1st Edition

An Analysis of Ernst H. Kantorwicz's The King's Two Bodies A Study in Medieval Political Theology

By Simon Thomson Copyright 2017
    112 Pages
    by Macat Library

    112 Pages
    by Macat Library

    Few historians trace grand themes across many centuries and places, but Ernst Kantorowicz's great work on the symbolic powers of kingship is a fine example of what can happen when they do. The King's Two Bodies is at once a superb example of the critical thinking skill of evaluation – assessing huge quantities of evidence, both written and visual, and drawing sound comparative conclusions from it – and of creative thinking; the work connects art history, literature, legal records and historical documents together in innovative and revealing ways across more than 800 years of history. Kantorowicz's key conclusions (that history is at root about ideas, that these ideas power institutions, and that both are commonly expressed and understood through symbols) have had a profound impact on several different disciplines, and even underpin many works of popular fiction – not least The DaVinci Code. And they were all made possible by fresh evaluation of evidence that other historians had ignored, or could not see the significance of.

    Ways In to the Text 

    Who was Ernst H. Kantorowicz?  

    What does King's Two Bodies Say? 

    Why does King's Two Bodies Matter?  

    Section 1: Influences  

    Module 1: The Author and the Historical Context  

    Module 2: Academic Context  

    Module 3: The Problem 

    Module 4: The Author's Contribution 

    Section 2: Ideas 

    Module 5: Main Ideas  

    Module 6: Secondary Ideas  

    Module 7: Achievement  

    Module 8: Place in the Author's Work  

    Section 3: Impact  

    Module 9: The First Responses  

    Module 10: The Evolving Debate  

    Module 11: Impact and Influence Today  

    Module 12: Where Next? 

    Glossary of Terms  

    People Mentioned in the Text  

    Works Cited

    Biography

    Dr Simon Thomson teaches at the Ruhr-Universität Bochum. He received his doctorate in Medieval Literature from University College London and is the Editor, with M.D.J. Brintley, of Sensory Perception in the Medieval World: Manuscripts, Texts and Other Material Matters.