Confronting Evil

The Psychology of Secularization in Modern French Literature

Fiction & Literature, Literary Theory & Criticism, French, European
Cover of the book Confronting Evil by Scott M. Powers, Purdue University Press
View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart
Author: Scott M. Powers ISBN: 9781612494531
Publisher: Purdue University Press Publication: April 15, 2016
Imprint: Purdue University Press Language: English
Author: Scott M. Powers
ISBN: 9781612494531
Publisher: Purdue University Press
Publication: April 15, 2016
Imprint: Purdue University Press
Language: English

Confronting Evil: The Psychology of Secularization in Modern French Literature holds that the concept of evil is central to the psychology of secularism. Drawing on notions of secularization as a phenomenon of ambivalence or dualism in which religion continues to exist alongside secularity in exerting influence on modern French thought, author Scott M. Powers enlists psychoanalytic theory on mourning and sublimation, the philosophical concept of the sublime, Charles Taylor's theory of religious and secular "cross-pressures," and William James's psychology of conversion to account for the survival of religious themes in Baudelaire, Zola, Huysmans, and Céline. For Powers, Baudelaire's prose poems, Zola's experimental novels, and Huysmans's and Céline's early narratives attempt to account for evil by redefining the traditionally religious concept along secular lines. However, when unmitigated by the mechanisms of irony and sublimation, secular confrontation with the dark and seemingly absurd dimension of man leads modern writers such as Huysmans and Céline, paradoxically, to embrace a religious or quasi-religious understanding of good and evil. In the end, Powers finds that how authors cope with the reality of suffering and human wickedness has a direct bearing on the ability to sustain a secular vision.

View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart

Confronting Evil: The Psychology of Secularization in Modern French Literature holds that the concept of evil is central to the psychology of secularism. Drawing on notions of secularization as a phenomenon of ambivalence or dualism in which religion continues to exist alongside secularity in exerting influence on modern French thought, author Scott M. Powers enlists psychoanalytic theory on mourning and sublimation, the philosophical concept of the sublime, Charles Taylor's theory of religious and secular "cross-pressures," and William James's psychology of conversion to account for the survival of religious themes in Baudelaire, Zola, Huysmans, and Céline. For Powers, Baudelaire's prose poems, Zola's experimental novels, and Huysmans's and Céline's early narratives attempt to account for evil by redefining the traditionally religious concept along secular lines. However, when unmitigated by the mechanisms of irony and sublimation, secular confrontation with the dark and seemingly absurd dimension of man leads modern writers such as Huysmans and Céline, paradoxically, to embrace a religious or quasi-religious understanding of good and evil. In the end, Powers finds that how authors cope with the reality of suffering and human wickedness has a direct bearing on the ability to sustain a secular vision.

More books from Purdue University Press

Cover of the book Cultural Exchanges between Brazil and France by Scott M. Powers
Cover of the book The Memory Factory by Scott M. Powers
Cover of the book The Peace of Passarowitz, 1718 by Scott M. Powers
Cover of the book Nossa and Nuestra América by Scott M. Powers
Cover of the book Shrubs and Woody Vines of Indiana and the Midwest by Scott M. Powers
Cover of the book La pasión esclava by Scott M. Powers
Cover of the book El intelectual y la cultura de masas by Scott M. Powers
Cover of the book Your Ideal Cat by Scott M. Powers
Cover of the book Women’s Tanci Fiction in Late Imperial and Early Twentieth-Century China by Scott M. Powers
Cover of the book Manufacturing Facilities Design & Material Handling by Scott M. Powers
Cover of the book Reimagining Reference in the 21st Century by Scott M. Powers
Cover of the book Transnational Discourses on Class, Gender, and Cultural Identity by Scott M. Powers
Cover of the book Teaming With Your Therapy Dog by Scott M. Powers
Cover of the book Borges and Mathematics by Scott M. Powers
Cover of the book Apple of Discord by Scott M. Powers
We use our own "cookies" and third party cookies to improve services and to see statistical information. By using this website, you agree to our Privacy Policy