The kiss of peace : ritual, self, and society in the high and late medieval West / Kiril Petkov.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Petkov, Kiril, 1964-

Series:

Cultures, beliefs, and traditions ; v. 17.

Cultures, beliefs, and traditions ; v. 17

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Kissing--Political aspects--Europe, Western--History.

Kissing.

Reconciliation--Political aspects--Europe, Western--History.

Reconciliation.

Symbolism in politics--Europe, Western--History.

Symbolism in politics.

Rites and ceremonies, Medieval--Europe, Western.

Rites and ceremonies, Medieval.

Social history--Medieval, 500-1500.

Social history.

Europe, Western--Social life and customs.

Europe, Western.

Europe--History--476-1492.

Europe.

Physical Description:

1 online resource (viii, 355 pages)

Edition:

1st ed.

Place of Publication:

Leiden ; Boston : Brill, 2003.

Language Note:

English

Summary:

This book reveals the social logic of the medieval rituals of reconciliation as showcased by the most potent rite, the kiss of peace. Ritual is presented as a contested ground on which individuals, groups, and political and moral authorities competed for and appropriated political sovereignty. The thesis of the study is that by employing ritual and bodily mnemonics as strategic tools, the forces of order and official morality strove to organize personality structures around a hegemonic value system. Researching three analytical fields-the legal bonds of peace, the emotional economy of ritual, and the building of identity-the book highlights the contents and evolution of ritual reconciliation in diverse cultural contexts in the period between the eleventh and the sixteenth centuries.

Contents:

Acknowledgements

Introduction: Sub specie osculi

PART ONE. THE LEGAL BONDS OF PEACE

Introduction to Part One

1. The Contest for Supremacy: Ritual and the Law in the Eleventh and Twelfth Centuries

2. Transformations: Legal Ritual and the Evolution of Peacemaking in the Thirteenth Century

3. Withdrawal: The Decline of Legal Ritual in the Fourteenth and Fifteenth Centuries and Its Consequences

Conclusions to Part One

PART TWO. THE EMOTIONAL ECONOMY OF RITUAL

Introduction to Part Two

4. Sentiments at Work

5. Discourses and Practices

6. Emotions and Ritual Efficacy

Conclusions to Part Two

PART THREE. BUILDING IDENTITIES

Introduction to Part Three

7. Identity From Without

8. Identity From Within: Self and Person

9. Ends and Networks: Ritual Identity and the Other

Conclusions to Part Three

Conclusion

Bibliography

Index.

Notes:

Description based upon print version of record.

Description based on print version record.

Includes bibliographical references (p. [333]-351) and index.

ISBN:

1-280-46749-5

9786610467495

1-4237-1454-7

90-474-0224-3

OCLC:

228118178

Publisher Number:

10.1163/9789047402244 DOI