Oedipus and the Devil: Witchcraft, Religion and Sexuality in Early Modern Europe

by Lyndal Roper

Book Overview

These essays deal with the nature of masculinity and femininity, the importance of the irrational and unconscious in history, the cultural impact of the Reformation and Counter-Reformation, and the... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0415105811
• ISBN13: 9780415105811
• Release Date: May 1994
• Publisher: Routledge
• Length: 264 Pages
• Weight: 1.05 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.8" x 6.1" x 9.2"

Customer Reviews

religion and social mores

Roper describes a strange era, when the Catholic and Protestant churches of western Europe exercised a degree of control over the social mores simply unknown to the modern reader. Sexual stereotyping is shown, notably in the context of drunkeness, gambling and fighting by males. We also see into the social structures of the German cities in the 16th century. When alternate gatherings like guilds were an important part of the daily fabric. Much of the narrative naturally delves into the religious symbolisms and also the reality of two branches of Christianity struggling for secular influence in the Reformation and Counter-Reformation.