Medicine and Magic I

Sponsoring Organization(s)

Special Session

Organizer Name

Albrecht Classen

Organizer Affiliation

Univ. of Arizona

Presider Name

Albrecht Classen

Paper Title 1

Aphrodisiac Drugs and Magical Objects in the Songs by Neidhard and His Imitators

Presenter 1 Name

Ingrid Bennewitz

Presenter 1 Affiliation

Otto-Friedrich-Univ. Bamberg

Paper Title 2

Nightmare in Medieval Medical Thought

Presenter 2 Name

Eliza Buhrer

Presenter 2 Affiliation

Seton Hall Univ.

Paper Title 3

The Beginnings of Russian Medicine: The Coexistence of Pagan Medical Treatment and Christian Faith

Presenter 3 Name

Ursula Bieber

Presenter 3 Affiliation

Univ. Salzburg

Start Date

14-5-2015 7:30 PM

Session Location

Bernhard 159

Description

The differences between learned medicine and lay magic are not as big as one might assume, and modern medicine is increasingly returning to alternative and integrative approaches, resorting to palliative and herbal medicine. In the Middle Ages the barriers between both areas were even lower, and we can find numerous examples of medicine intimately intertwined with magic. This session (one of two) will offer insights into this phenomenon from literary, historical, and theological perspectives.

Albrecht Classen