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.

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.

Study at a glance

Abstract

In recent decades, the study of new religious movements and contemporary forms of esotericism evolved to become an important aspect within the study of religion.1 This is all the more true when we add gender to the mix. Indeed, as argued by Ursula King, “without the incisive, critical application of the category of gender it is no longer possible to accurately describe, analyze or explain any religion” (King 2005 [2004], 8). The consideration of gender as an aspect of occult discourse and practice is gaining recognition in recent years as “an essential, if complex” (Johnston 2015: 681; Johnston 2013) part of the study of contemporary occultism, and in 2019, the Esotericism, Gender, and Sexuality Network (ESOGEN) was founded as a thematic network under the umbrella of the European Society for the Study of Western Esotericism (ESSWE) in order “to foster dialogue on issues of gender and sexuality in Western esotericism.”2 ESOGEN’s Co-Director, Manon Hedenborg White, is part of a young cohort of scholars exploring new avenues of research in twentieth century and contemporary Western esotericism. Presently based at Malmö University, Hedenborg White’s recent and current work analyzes constructions of femininity and feminine sexuality in modern occultism, with a specific focus on Thelema and its development in the twentieth and twenty-first centuries. The Eloquent Blood, published in 2020 as part of the Oxford Studies in Western Esotericism series and based on her PhD dissertation, highlights the importance of gender as a critical aspect of occult discourse and practice. The establishment of Thelema during the early decades of the twentieth century by British occultist Aleister Crowley (1875–1947) was shaped to a considerable degree by the changing attitudes toward women and