * Shai Feraro, International Journal for the Study of New Religions *
This is one of the more important monographs to appear from the study of modern occultism in the past decade and warrants wide reading among scholars researching this area. It certainly has things to interest others too, especially those exploring the interplay of gender and religion...Not only does it deepen understandings of...important characters in the twentieth-century occult milieu, but it also provides one of the first published studies to draw on ethnographic research among contemporary Thelemites - something we need to see far more of. * Ethan Doyle White, Nova Religio *
Combining rigorous textual analysis with pioneering field work, Hedenborg White reveals the significance of the goddess Babalon within Thelemic history, thought, and practice. Beyond this single-deity focus, she also offers keen, urgent, and provocative insights into the stakes of feminism, femininities, and queer identity within contemporary Western esotericism more broadly. The Eloquent Blood is the most important work of gender and esotericism studies since Alex Owen's The Darkened Room (1989). * Christine Ferguson, author of Determined Spirits: Eugenics, Heredity, and Racial Regeneration in Anglo-American Spiritualist Writing, 1848-1930 *
A transgressive goddess, erotic rituals, a notorious occultist with countless male and female lovers-- the Thelemic religion is perfect fodder for sensational cliches about sex and the occult. Here, we finally have a book that approaches the subject equipped with meticulous primary-source research and the cutting edge of gender and sexuality studies. Anyone with an interest in the complex gender configurations of modern occultism needs to read this book. * Egil Asprem, Associate Professor in the History of Religions, Stockholm University *
This work is notably original, a pioneering comparative historical and ethnographic study of Babalon as a discursive construct, a lived reality among Crowleyite circles, and a challenge to the general concept of esoteric female deities, who are usually not so challenging, violent, or transgressive. There is nothing of comparable quality or depth in existence. * Carole Cusack, Professor of Religious Studies, University of Sydney *
This book is an excellent contribution to the research on esotericism, gender, and their intersections. * Patricia Sophie Mayer, University of Vienna, Religious Studies Review *
Book Information
ISBN 9780190065027
Author Manon Hedenborg-White
Format Hardback
Page Count 392
Imprint Oxford University Press Inc
Publisher Oxford University Press Inc
Weight(grams) 726g
Dimensions(mm) 165mm * 239mm * 33mm
About the Author
Manon Hedenborg White holds a PhD in the History of Religions from Uppsala University (Sweden). Awarded an international postdoctoral grant from the Swedish Research Council, she is a Postdoctoral Research Fellow at Soedertoern University (Sweden). She is currently a guest researcher at the Center for History of Hermetic Philosophy and Related Currents at the University of Amsterdam. Her research explores issues of gender and sexuality in modern Western esotericism, occultism, and new religious movements.
Reviews
Eloquent Blood is a rich, courageous book, with many layers of concept and debate... A text to be read, considered carefully, and debated by all scholars of modern and contemporary esotericism. * Jay Johnston, University of Sydney, Sydney, Australia, Brill *
This book is an excellent contribution to the researchon esotericism, gender, and their intersections. * Patricia Sophie Mayer, University of Vienna, Religious Studies Review *
... the overall clarity of Hedenborg White's narrative, her mastery in the use of relevant sources and data, and her ability to combine these with a sound theoretical basis. The Eloquent Blood, therefore, is certain to be recognized as one of the most important contributions to the field of contemporary occultism and alternative spiritualities in recent years, as well as to the intersections between gender and contemporary forms of religion more broadly. To that should be added the overall beauty of Hedenborg White's writing as reflected both throughout the book and particularly in its final passage (342), making The Eloquent Blood true to its title. * Shai Feraro, International Journal for the Study of New Religions *
This is one of the more important monographs to appear from the study of modern occultism in the past decade and warrants wide reading among scholars researching this area. It certainly has things to interest others too, especially those exploring the interplay of gender and religion...Not only does it deepen understandings of...important characters in the twentieth-century occult milieu, but it also provides one of the first published studies to draw on ethnographic research among contemporary Thelemites - something we need to see far more of. * Ethan Doyle White, Nova Religio *
Combining rigorous textual analysis with pioneering field work, Hedenborg White reveals the significance of the goddess Babalon within Thelemic history, thought, and practice. Beyond this single-deity focus, she also offers keen, urgent, and provocative insights into the stakes of feminism, femininities, and queer identity within contemporary Western esotericism more broadly. The Eloquent Blood is the most important work of gender and esotericism studies since Alex Owen's The Darkened Room (1989). * Christine Ferguson, author of Determined Spirits: Eugenics, Heredity, and Racial Regeneration in Anglo-American Spiritualist Writing, 1848-1930 *
A transgressive goddess, erotic rituals, a notorious occultist with countless male and female lovers-- the Thelemic religion is perfect fodder for sensational cliches about sex and the occult. Here, we finally have a book that approaches the subject equipped with meticulous primary-source research and the cutting edge of gender and sexuality studies. Anyone with an interest in the complex gender configurations of modern occultism needs to read this book. * Egil Asprem, Associate Professor in the History of Religions, Stockholm University *
This work is notably original, a pioneering comparative historical and ethnographic study of Babalon as a discursive construct, a lived reality among Crowleyite circles, and a challenge to the general concept of esoteric female deities, who are usually not so challenging, violent, or transgressive. There is nothing of comparable quality or depth in existence. * Carole Cusack, Professor of Religious Studies, University of Sydney *
This book is an excellent contribution to the research on esotericism, gender, and their intersections. * Patricia Sophie Mayer, University of Vienna, Religious Studies Review *
Book Information
ISBN 9780190065027
Author Manon Hedenborg-White
Format Hardback
Page Count 392
Imprint Oxford University Press Inc
Publisher Oxford University Press Inc
Weight(grams) 726g
Dimensions(mm) 165mm * 239mm * 33mm
