Tarantism, a Popular Disease in the Middle Ages
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Beschreibung
In 1832, the German medical doctor and writer, J. F. Karl Hecker wrote the present research on tarantism (in German called "Tanzwut" whose literary translation would be "dance rage/dance mania").
In 1832, the German medical doctor and writer, Justus Friedrich Karl Hecker (1795-1850) wrote the present research on the topic of tarantism ("Tanzwut", i.e. "dance rage/dance mania") which examines the phenomenon of tarantism in different geographical regions: Germany, Belgium, the Netherlands, France, Southern Italy (Apulia) and East Africa.
Tarantism is a universal phenomenon of the "feminine soul" across cultures.
For me as a woman, the topic of the dance rage/dance mania (scientifically referred to as tarantism) is a very personal topic around physicality, suppression of femininity and sexuality, misogynistic traditions, social dynamics and rebellion.
I recently translated into German the novel of the Italian journalist Giulio Di Luzio about a true story of a victim of dance mania in the region of Salento during the 1960s-1970s.
An interesting aspect is the association of the phenomenon with religion to control and limit it. Religion is manipulated to restrict and control body and sexuality.
Religious rites are used to extinguish the "glow" of affected women. Saint Vitus became the patron saint of the dance-addicted women.
It was only in the epoch of humanism that medical research into the phenomenon began. And during this time, the phenomenon was finally got out of the corner of Satanism. Here, the author speaks of Paracelsus and his theory of tarantism/dance rage/dance mania at the interface between "medicine" and esotericism, according to which it can be attributed to three main causes: imagination, sensual desire and physical causes.
The "recovery" takes place through music therapy, restraining the minds of the women and their urge to move.
In the 2nd chapter, Hecker deals with the dance fury in southern Italy treated by the "Tarantella" music used to free the women from the dance rage. In the next chapter, Hecker describes tarantism in East Africa while in the last chapter “Sympathy” he shows universal behaviour patterns around the world.
Autor*in
Justus Friedrich Karl Hecker
Justus Friedrich Karl Hecker, auch Carl (* 5. Januar 1795 in Erfurt; † 11. Mai 1850 in Berlin) war ein deutscher Medizinhistoriker und Hochschullehrer.
Hecker war ein Sohn des Arztes und Erfurter Hochschullehrers August Friedrich Hecker (1763–1811). Er studierte an der Universität Berlin Medizin und war im Corps Marchia I aktiv. 1813 nahm er als Freiwilliger an den Befreiungskriegen teil. Nach Kriegsende setzte er sein Studium in Berlin fort. Im Juli 1817 wurde er zum Doktor der Medizin promoviert. Er habilitierte sich im November desselben Jahres und wurde Privatdozent. 1822 wurde er zum Extraordinarius und 1834 mit einem selbständigen Ordinariat für Geschichte und Enzyklopädie der Medizin zum ersten o. Professor für Geschichte der Medizin Berlins ernannt.
Themen in »Tarantism, a Popular Disease in the Middle Ages«
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