medieval-religion: Scholarly discussions of medieval religion and culture********************************************************************** To join the list, send the message: subscribe medieval-religion YOUR NAME to: [log in to unmask] To send a message to the list, address it to: [log in to unmask] To leave the list, send the message: unsubscribe medieval-religion to: [log in to unmask] In order to report problems or to contact the list's owners, write to: [log in to unmask] For further information, visit our web site: http://www.jiscmail.ac.uk/medieval-religionI apologize for cross-posting and the length — both of these lists seemed the best place to ask an Abelard question, and contextualizing my questions will, I hope, make it clearer exactly what it is I’m trying to find.I’ve been looking through a great deal of scholarship on Abelard, as he is the subject of the penultimate chapter in my book on concepts of the self in the Middle Ages.One part of the threefold approach I’m taking is the use of cognitive psychology and neuroscience, particularly its relevance to emotional responses, the construction and reconstruction of self-narrative, the experience of consciousness, and the concept of the mind-body loop. It is mind-body loop that has made me think very carefully about Abelard’s castration and the effects it would have had on his cognition.After a great deal of reading and skimming, I have two questions:The first is, has anyone actually examined Abelard’s castration and subsequent decision to become a monk (and to force Heloise to take Holy Orders) in terms of the physiological effect castration would have had on him, specifically, the reduction in the amount of testosterone being produced and the effect that has on the sex drive?I ask, because it seems this is one possible reason why Abelard is unable to respond to Heloise’s initial letters as she might wish — castration would have drastically reduced or even eliminated his sex drive.If there is such a study (or multiple studies), my assumption is that it would conclude that Abelard never truly “loved” Heloise, but was drawn to her primarily by a sexual desire fueled by testosterone. When that sexual desire disappears, he is left with only the intellectual attraction mentioned in the Historia calamitatum, and revealed in the influence Heloise’s ideas have on his own thinking.All I have found thus far are some non-scholarly books mentioning the role of testosterone in the story of Abelard and Heloise, but they are basically “self help” books about love.I have found nothing at all that references studies indicating a connection between castration and the successful binding of oxytocin, the so-called “love” or “bonding” hormone that facilitates in the creation of intimacy between sexual partners, as well as feelings of trust, empathy, and other socially-directed emotions.These studies demonstrate the crucial role played by testosterone in the process of oxytocin receptor binding. This testosterone-oxytocin connection allows for the hypothesis that there was more to Abelard’s feelings for Heloise than just sexual desire, which can lead to a more robust explanation for what we might call “the disparity of feeling” between him and Heloise: castration hasn’t just affected his sex drive, but also his ability to “feel” the bond Heloise so obviously still feels.My second question is whether there is a study examining what understanding people in the Middle Ages had regarding the physiological and psychological effects of castration.I am not looking for something that approaches castration from a culture studies or gender studies perspective — I’ve looked through some of these, and they don’t provide the information I’m looking for. I’m also not looking for anything Freudian or psychoanalytical. I need something explaining the medical understanding of castration in the Middle Ages, as well as the “folk psychological” understanding — what insight into the psychological effects of castration did people in the Middle Ages gain from observation of castrated males and their behavior and the inevitable comparisons to non-castrated males?If none of the work out there on the history of castration or on castration in the Middle Ages approaches the topic from this perspective, then what key primary texts would you all recommend that would allow me to construct such an account? My first thought is to look in Galen and Alain, but where else?I am, of course, aware of Chaucer’s description of the Pardoner, but his high voice and lack of facial hair would indicate that he is a eunuch, castrated before the onset of puberty, which is certainly not the case with Abelard. The fact that there were eunuch singers in the Middle Ages (though I believe the category of castrati dates from the Early Modern period) seems to me an indication that people in the Middle Ages were aware of the difference in effect between pre-pubescent and post-pubescent castration, but perhaps I’m wrong about this.I have put in an ILL request for Larissa Tracy’s Castration and Culture in the Middle Ages, and ordered a used copy of Becoming Male in the Middle Ages, which has yet to arrive. But skimming through those parts of each book I was able to preview on Amazon indicates these are both coming from more-or-less a cultural studies perspective, and I’m not sure how much help they will be.Of course, if no one has approached the topic from this perspective, then yay me.Sorry for the longwinded explanation. If anyone can help out here, it would be greatly appreciated.Many thanks,Ron--Ronald GanzeAssistant Professor of EnglishHonors Program LiaisonUniversity of South Dakota414 E. Clark StreetVermillion, SD 57069