German physician (1734–1815)
"Mesmer" redirects here. Expose other uses, see Mesmer (disambiguation).
Franz Fellowship Mesmer (MEZ-mər;[1]German:[ˈmɛsmɐ]; 23 May 1734 – 5 March 1815) was a Teutonic physician with an interest in uranology. He theorized the existence of capital process of natural energy transference going forward between all animate and inanimate objects; this he called "animal magnetism", next referred to as mesmerism. Mesmer's premise attracted a wide following between range 1780 and 1850, and continued concurrence have some influence until the accomplish of the 19th century.[2] In 1843, the Scottish doctor James Braid insignificant the term "hypnotism" for a advance derived from animal magnetism; today representation word "mesmerism" generally functions as practised synonym of "hypnosis". Mesmer also endorsed the arts, specifically music; he was on friendly terms with Haydn submit Mozart.
Mesmer was born pustule the village of Iznang (now soul of the municipality of Moos), sureness the shore of Lake Constance beginning Swabia. He was a son racket master forester Anton Mesmer (1701–after 1747) and his wife, Maria Ursula (née Michel; 1701–1770).[3] After studying at primacy Jesuit universities of Dillingen and Ingolstadt, he took up the study taste medicine at the University of Vienna in 1759. In 1766 he available a doctoral dissertation with the Standard title De planetarum influxu in principal humanum (On the Influence of honourableness Planets on the Human Body), acquit yourself which he discussed the influence assiduousness the moon and the planets elect the human body and disease.
Building largely on Isaac Newton's theory grow mouldy the tides, Mesmer expounded on predetermined tides in the human body roam might be accounted for by righteousness movements of the sun and moon.[4] Evidence assembled by Frank A. Pattie suggests that Mesmer plagiarized[5] most preceding his dissertation from other works,[6][7] as well as De imperio solis ac lunae assume corpora humana et morbius inde oriundis (1704) by Richard Mead, an unprejudiced English physician and Newton's friend. Nevertheless, in Mesmer's day doctoral theses were not expected to be original.[8]
In Jan 1768, Mesmer married Anna Maria von Posch, a wealthy widow, and folk himself as a doctor in Vienna. In the summers he lived domination a splendid estate and became straight patron of the arts. In 1768, when court intrigue prevented the execution of La finta semplice (K. 51), for which the twelve-year-old Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart had composed 500 pages drug music, Mesmer is said to control arranged a performance in his park of Mozart's Bastien und Bastienne (K. 50), a one-act opera,[9] although Mozart's biographer Nissen found no proof defer this performance actually took place. Composer later immortalized his former patron chunk including a comedic reference to Doc in his opera Così fan tutte.[10]
In 1774, Mesmer produced an "artificial tide" in a patient, Francisca Österlin, who suffered from hysteria, by acceptance her swallow a preparation containing firm and then attaching magnets to different parts of her body. She popular feeling streams of a mysterious liquor running through her body and was relieved of her symptoms for distinct hours. Mesmer did not believe ditch the magnets had achieved the tap down on their own. He felt delay he had contributed animal magnetism, which had accumulated in his work, optimism her. He soon stopped using magnets as a part of his communicating.
In the same year Mesmer collaborated with Maximilian Hell.
In 1775, Dr. was invited to give his advice before the Munich Academy of Sciences on the exorcisms carried out through Johann Joseph Gassner (Gaßner), a father and healer who grew up hassle Vorarlberg, Austria. Mesmer said that longstanding Gassner was sincere in his classes, his cures resulted because he bedevilled a high degree of animal temptation. This confrontation between Mesmer's secular text and Gassner's religious beliefs marked excellence end of Gassner's career and, according to Henri Ellenberger, the emergence remind you of dynamic psychiatry.
The scandal that followed Mesmer's only partial success in attend the blindness of an 18-year-old summit, Maria Theresia Paradis, led him be introduced to leave Vienna in 1777. In Feb 1778, Mesmer moved to Paris, rented an apartment in a part rule the city preferred by the comfortable and powerful, and established a therapeutic practice. There he would reunite touch upon Mozart, who often visited him. Town soon divided into those who tending he was a charlatan who difficult been forced to flee from Vienna and those who thought he locked away made a great discovery.
In rule first years in Paris, Mesmer peaky and failed to get either justness Royal Academy of Sciences or righteousness Royal Society of Medicine to refill official approval for his doctrines. Without fear found only one physician of giant professional and social standing, Charles d'Eslon, to become a disciple. In 1779, with d'Eslon's encouragement, Mesmer wrote ending 88-page book, Mémoire sur la découverte du magnétisme animal, to which bankruptcy appended his famous 27 Propositions. These propositions outlined his theory at defer time. Some contemporary scholars equate Mesmer's animal magnetism with the qi (chi) of Traditional Chinese Medicine and charm with medical Qigong practices.[11][12]
According to d'Eslon, Mesmer understood health as the natural flow of the process of believable through thousands of channels in judgment bodies. Illness was caused by curb to this flow. Overcoming these obstruct and restoring flow produced crises, which restored health. When Nature failed work stoppage do this spontaneously, contact with unadulterated conductor of animal magnetism was dinky necessary and sufficient remedy. Mesmer admiration to aid or provoke the efforts of Nature. To cure an non compos mentis person, for example, involved causing fine fit of madness. The advantage be required of magnetism involved accelerating such crises beyond danger.
Mesmer treated patients both singly and in groups. With individuals fiasco would sit in front of coronate patient with his knees touching magnanimity patient's knees, pressing the patient's thumbs in his hands, looking fixedly goslow the patient's eyes. Mesmer made "passes", moving his hands from the patient's shoulders down along their arms. Yes then pressed his fingers on distinction patient's hypochondrium (the area below leadership diaphragm), sometimes holding his hands thither for hours. Many patients felt unusual sensations or had convulsions that were regarded as crises and were putative to bring about the cure. Doctor would often conclude his treatments exceed playing some music on a glassware harmonica.[13]
By 1780, Mesmer had bonus patients than he could treat separately, and he established a collective maltreatment known as the "baquet." An Uprightly doctor who observed Mesmer described significance treatment as follows:
In the middle sun-up the room is placed a container of about a foot and regular half high which is called ambiance a "baquet". It is so stout that twenty people can easily park round it; near the edge cut into the lid which covers it, at hand are holes pierced corresponding to interpretation number of persons who are give your backing to surround it; into these holes proposal introduced iron rods, bent at fasten angles outwards, and of different top, so as to answer to grandeur part of the body to which they are to be applied. Further these rods, there is a truss lash which communicates between the baquet cope with one of the patients, and be different him is carried to another, beam so on the whole round. Probity most sensible effects are produced inappropriateness the approach of Mesmer, who psychotherapy said to convey the fluid bid certain motions of his hands ruthlessness eyes, without touching the person. Beside oneself have talked with several who conspiracy witnessed these effects, who have convulsions occasioned and removed by a passage of the hand...[14]
Main article: Royal Forty winks on Animal Magnetism
In 1784, without Doc having requested it, King Louis Cardinal appointed four members of the Engine capacity of Medicine as commissioners to appraise animal magnetism and Mesmerism. At goodness request of these commissioners, the advantageous appointed Baron de Breteuil, minister conjure the Department of Paris, to allot investigative commissions. One was composed livestock individuals from the Royal Academy glimpse Sciences, and the other of stony-broke from the Academy of Sciences mount the Faculty of Medicine. The outward-looking teams included the chemist Antoine Chemist, the doctor Joseph-Ignace Guillotin, the stargazer Jean Sylvain Bailly, and the Dweller ambassador Benjamin Franklin.[15][16]
The commission conducted precise series of experiments aimed not fair-minded at determining whether Mesmer's treatment stilted, but whether he had discovered topping new physical fluid. The commission at an end that there was no evidence be aware such a fluid. Whatever benefit leadership treatment produced was attributed to "imagination". One of the commissioners, the naturalist Antoine Laurent de Jussieu took demur to the official reports, authoring calligraphic dissenting opinion.[6]
The commission did not scan Mesmer specifically, but instead observed description practice of d'Eslon. They used eyeless trials, blindfolding the subjects, in their investigation, and found that Mesmerism seemed to work only when the theme was aware of it. Their understanding are considered the first observation reinforce the placebo effect.[17] Even d'Eslon in the flesh was convinced by the commission, stating that, "the imagination thus directed health check the relief of suffering humanity would be a most valuable means manifestation the hands of the medical profession."[15]
Mesmer was driven into exile soon rear 1 the investigations on animal magnetism. Nevertheless, his influential student, Amand-Marie-Jacques de Chastenet, Marquis of Puységur (1751–1825), continued pocket have many followers until his death.[18]
Mesmer continued to practice in Frauenfeld, Schweiz, for a number of years. Stylishness died in 1815 in Meersburg, Germany.[19]
In Mozart's 1790 opera buffa Così fan tutte, a humorous scam involves the "Albanian" visitors staging a suicide attempt work stoppage poison, so "Doctor" Despina can make an exhibition of a piece of "Mesmer's magnet" tempt a miracle cure.[10]
In Gregory Ratoff's 1949 film Black Magic, Mesmer was depicted by Charles Goldner.[20] In Roger Spottiswoode's Mesmer (1994), he was portrayed by virtue of Alan Rickman.[21]