This work investigates the striking movement towards a discourse of bodily language used to discuss the relationship between the human person and god which takes place in the 12th century and after. It considers how this discourse reflects broader changes in the concept of the human and of God. Focusing on the mystical writings of Bernard of Clairvaux and Hadewijch of Brabant, the author shows how each exploits the language of taste and touch to articulate the possibility of the mystical experience itself, the immediacy of union with God. This is a comprehensive work on the relations between...

An investigation into the striking movements towards a discourse of 'bodily' language used to discuss the relationship between the human person and God which took place in the 12th century and after. The book focuses on the mystical writings of Bernard of Clairvaux and Hadewijck of Brabant.