List Epithetical Books The Devils of Loudun

Title	:	The Devils of Loudun
Author	:	Aldous Huxley
Book Format	:	Paperback
Book Edition	:	Deluxe Edition
Pages	:	Pages: 400 pages
Published	:	April 7th 2005 by Vintage Classics (first published 1952)
Categories	:	History. Nonfiction. Religion

The Devils of Loudun Paperback | Pages: 400 pages

Commentary Concering Books The Devils of Loudun

In 1634 Urbain Grandier, a handsome and dissolute priest of the parish of Loudun was tried, tortured and burnt at the stake. He had been found guilty of conspiring with the devil to seduce an entire convent of nuns in what was the most sensational case of mass possession and sexual hysteria in history. Grandier maintained his innocence to the end and four years after his death the nuns were still being subjected to exorcisms to free them from their demonic bondage. Huxley's vivid account of this bizarre tale of religious and sexual obsession transforms our understanding of the medieval world.

Details Books To The Devils of Loudun

Original Title:	The Devils of Loudun
Edition Language:	English URL http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Devils_of_Loudun
Characters:	Urbain Grandier
Setting:	Loudun,1634(France)

Rating Epithetical Books The Devils of Loudun

Ratings: 3.9 From 2096 Users | 197 Reviews

Criticism Epithetical Books The Devils of Loudun

A fascinating account of a reported case of devil possession in Loudun France in the early 17th Century that resulted in the execution of a Priest who was most certainly not guilty. Cardinal Richelieu plays a prominent role in the course of events.Be forewarned that this is not a straightforward retelling. Huxley is an excellent expository writer (at times a little pedantic) and the book provides a wealth of information on French society of the early 17th Century. But Huxley was also interested

Not about devils, really, but about mass hysteria and the psychological roots of religious ecstasy, mania, and spirituality itself. This is the story of the philandering priest Urbane Grandier of Loudun, in 17th Century France, who was burnt at the stake for causing the demonic possession of a whole nunnery. The problem was, even his death did not send the devils away.If you read this as horror aficionado looking for devils (like I did in my early twenties), you are going to be disappointed. (No

In this interpretation of historic events, Huxley tries to explain how it was possible that an obviously innocent man, the priest Urbain Grandier, was accused of sorcery and burned at the stake in seventeen-century Loudun, France.Most of it is politics, as were witchhunts in general. But here it was not only small-town grievances that led one neighbour to accuse another of witchcraft; Richelieu's influences at the French court, contra-reformation and personal vendetta's make the prosecution,

Chronicles the events around Loudun, France that Ken Russell portrays (in his particular fashion) in the infamous film (one of my favorites), "The Devils." It seems that politically-motivated scare tactics have been around for a long time, whether WMDs, Al Qaida or the Devil, itself. Gets things done.

Don't know if this counts as a spoiler, but when I reached the part about the Mother Superior receiving an enema as part of her exorcism and having it held in public view as a spectator event, well Aldous may have topped his LSD reporting in terms of literary outrage.

The title is ambiguous as to which devils it is referring, metaphysical devils, or the ordained criminals in the catholic church charged with exorcising them. Huxley's account of the possession of 17 nuns in a 1630's French town and the torture and sadistic execution of the parson accused of bewitching them is very even handed. He says there's no reason to discount the existence of malevolent discorporate conscious entities, or demons, but in this case the corruption of Catholic church makes us

"Moby Dick" contains an infamous chapter titled Cetology in which Herman Melville pauses his plot so he can share whale facts. While marine biology can be fascinating, Melville's digression stops his story cold.Aldous Huxley makes the same mistake repeatedly in "The Devils of Loudun.""Loudon" ostensibly tells the true story of Urbain Grandier and Jeanne des Anges. Grandier was a charismatic, arrogant and well-connected priest. He also lacked discretion with his female parishioners --