Blurred Boundaries and Deceptive Dichotomies in Pre-Modern Texts and Images
Author | : Dafna Nissim |
Publisher | : Walter de Gruyter GmbH & Co KG |
Total Pages | : 266 |
Release | : 2023-12-18 |
ISBN-10 | : 9783111243894 |
ISBN-13 | : 3111243893 |
Rating | : 4/5 (893 Downloads) |
Download or read book Blurred Boundaries and Deceptive Dichotomies in Pre-Modern Texts and Images written by Dafna Nissim and published by Walter de Gruyter GmbH & Co KG. This book was released on 2023-12-18 with total page 266 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This collection of essays focuses on the way blurred boundaries are represented in pre-modern texts and visual art and how they were received and perceived by their audiences: readers, listeners, and viewers. According to the current understanding that opposing cognitive categories that are so common in modern thinking do not apply to pre-modern mentalities, we argue that individuals in medieval and pre-modern societies did not necessarily consider sacred and secular, male and female, real and fictional, and opposing emotions as absolute dichotomies. The contributors to the present collection examine a wide range of cultural artifacts – literary texts, wall paintings, sculptures, jewelry, manuscript illustrations, and various objects as to what they reflect regarding the dominant perceptual system – the network of beliefs, worldviews, presumptions, values, and norms of viewing/reading/hearing different from modern epistemology strongly predicated on the binary nature of things and people. The essays suggest that analyzing pre-modern cultural works of art or literature in light of reception theory can lead to a better understanding of how those cultural products influenced individuals and impacted their thoughts and actions.