FYI, I’m giving a lecture on representations of child deformities of the early modern period “Looking at Monstrous Children: From Prodigy to Nature’s Artifice.” It’ll be held in Atrium 631 at 1 PM on Thursday, September 12th. Here’s a short abstract:
Popular beliefs surrounding monstrous births undergo a transition in the early modernperiod. Once recognized as prodigies, portents sent by God to warnagainst sin, monstrous births become recognized as reflections of Nature’sbreadth. Publications such as Ambroise Paré’s publication Des monstres et Prodiges (1575) reveal an interest in considering natural causes for deformed births. This lecture examines visual representations of monstrous children to demonstrate how the reasons for deformity were sought in the studyof Nature rather than the divine. It will also show how the rise ofrepresentations of deformities reflects a contemporary desire on the part of artists and scientists alike to better understand the mechanics of Nature. Images of deformed children appear with increasing frequency in medical texts, on popular broadsheets, and in artistic output. Despite their diverse functions, these images present an interpretation of Nature as a supreme artificer, capable of inventing both the beautiful and the monstrous.
Monstrous Child Lecture Poster 2013
