"In July 1518 a terrifying and mysterious plague struck the medieval city of Strasbourg. Hundreds of men and women danced wildly, day after day, in the punishing summer heat. Their feet blistered and bled, and their limbs ached with fatigue, but they simply could not stop. Throughout August and early September more and more were seized by the same terrible compulsion." "By the time the epidemic subsided, heat and exhaustion had claimed an untold number of lives, leaving thousands bewildered and bereaved, and an enduring enigma for future generations." "This book explains why Strasbourg's dancing plague took place. In doing so, it leads us into a largely vanished world, evoking the sights, sounds, aromas, diseases and hardships, the fervent supernaturalism and the desperate hedonism of the late-medieval world." "At the same time, it offers insights into how people behave when driven beyond the limits of endurance. Not only a historical detective story, A Time to Dance, A Time to Die is also an exploration of the strangest capabilities of the human mind and the extremes to which fear and irrationality can lead us."--BOOK JACKET.
The Black Death and The Dancing Mania. The account of "The Black Death" here translated by Dr. Babington was Hecker's first important work of this kind. It was published in 1832, and was followed in the same year by his account of "The Dancing Mania." The books here given are the two that first gave Hecker a wide reputation. Many other such treatises followed, among them, in 1865, a treatise on the "Great Epidemics of the Middle Ages." Besides his "History of Medicine," which, in its second volume, reached into the fourteenth century, and all his smaller treatises, Hecker wrote a large number of articles in Encyclopædias and Medical Journals. Professor J.F.K. Hecker was, in a more interesting way, as busy as Professor A.F. Hecker, his father, had been. He transmitted the family energies to an only son, Karl von Hecker, born in 1827, who distinguished himself greatly as a Professor of Midwifery, and died in 1882.
A gripping tale of one of history's most bizarre events, and what it reveals about the strange possibilities of human nature In the searing July heat of 1518, Frau Troffea stepped into the streets of Strasbourg and began to dance. Bathed in sweat, she continued to dance. Overcome with exhaustion, she stopped, and then resumed her solitary jig a few hours later. Over the next two months, roughly four hundred people succumbed to the same agonizing compulsion. At its peak, the epidemic claimed the lives of fifteen men, women, and children a day. Possibly 100 people danced to their deaths in one of the most bizarre and terrifying plagues in history. John Waller compellingly evokes the sights, sounds, and aromas; the diseases and hardships; the fervent supernaturalism and the desperate hedonism of the late medieval world. Based on new evidence, he explains why the plague occurred and how it came to an end. In doing so, he sheds light on the strangest capabilities of the human mind and on our own susceptibility to mass hysteria.
When political protest is read as epidemic madness, religious ecstasy as nervous disease, and angular dance moves as dark and uncouth, the 'disorder' being described is choreomania. At once a catchall term to denote spontaneous gestures and the unruly movements of crowds, 'choreomania' emerged in the nineteenth century at a time of heightened class conflict, nationalist policy, and colonial rule. In this book, author K lina Gotman examines these choreographies of unrest, rethinking the modern formation of the choreomania concept as it moved across scientific and social scientific disciplines. Reading archives describing dramatic misformations-of bodies and body politics-she shows how prejudices against expressivity unravel, in turn revealing widespread anxieties about demonstrative agitation. This history of the fitful body complements stories of nineteenth-century discipline and regimentation. As she notes, constraints on movement imply constraints on political power and agency. In each chapter, Gotman confronts the many ways choreomania works as an extension of discourses shaping colonialist orientalism, which alternately depict riotous bodies as dangerously infected others, and as curious bacchanalian remains. Through her research, Gotman also shows how beneath the radar of this colonial discourse, men and women gathered together to repossess on their terms the gestures of social revolt.
NAMED A BOOK OF THE YEAR BY THE ECONOMIST AND ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF 2021 BY THE TIMES AND THE SUNDAY TIMES "Irreversible Damage . . . has caused a storm. Abigail Shrier, a Wall Street Journal writer, does something simple yet devastating: she rigorously lays out the facts." —Janice Turner, The Times of London Until just a few years ago, gender dysphoria—severe discomfort in one’s biological sex—was vanishingly rare. It was typically found in less than .01 percent of the population, emerged in early childhood, and afflicted males almost exclusively. But today whole groups of female friends in colleges, high schools, and even middle schools across the country are coming out as “transgender.” These are girls who had never experienced any discomfort in their biological sex until they heard a coming-out story from a speaker at a school assembly or discovered the internet community of trans “influencers.” Unsuspecting parents are awakening to find their daughters in thrall to hip trans YouTube stars and “gender-affirming” educators and therapists who push life-changing interventions on young girls—including medically unnecessary double mastectomies and puberty blockers that can cause permanent infertility. Abigail Shrier, a writer for the Wall Street Journal, has dug deep into the trans epidemic, talking to the girls, their agonized parents, and the counselors and doctors who enable gender transitions, as well as to “detransitioners”—young women who bitterly regret what they have done to themselves. Coming out as transgender immediately boosts these girls’ social status, Shrier finds, but once they take the first steps of transition, it is not easy to walk back. She offers urgently needed advice about how parents can protect their daughters. A generation of girls is at risk. Abigail Shrier’s essential book will help you understand what the trans craze is and how you can inoculate your child against it—or how to retrieve her from this dangerous path.
History of Dance, Second Edition, offers readers a panoramic view of dance from prehistory to the present. The text covers the dance forms, designs, artists, costumes, performing spaces, and accompaniments throughout the centuries and around the globe. Its investigative approach engages students in assignments and web projects that reinforce the learning from the text, and its ancillaries for both teachers and students make it easy for students to perceive, create, and respond to the history of dance. New to This Edition History of Dance retains its strong foundations from the first edition while adding these new and improved features: • An instructor guide with media literacy assignments, teaching tips, strategies for finding historical videos, and more • A test bank with hundreds of questions for creating tests and quizzes • A presentation package with hundreds of slides that present key points and graphics • A web resource with activities, extensions of chapter content, annotated links to useful websites, and study aids • Developing a Deeper Perspective assignments that encourage students to use visual or aesthetic scanning, learn and perform period dances, observe and write performance reports, develop research projects and WebQuests (Internet-based research projects), and participate in other learning activities • Experiential learning activities that help students dig deeper into the history of dance, dancers, and significant dance works and literature • Eye-catching full-color interior that adds visual appeal and brings the content to life Also new to this edition is a chapter entitled “Global Interactions: 2000–2016,” which examines dance in the 21st century. Resources and Activities The web resources and experiential learning activities promote student-centered learning and help students develop critical thinking and investigative skills.Teachers can use the experiential learning activities as extended projects to help apply the information and to use technology to make the history of dance more meaningful. Three Parts History of Dance is presented in three parts. Part I covers early dance history, beginning with prehistoric times and moving through ancient civilizations in Greece, Crete, Egypt, and Rome and up to the Renaissance. Part II explores dance from the Renaissance to the 20th century, including a chapter on dance in the United States from the 17th through 19th centuries. Part III unfolds the evolution of American dance from the 20th century to the present, examining imported influences, emerging modern dance and ballet, and new directions for both American ballet and modern dance. Chapters Each chapter focuses on the dancers and choreographers, the dances, and significant dance works and literature from the time period. Students will learn how dance design has changed through the ages and how new dance genres, forms, and styles have emerged and continue to emerge. The chapters also include special features, such as History Highlight sidebars and Time Capsule charts, to help students place dancers, events, and facts in their proper context and perspective. Vocabulary words appear at the end of each chapter, as do questions that prompt review of the chapter’s important information. The text is reader-friendly and current, and it is supported by the national standards in dance, arts education, social studies, and technology education. Through History of Dance, students will acquire a well-rounded view of dance from the dawn of time to the present day. This influential text offers students a foundation for understanding and a springboard for studying dance in the 21st century.
