ALTERED STATES OF LITERATURE: SHAMANIC ASSIMILATION AND ROMANTIC INSPIRATION
Aletria: Revista de Estudos de Literatura May 25, 2016 Marcel de Lima Santos
Romantic writers in nineteenth-century England sought altered states of consciousness through substance ingestion, a practice that parallels shamanic techniques for accessing the sacred. Despite significant cultural differences, the article argues that both shamanism and Romanticism share a quest for the sacred via altered states, with Romantic poets assimilating shamanic-like practices into their creative and spiritual pursuits.