Book Review : A science for the soul: occultism and the genesis of the German Modern
Med Hist July 1, 2006 DOI: 10.1017/s0025727300010218 (opens in new tab) via PubMed Central
Summary
AI-generated from the abstractOccultism in Germany around 1900 was not a fringe rejection of science but a serious intellectual movement that helped shape modern German culture. The book traces how figures from psychical researchers, artists, and writers engaged with occult ideas to explore questions of mind, matter, and spirituality. These pursuits influenced the development of psychology, the arts, and alternative religious movements. The author argues that occultism provided a 'science for the soul' that addressed anxieties about materialism and offered a bridge between scientific rationality and spiritual experience, contributing to the emergence of German modernism.
Study at a glance
| Characteristics | Historical analysis Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Key finding | Argues that occultism was central to the formation of German modernism and was not a marginal or anti-modern movement. |
Abstract
Corinna Treitel, A science for the soul: occultism and the genesis of the German Modern, Baltimore and London, Johns Hopkins University Press, 2004, pp. x, 366, illus., £33.00 (hardback 0-8018-7812-8). - Volume 50 Issue 3