Nostradamus: A Healer of Souls in the Renaissance

One of the most enigmatic figures in history, Nostradamus - apothecary, astrologer and soothsayer - is a continual source of fascination. Indeed, his predictions are so much the stock-in-trade of the wildest merchants of imminent Doom that one could be forgiven for forgetting that Michel de Nostredame, 1503-1566, was a figure firmly rooted in the society of the French Renaissance. In this bold new account of the life and work of Nostradamus, Denis Crouzet shows that any attempt to interpret his Prophecies at face value is misguided. Nostradamus was not trying to predict the future. He saw himself, rather, as 'prophesying', i.e. bringing the Word of God to humankind. Like Rabelais, for whom laughter was a therapy to help one cope with the misery of the times, Nostradamus thought of himself as a physician of the soul as much as of the body. His unveiling of the menacing and horrendous events which await us in the future was a way of frightening his readers into the realisation that inner hatred was truly the greatest peril of all, to which the sole remedy was to live in the love and peace of Christ. This inspired interpretation penetrates the imaginative world of Nostradamus, a man whose life is as mysterious as his writings. It shows him in a completely new dimension, securing for him a significant place among the major thinkers of the Renaissance.

Biographies & Memoirs

Crouzet, Denis

Leaders & Notable People

Polity

One of the most enigmatic figures in history, Nostradamus - apothecary, astrologer and soothsayer - is a continual source of fascination. Indeed, his predictions are so much the stock-in-trade of the wildest merchants of imminent Doom that one could be forgiven for forgetting that Michel de Nostredame, 1503-1566, was a figure firmly rooted in the society of the French Renaissance. In this bold new account of the life and work of Nostradamus, Denis Crouzet shows that any attempt to interpret his Prophecies at face value is misguided. Nostradamus was not trying to predict the future. He saw himself, rather, as 'prophesying', i.e. bringing the Word of God to humankind. Like Rabelais, for whom laughter was a therapy to help one cope with the misery of the times, Nostradamus thought of himself as a physician of the soul as much as of the body. His unveiling of the menacing and horrendous events which await us in the future was a way of frightening his readers into the realisation that inner hatred was truly the greatest peril of all, to which the sole remedy was to live in the love and peace of Christ. This inspired interpretation penetrates the imaginative world of Nostradamus, a man whose life is as mysterious as his writings. It shows him in a completely new dimension, securing for him a significant place among the major thinkers of the Renaissance.

Polity Press

Passion for History: Conversations with Denis Crouzet (Early Modern Studies)

The pathbreaking work of renowned historian Natalie Zemon Davis has added profoundly to our understanding of early modern society and culture. She rescues men and women from oblivion using her unique combination of rich imagination, keen intelligence, and archival sleuthing to uncover the past. Davis brings to life a dazzling cast of extraordinary people, revealing their thoughts, emotions, and choices in the world in which they lived. Thanks to Davis we can meet the impostor Arnaud du Tilh in her classic, The Return of Martin Guerre, follow three remarkable lives in Women on the Margins, and journey alongside a traveler and scholar in Trickster Travels as he moves between the Muslim and Christian worlds.
In these conversations with Denis Crouzet, professor of history at the Sorbonne and well-known specialist on the French Wars of Religion, Natalie Zemon Davis examines the practices of history and controversies in historical method. Their discussion reveals how Davis has always pursued the thrill and joy of discovery through historical research. Her quest is influenced by growing up Jewish in the Midwest as a descendant of emigrants from Eastern Europe. She recounts how her own life as a citizen, a woman, and a scholar compels her to ceaselessly examine and transcend received opinions and certitudes. Davis reminds the reader of the broad possibilities to be found by studying the lives of those who came before us, and teaches us how to give voice to what was once silent.

History

Davis, Natalie Zemon

Europe

Truman State University Press

Historical Study & Educational Resources

Penn State University Press

Au péril des guerres de Religion: Réflexions de deux historiens sur notre temps

Politics & Social Sciences

Le Gall, Jean-Marie

Sociology

Jean Calvin

Religion & Spirituality

FAYARD

Le XVIe siècle français est marqué par la figure de Catherine de Médicis (1519-1589) qui, exerçant le pouvoir avec une étonnante ténacité, fut soupçonnée de recourir aux moyens les plus sinistres, mensonges, complots, poison, magie noire, assassinats, culminant dans l'extrême violence du massacre de la Saint-Barthélemy. C'est avec une énergie intense qu'elle se consacra à la défense de l'État monarchique, incarné successivement par ses fils François II, Charles IX et Henri III. L'humaniste Étienne Pasquier disait qu'elle « était armée d'un haut coeur », un coeur supérieur, plein de force, de foi et d'intelligence qui la poussa à se dresser contre les passions qui ensanglantaient le royaume. Dans sa magistrale étude, Denis Crouzet fait vivre cette Catherine de Médicis plurielle, oscillant entre le bien et le mal, adepte de la parole et de la négociation, figure humaniste persuadée de sa mission de pacification du royaume, mais aussi fine stratège, forgeant les instruments idéologiques de son intrusion active dans la sphère de la décision politique, allant jusqu'à légitimer l'usage de la violence vue comme une nécessité pour l'avenir de la paix. Dans le contexte tragique des guerres de Religion, autour d'une souveraine hors du commun, s'invente la raison politique moderne.

Haut Coeur de Catherine de Medicis (Le) (Collections Histoire) (French Edition)

ALBIN MICHEL

Le XVIe siècle est un héros: Michelet inventeur de la Renaissance

Les guerriers de Dieu: La violence au temps des troubles de religion, vers 1525-vers 1610 (Epoques) (French Edition)

Social Sciences

CHAMP VALLON

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Books by Crouzet, Denis