Franz Anton Mesmer: Between God and Devil - Hardcover

Wyckoff, James

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0135773792 ISBN 13: 9780135773796

Publisher: Prentice-Hall, 1975

Synopsis

Dust jacket notes: "Franz Anton Mesmer, the architect of modern hypnotism, is on eof the most controversial and fascinating figures in medical and scientific history. He has been considered a quack and a charlatan and, on ther other hand, as the true father of psychotherapy. In this absorbing account of Mesmer's life and career, James Wyckoff shows that his significance rests on far more important ground than the development of Mesmerism and points to the fact that Mesmer's ideas - now known as bio-energy and group therapy - are being turned to once again. Early in his study of medicine, Mesmer suggested that the sun, moon, and planets might have a direct influence on human bodies by way of a subtle fluid - and that when this force, a kind of universal energy, exerts itself, fluid expands and contracts the nervous system. Although this theory received little attention at the time, it was the forerunner of 'animal magnetism' - a practice that brought Mesmer public success and adoration and professional notoriety. Mesmer achieved remarkable cures of functional disorders with animal magnetism, but was sharply criticized by those who misunderstood him. Expelled from the Medical Faculty in Vienna, he fled to Paris and became the rage of the city and the entire country. Yet once again his ideas were rejected by the medical establishment and Mesmer was forced to return to his native land...."

About this edition

• Publisher: Prentice-Hall
• Publication date: 1975
• ISBN 10: 0135773792
• ISBN 13: 9780135773796
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 148
• Illustrator: Illustrated