- Library Binding: 248 pages
- Publisher: Routledge; 1 edition (9 Sep 1999)
- Language English
- ISBN-10: 0415220505
- ISBN-13: 978-0415220507
- Product Dimensions: 23.9 x 16 x 2.3 cm
- Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 5,605,078 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
The Occult Philosophy in the Elizabethan Age
and over one million other books are available for Amazon Kindle .
Learn more
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||
Did you know you can trade in your old books for an Amazon.co.uk Gift Card to spend on the things you want? Plus, get an extra £5 Gift Certificate when you trade in books worth £10 or more before June 30, 2012. Visit the Books Trade-In Store for more details. |
Product details |
More About the Author
Product Description
Review
'Among those who have explored the intellectual world of the sixteenth century, no one can rival Frances Yates. Wherever she looks, she illuminates . . . No one has done more than she to recreate, from unexpected material, the intellectual life of past ages.' – Hugh Trevor-Roper
'A welcome new edition of this classic work ...' – Network --This text refers to the Paperback edition.
'A welcome new edition of this classic work ...' – Network --This text refers to the Paperback edition.
Product Description
Available as a single volume or as part of the 10 volume set "Frances Yeats: Selected Works"
Inside This Book
(Learn More)
Browse and search another edition of this book.
Browse and search another edition of this book.
First Sentence
In the illustration shown in Plate 1, four men are seen sitting under a neat row of trees, neatly labelled. Read the first page
Front Cover | Copyright | Table of Contents | Excerpt | Index
In the illustration shown in Plate 1, four men are seen sitting under a neat row of trees, neatly labelled. Read the first page
Explore More
Concordance
Browse Sample PagesConcordance
Front Cover | Copyright | Table of Contents | Excerpt | Index
Suggested Tags from Similar Products(What's this?)Be the first one to add a relevant tag (keyword that's strongly related to this product)
|
What Other Items Do Customers Buy After Viewing This Item?
Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
19 of 19 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
An outstanding accomplishment by a writer who has given so much fresh understanding on this subject over the years. The real marvel is how anyone could do so much justice to an important review of such lives as those of John Dee, Pico Della Mirandola, Francesco Giorgi, Henry Cornelius Agrippa et al. This is a real gem and Dame Frances Yates shows the way yet again for the historians in rescuing such important figures from the shadowy world of Renaissance 'Magic'
8 of 8 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
It's undeniable that Frances Yates' corpus of work represented a genuine breakthrough in historical and literary studies. Yates' studies genuinely changed the way we looked at the Renaissance. It's also hard to imagine Keith Thomas' 'Religion and the decline of Magic', the new historicism of Stephen Greenblatt or the place of the occult in popular culture without her influence.
However, It would also be a fair comment to say that 'The Occult Philosophy..' is a pretty stuffy read in places. It was obviously written for a scholarly market and as such, much of it functions as a literature review, commenting on and criticising other writers in the same field. The opening chapters on contemporary cabalistic philosophy are hard going, unless of course you've specialist interest in this area in the first place. Strange and mysterious it might be, but Elizabethan occult philosophy often comes across as a tediously elaborate system: a handbook for supernatural civil-servants.
There's also a great deal of speculation - Yates' is often caught wondering if such-and-such had seen such-and-such painting, or whether so-and-so is referring to this really obscure piece of cabala... All of this undermines the revolutionary import of her thesis. Although most of the work is firmly grounded in textual research, you do feel at times that Yates is wrestling the facts into a shape that fits squarely with her ideas.
That said, I found the three chapters on Durer and Melancholy, Chapman's 'Shadow of Night' and Christopher Marlowe totally fascinating. Her work on Shakespeare is revelatory, and her reading of 'The Merchant of Venice' in terms of Jewish mysticism had me scuttling back to the original text. I doubt somehow that i'll be hunting down the lesser known works of Cornelius Agrippa with as much zest...
However, It would also be a fair comment to say that 'The Occult Philosophy..' is a pretty stuffy read in places. It was obviously written for a scholarly market and as such, much of it functions as a literature review, commenting on and criticising other writers in the same field. The opening chapters on contemporary cabalistic philosophy are hard going, unless of course you've specialist interest in this area in the first place. Strange and mysterious it might be, but Elizabethan occult philosophy often comes across as a tediously elaborate system: a handbook for supernatural civil-servants.
There's also a great deal of speculation - Yates' is often caught wondering if such-and-such had seen such-and-such painting, or whether so-and-so is referring to this really obscure piece of cabala... All of this undermines the revolutionary import of her thesis. Although most of the work is firmly grounded in textual research, you do feel at times that Yates is wrestling the facts into a shape that fits squarely with her ideas.
That said, I found the three chapters on Durer and Melancholy, Chapman's 'Shadow of Night' and Christopher Marlowe totally fascinating. Her work on Shakespeare is revelatory, and her reading of 'The Merchant of Venice' in terms of Jewish mysticism had me scuttling back to the original text. I doubt somehow that i'll be hunting down the lesser known works of Cornelius Agrippa with as much zest...
4 of 4 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
To preface, my credentials as a reviewer of historical or literary scholarship are nought. I am a layman with an interest in medieval and religious history. This book was, however, fascinating and I ripped through it.
I disagree that it is stuffy in parts, I believe the style, depth and indeed pace is apt for the subject and nature of the material, but written in way that is perfectly accessible for a non-scholarly audience, unlike many books published by routledge.
The themes are, as a previous reviewer described, revelatory, and where the author saw reason to question the accuracy of her interpretations, has pointed this out. This seems appropriate given the very original and provocative nature of the scholarship, and as such lent an added air of credibility.
Overall I was thrilled with this book and throughout was imbued with confidence that the authors reading of history was both unbiased and well considered. I would recommend highly to anyone with an interest in history of the occult or renaissance era Christianity, but certainly not for those who wish to explore the occult itself in any depth, for this book neither is nor pertains to be about that.
I disagree that it is stuffy in parts, I believe the style, depth and indeed pace is apt for the subject and nature of the material, but written in way that is perfectly accessible for a non-scholarly audience, unlike many books published by routledge.
The themes are, as a previous reviewer described, revelatory, and where the author saw reason to question the accuracy of her interpretations, has pointed this out. This seems appropriate given the very original and provocative nature of the scholarship, and as such lent an added air of credibility.
Overall I was thrilled with this book and throughout was imbued with confidence that the authors reading of history was both unbiased and well considered. I would recommend highly to anyone with an interest in history of the occult or renaissance era Christianity, but certainly not for those who wish to explore the occult itself in any depth, for this book neither is nor pertains to be about that.
Would you like to see more reviews about this item?
Were these reviews helpful?
Let us know
Most Recent Customer Reviews
Excellent
This is now one of my favourite books, right up there with Norman Cohn's 'Pursuit of the Millenium' and Gershom Scholem's work. Read more
Published 5 months ago by Michael Heyman
Amazing
This book may be of value to academic historians labouring under the misconception that Renaissance magic is little more than divinely-inspired bunkum. Read more
Published on 2 July 2006 by Cyril Smith
Customer Discussions
|
This product's forum
Active discussions in related forums
Search Customer Discussions
|
Related forums
|
Listmania!
Look for similar items by category
- Books > History > Britain & Ireland > Ireland
- Books > History > Religious History > Other Religions
- Books > Mind, Body & Spirit > Parapsychology
- Books > Religion & Spirituality > Judaism > Sacred Writings > Kabbalah
- Books > Religion & Spirituality > New Age > Divination > Clairvoyance & Precognition
- Books > Religion & Spirituality > New Age > Occult
- Books > Religion & Spirituality > Sacred Texts > Kabbalah
- Books > Society, Politics & Philosophy > Philosophy
Look for similar items by subject
Feedback
- Would you like to update product info or give feedback on images?
- I am the Author, and I want to comment on my book.
- I am the Publisher, and I want to comment on this book.
|
