9781789141962
9781789142433
As a young man, Jan Verplaetse saw a hare suspended from a meat hook, skinned and gutted. What struck him so forcefully at the time was not the animal itself, but the blood gently dripping from its mouth. His reaction prompted the start of a quest he undertakes in this book: to investigate our fascination with blood, the most vital of fluids.
Blood Rush shows how, throughout history, blood has had the capacity to intoxicate us, to the point that we lose ourselves, whether in violence, through hunting, fighting, or killing, or in the vicarious thrill of watching sporting events, horror films, or video games. Are these feelings physical, or in our imagination? Where does the magic of blood come from? In his deeply researched and provocative narrative, Verplaetse moves from antiquity to the present, from magic to experimental psychology, from philosophy to religion and scientific discoveries, to demonstrate why blood at once attracts and repels us.
Blood Rush shows how, throughout history, blood has had the capacity to intoxicate us, to the point that we lose ourselves, whether in violence, through hunting, fighting, or killing, or in the vicarious thrill of watching sporting events, horror films, or video games. Are these feelings physical, or in our imagination? Where does the magic of blood come from? In his deeply researched and provocative narrative, Verplaetse moves from antiquity to the present, from magic to experimental psychology, from philosophy to religion and scientific discoveries, to demonstrate why blood at once attracts and repels us.
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Table of Contents
Introduction
Part One: Blood Magic
Blood Mist
Sacrificial Blood
Evil Blood
Red Urine
Part Two: Blood Thirst
Haemothymia
Wild Origins
Chemosignals
Part Three: Blood Aesthetics
Blood Horror
Sublime Blood
Bloodless
References
Bibliography
Acknowledgements
Index
Part One: Blood Magic
Blood Mist
Sacrificial Blood
Evil Blood
Red Urine
Part Two: Blood Thirst
Haemothymia
Wild Origins
Chemosignals
Part Three: Blood Aesthetics
Blood Horror
Sublime Blood
Bloodless
References
Bibliography
Acknowledgements
Index
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