THE ELOQUENT BLOOD: THE GODDESS BABALON AND THE CONSTRUCTION OF FEMININITIES IN WESTERN ESOTERICISM. By Manon HedenborgWhite. Oxford Studies in Western Esotericism. New York: Oxford University Press, 2020. Pp. xii + 374. Hardback $105.00.
Religious Studies Review September 1, 2022 Manon Hedenborg
The study of new religious movements and contemporary esotericism has increasingly recognized gender as an essential category for analysis. The 2019 founding of the Esotericism, Gender, and Sexuality Network (ESOGEN) reflects this growing scholarly focus. Manon Hedenborg White's work, particularly her 2020 book *The Eloquent Blood*, analyzes constructions of femininity and feminine sexuality in modern occultism, with emphasis on Thelema—a movement established by Aleister Crowley in the early twentieth century that was shaped by changing attitudes toward women.