Vidas infames: Herejes y criptojudíos ante la Inquisición

by Richard L. Kagan, Abigail Dyer

During its more than 300 years in existence, the Spanish Inquisition tried tens of thousands of people suspected of committing offenses against the Catholic faith and the Spanish crown. This revealing compendium gathers the confessions of six of these individuals, among them a politically incendiary prophet, a self-proclaimed hermaphrodite accused of violating the marriage sacrament for having married a woman, and a female convert to Catholicism who nonetheless served as a rabbi in the New World. These unprecedented and involuntary autobiographies combine with the historical narrative to shed light on both the personal lives of the persecuted as well as the cultural, social, and political realities of Spain’s Golden Age.

 Durante sus más de 300 años de existencia, la Inquisición Española juzgó a millares de personas sospechadas de cometer ofensas contra la fe católica y la monarquía. Este compendio revelador reúne las confesiones de seis de estos individuos, entre ellos un profeta políticamente incendiario, un autoproclamado hermafrodita acusado de violar el sacramento del matrimonio por haberse casado con una mujer y una conversa a la fe católica que aún así sirvió de rabí en el Nuevo Mundo. Estas autobiografías sin precedentes e involuntarias combinan con la narrativa histórica para arrojar luz sobre las vidas personales de los perseguidos así como las realidades culturales, sociales y políticas del Siglo de Oro español.

Genres: History

254 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2004

About the author

Richard Kagan is a professor of early modern European history and romance languages and literatures at The Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, MD. His special interest is in the history of Habsburg Spain and Iberian expansion.

Reviews

[Matthew Picardat · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very interesting book on first hand accounts of the Spanish Inquisition. Fascinating and quick read.

[Lucia March · Rating 3 out of 5]

I think i banged my head against my table multiple times reading these cases. OMG THIS WAS SO BORING. but because I’m a history person it was also super cool to see how the trails played out based on the person and the crimes they had committed. Plus seeing how people tell their life stories on the spot while also leaving things out is very impressive, whether or not they get caught for leaving stuff out.

[Maggie]

Read for my History Through Crime in Europe class

[Beverly · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a fascinating look into the quotidian nature of many of the inquisitional proceedings of 17th century Spain. You won’t find scenes of the accused stretched out on wracks or being prodded with hot irons. Rather, these stories have the drab plodding of a contemporary civil trial in which jurists painstakingly weigh the long and detailed testimony given. I don’t doubt that the horrendous practice of torture was common – you will read of “secret” jails as well as lots of confessions and repentance. But here we can see there was often a mundane and boring element to the trials. It is also remarkable how frequently the judges took the accused at their word. I always imagined the inquisitors ignoring any claim of innocence and torturing everyone until they confessed to some horrible heresy. This book also provides amazing accounts given by the accused. The most outrageous tale being that of a woman accused of living as a man who claimed to be a hermaphrodite. Her testimony is unbelievable and yet, the judges carefully consider each of her assertions. I am also intrigued by how far and wide the accused traveled and moved around in their lives, from Spain to North Africa to Italy, South Western France and back to Spain in a few short years was typical. As I indicated above, some of the testimony can be tedious, but this book is a must read if you are interested in the details of the inquisition and daily life in the 17th century. It definitely brings to mind Platero y Yo.

[Peter Bradley · Rating 5 out of 5]

My Amazon Review -

http://www.amazon.com/review/R23FOS1V...

[Carrie · Rating 3 out of 5]

An interesting look at the Spanish Inquisition, however the cases could have been more connected and better context given. Very cool choices of cases, though.

[Kevin Q · Rating 5 out of 5]

Super interesting primary documents. It is a series of inquisition hearings involving different defendants that are spread out over a pretty significant period of time.

The editorialization is great when its adding context and not so great when its analyzing. I felt like the editor was saying they liked Foucault repeatedly but not engaging in Foucauldian analysis.

[Channah]

Read for class Spring 2018.