Gender in Mystical and Occult Thought Behmenism and its Development in England [Hardcover]

An evaluation of the intellectual legacy in England of the ideas of Jacob Boehme (15751624).This is the first comprehensive account of the development of the ideas on gender of Jacob Boehme (1575-1624) among his English followers, tracing the changes in gender and sexuality in such esoteric traditions as alchemy, hermeticism and the Cabala. The book argues that Behmenist thought in these areas is a neglected aspect of the revision in the moral status of women during the early modern period, contributing significantly to the rise of the Romantic notion of womanhood and 'Victorian' sexual ideology.This is the first comprehensive account of the development of the ideas on gender of Jacob Boehme (1575-1624) among his English followers, tracing the changes in gender and sexuality in such esoteric traditions as alchemy, hermeticism and the Cabala. The book argues that Behmenist thought in these areas is a neglected aspect of the revision in the moral status of women during the early modern period, contributing significantly to the rise of the Romantic notion of womanhood and 'Victorian' sexual ideology.This is the first comprehensive account of the development of the ideas on gender of Jacob Boehme (1575-1624) among his English followers. It traces the changes in thought on gender and sexuality in such esoteric traditions as alchemy, Hermeticism and the Cabala. The book argues that Behmenist thought in these areas is a neglected aspect of the revision in the moral status of women during the early modern period, contributing significantly to the rise of the Romantic notion of womanhood and Victorian sexual ideology.1. Introduction; 2. Gender, sexuality and power in early modern England; 3. Gender in mystical and occult thought; 4. Gender in the works of Jacob Boehme; 5. The reception of Behmenism in England; 6. Behmenism and the Interregnum spiritualists; 7. The female embassy; 8. Conservative Behmenism; 9. Wider Behmenist influences in the eighteenth century; Conclusiol.