This groundbreaking work examines the role of the feminine in the Western healing traditions. Drawing upon anthropology, history, botany, archaeology and the behaviorial sciences, Dr. Achterberg discusses the ancient cultures in which women worked as honored healers; the persecuted healers of the witch trial era; midwifery and nursing in the 19th century; and the developing healing arts of our time. 10 halftones.
This groundbreaking work examines the role of women in the Western healing traditions. Drawing on the disciplines of history, anthropology, botany, archaeology, and the behavioral sciences, Jeanne Achterberg discusses the ancient cultures in which women worked as independent and honored healers; the persecution of women healers in the witch hunts of the Middle Ages; the development of midwifery and nursing as women's professions in the nineteenth century; and the current role of women and the state of the healing arts, as a time of crisis in the health-care professions coincides with the reemergence of feminine values.