In Magic in Medieval Manuscripts, Sophie Page
describes how images (ymago) are objects that have powers; people would bury or
place the items into a location that had great meaning. Images were very important and sacred during
this time period. Drawings of grotesque figures are common to this society to
represent the supernatural. It is interesting to see the compiled handwritten
manuscripts. The images were first hand of what the people imagined the
supernatural to look like. Magic texts proposed ways that spirits would seduce
and possess souls of men and women. Controlling people to do harmful things to
other people or animals.
Many images from the medieval time
period are of angels coming down from heaven, as well as devils possessing the
people. The battle between good and evil is very strong in this time period. The devil comes in many different shapes and
forms to try to deceive people. Torture and violence played a main role in many
images. The supernatural can be broken down into “above nature”, God and the
devil went hand in hand in almost every image. On page 37 in Magic in
Medieval Manuscripts, top-left
image is of angels with halos curing the people who were possessed with demons.
I find this interesting because I feel like God still helps cure people who are
sinners and worship the devil. Not much as changed from this time period with
some of the ways we think.
Do
you think that images and texts are good ways to understand what the people of
this time period actually perceived the supernatural and witches to be like?
Page,
Sophie. Magic in Medieval Manuscripts. Toronto: University of Toronto
Press, 2004. Print.
Using images from a certain time period is one of my personal favorite primary sources to use. Looking at a particular image critically can really help open up your eyes to how things were during the time the image was produced. For example on page 37 of the Page reading in image 39 we see an angel and a devil conversing in the road. Making it seem like encountering angels or devils was a relatively common occurrence during this era.
ReplyDeleteI really love the images that Page includes because it gives additional insight to the written primary sources. It's interesting to think about how in a way times haven't changed all that much. Sure, most of us don't put up pictures of the devil or demons in our living rooms, but if you walk into many a Catholic household you're likely to see a picture of Jesus hanging on a wall. In the same way we now put images of Jesus, saints, etc. on everything from candles to jewelry. I would say that to an extent we still have "ymago" to this day, albeit of a less sinister nature.
ReplyDeleteEden, what really is really striking about what you pointed out was how sinister people perceived demons to be. It was society trying to lead people towards the good and show them that magic led to a destructive path. They were so determined on showing demons as ugly and terrifying that they forgot to realize that they used to be the beautiful angels. Another interesting thing you bring up is "God still helps cure people who are sinners and worship the devil". Back in these times I believe that people weren't worshiping the devil, they were just seeking answers to their failing crops and dying children. People do things they wouldn't normally do in dire situations.
ReplyDeleteJena Lee, I definitely agree with your comment about "People [doing] things they wouldn't normally do in dire situations." This goes for many topics, issues, as well as time periods. No doubt that there was people who were not worshiping the devil but just trying to survive. I think that we can relate this to issues in our world today. For example Africa is experiencing its own witch hunts in recent years; for a quick interesting read: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Witchcraft_accusations_against_children_in_Africa. Overall thanks for the blog and the comments!
DeleteLiked your comment on "God and Devil together in every image"--why? What role does the devil have within the Christian tradtion--something to ponder. Probably all of us understand the role of evil here--but does the Devil serve another purpose too for society (historically).
ReplyDelete