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Murderesses in German Writing, 1720-1860
The way deviant women - murderesses, witches, vampires - are perceived and represented reveals much about what a society considers the norm for acceptable female behaviour. Drawing on extensive archival records and published texts, Susanne Kord investigates the stories of eight famous murderesses in Germany as they were told in legal, psychological, philosophical and literary writings. Kord interrogates the role of representation in legal judgment and the way the emancipation of women was perceived to be linked to their crimes. She demonstrates how perceptions of normal and criminal women permeated not only legal thought but also seemingly unrelated cultural spheres - from poetry, philosophy and physiognomy to early psychological profiling. A major work of German cultural history, this highly original book raises thought-provoking questions about eighteenth- and nineteenth-century gender norms in ways that continue to resonate today.
266 pages, Hardcover
First published May 1, 2009
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July 26, 2016
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Reseña en Español
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This is an equally disturbing, interesting and informing book. It's, in a way, a very thorough portrait of human cruelty (and in some cases even stupidity) in German speaking countries from the year 1720 to 1860.
Susanne Kord has made a remarkably detailed investigation and a massive recollection of data about several trial cases where a woman was accused of committing a capital crime
Covering from superstitious accusations of witchcraft and vampirism to simpler and less supernatural murder charges, the author casts more than the shadow of a doubt over some of the cases with their (horribly unethical) trials, and invites you to form your own conclusions about the guilt or innocence of the accused women. It also covers the terrible methods that were used to extract a confession from a suspect, and the monstrous and very public death sentences that followed.
These crimes became famous because they had a big impact on society as a (now) dubious entertainment, and because they were documented in writing.
This book analyses both the evolving point of view of society when it came to judging and sentencing the accused, and how written communication of those trials evolved from a simple informative paper to the eventual novelization or even theatricalization of the crimes.
With this, horror stories start to appear as an idea of entertainment, though that enjoyment becomes reprehensible when the story is based on true events.
Murderesses in German Writing generated an inner time-traveling feminist outrage in me. Men were horribly thick when it came to understanding women. They thought females to be so basic and weak that the only explanation for a woman standing out, showing an unusual talent for anything (even killing), or –God forbid– a strong personality, was attributed to supernatural reasons.
What I found funny about this book was that Susanne Kord presents a very different and geniusly twisted approach to feminism: if men thought women to be such idiots that they couldn't commit murder, they were wrong. Women could (and can) be murderesses.
There are also some interesting theories and interpretations about the fictionalization of some of history's infamous women (I do have some serious doubts about Erzsébet Báthory now), and also about some works of fiction that are commonly seen in a more innocent light.
I have to say that even though many of the things I've read here were bloodcurdling (and even enraging), it is a relief to see that in this rather short period of time –1720 to 1860– many of the most brutal practices were banished from the legal system (and of the socially accepted), and women began to have a better and steadier place in society.
If we compare the approach of this subjects back then with the way they are dealt with now, things have improved drastically.
There is still hope for humanity.
This is an equally disturbing, interesting and informing book. It's, in a way, a very thorough portrait of human cruelty (and in some cases even stupidity) in German speaking countries from the year 1720 to 1860.
Susanne Kord has made a remarkably detailed investigation and a massive recollection of data about several trial cases where a woman was accused of committing a capital crime
Covering from superstitious accusations of witchcraft and vampirism to simpler and less supernatural murder charges, the author casts more than the shadow of a doubt over some of the cases with their (horribly unethical) trials, and invites you to form your own conclusions about the guilt or innocence of the accused women. It also covers the terrible methods that were used to extract a confession from a suspect, and the monstrous and very public death sentences that followed.
These crimes became famous because they had a big impact on society as a (now) dubious entertainment, and because they were documented in writing.
This book analyses both the evolving point of view of society when it came to judging and sentencing the accused, and how written communication of those trials evolved from a simple informative paper to the eventual novelization or even theatricalization of the crimes.
With this, horror stories start to appear as an idea of entertainment, though that enjoyment becomes reprehensible when the story is based on true events.
Murderesses in German Writing generated an inner time-traveling feminist outrage in me. Men were horribly thick when it came to understanding women. They thought females to be so basic and weak that the only explanation for a woman standing out, showing an unusual talent for anything (even killing), or –God forbid– a strong personality, was attributed to supernatural reasons.
What I found funny about this book was that Susanne Kord presents a very different and geniusly twisted approach to feminism: if men thought women to be such idiots that they couldn't commit murder, they were wrong. Women could (and can) be murderesses.
There are also some interesting theories and interpretations about the fictionalization of some of history's infamous women (I do have some serious doubts about Erzsébet Báthory now), and also about some works of fiction that are commonly seen in a more innocent light.
I have to say that even though many of the things I've read here were bloodcurdling (and even enraging), it is a relief to see that in this rather short period of time –1720 to 1860– many of the most brutal practices were banished from the legal system (and of the socially accepted), and women began to have a better and steadier place in society.
If we compare the approach of this subjects back then with the way they are dealt with now, things have improved drastically.
There is still hope for humanity.
Displaying 1 of 1 review