The Confessing Subject and the Construction of Modern Catholic Selves

Authors

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.3989/chdj.2017.013

Keywords:

Confession, Michel Foucault, Confessionalization, Modernity, Subjecthood, Truth-telling

Abstract


Historians and sociologists have argued that the practices of confession played a major role in the transition to modern, introspective individuality. Until the 1970s, tough, the literature had dealt mostly with Protestantism and Protestant modes of confession, first and foremost the practice of writing spiritual diaries and then reading and rereading them. The article looks at Catholic confessional practices and how they, too, have shaped modern notion of subjecthood. Centering on Foucault’s contribution, the article argue that Catholic confession, just like its Protestant avatar, paved a route to modernity.

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Published

2017-12-30

How to Cite

Sluhovsky, M. (2017). The Confessing Subject and the Construction of Modern Catholic Selves. Culture &Amp; History Digital Journal, 6(2), e013. https://doi.org/10.3989/chdj.2017.013

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