Dancing mania
Dancing mania (also known as dancing plague, choreomania, St. John's Dance, tarantism and St. Vitus' Dance) was a social phenomenon that occurred primarily in mainland Europe between the 14th and 17th centuries. It involved groups of people dancing erratically, sometimes thousands at a time. The mania affected adults and children who danced until they collapsed from exhaustion and injuries, and sometimes died. One of the first major outbreaks was in Aachen, in the Holy Roman Empire (within modern-day Germany), in 1374, and it quickly spread throughout Europe; one particularly notable outbreak occurred in Strasbourg in 1518 in Alsace, also in the Holy Roman Empire (now in modern-day France).
Affecting thousands of people across several centuries, dancing mania was not an isolated event, and was well documented in contemporary reports. It was nevertheless poorly understood, and remedies were based on guesswork. Often musicians accompanied dancers, due to a belief that music would treat the mania, but this tactic sometimes backfired by encouraging more to join in. There is no consensus among modern-day scholars as to the cause of dancing mania.[1]
The several theories proposed range from religious cults being behind the processions to people dancing to relieve themselves of stress and put the poverty of the period out of their minds. It is speculated to have been a mass psychogenic illness, in which physical symptoms with no known physical cause are observed to affect a group of people, as a form of social influence.[1]
Definition
"Dancing mania" is derived from the term "choreomania", from the Greek choros (dance) and mania (madness),
St. Vitus' Dance was diagnosed, in the 17th century, as
Other scientists have described dancing mania as a "collective mental disorder", "collective hysterical disorder" and "mass madness".[2]: 136
Outbreaks
The earliest-known outbreak of dancing mania occurred in the 7th century.[9] One of the earliest-known incidents occurred sometime in the 1020s in Bernburg, where 18 peasants began singing and dancing around a church, disturbing a Christmas Eve service.[7]: 202
Further outbreaks occurred during the 13th century, including one in 1237 in which a large group of children travelled from
On 24 June 1374, one of the biggest outbreaks began in
Another of the most extensive outbreaks occurred in July 1518, in Strasbourg (see
Several women who annually visit the chapel of St. Vitus in Drefelhausen... dance madly all day and all night until they collapse in ecstasy. In this way they come to themselves again and feel little or nothing until the next May, when they are again... forced around St. Vitus' Day to betake themselves to that place... [o]ne of these women is said to have danced every year for the past twenty years, another for a full thirty-two.[6]: 39
According to John Waller, although numerous incidents were recorded, the best documented cases are the outbreaks of 1374 and 1518, for which there is abundant contemporary evidence.[5]
Characteristics
The outbreaks of dancing mania varied, and several characteristics of it have been recorded. Generally occurring in times of hardship,[2]: 136 up to tens of thousands of people would appear to dance for hours,[2]: 133 [10] days, weeks, and even months.[2]: 132 [5]
Women have often been portrayed in modern literature as the usual participants in dancing mania, although contemporary sources suggest otherwise.[2]: 139 Whether the dancing was spontaneous, or an organized event, is also debated.[2]: 138 What is certain, however, is that dancers seemed to be in a state of unconsciousness[7]: 201 and unable to control themselves.[2]: 136
In his research into social phenomena, author
Robert Marks, in his study of hypnotism, notes that some decorated their hair with garlands.[7]: 201 However, not all outbreaks involved foreigners, and not all were particularly calm. Bartholomew notes that some "paraded around naked"[2]: 132 and made "obscene gestures".[2]: 133 Some even had sexual intercourse.[2]: 136 Others acted like animals,[2]: 133 and jumped,[6]: 32 hopped and leaped about.[6]: 33
They hardly stopped,[10] and some danced until they broke their ribs and subsequently died.[6]: 32 Throughout, dancers screamed, laughed, or cried,[2]: 132 and some sang.[11]: 60 Bartholomew also notes that observers of dancing mania were sometimes treated violently if they refused to join in.[2]: 139 Participants demonstrated odd reactions to the color red; in A History of Madness in Sixteenth-Century Germany, Midelfort notes they "could not perceive the color red at all",[6]: 32 and Bartholomew reports "it was said that dancers could not stand... the color red, often becoming violent on seeing [it]".
Bartholomew also notes that dancers "could not stand pointed shoes", and that dancers enjoyed their feet being hit.[2]: 133 Throughout, those affected by dancing mania suffered from a variety of ailments, including chest pains, convulsions, hallucinations, hyperventilation,[2]: 136 epileptic fits,[4]: 126 and visions.[12]: 71 In the end, most simply dropped down, overwhelmed with exhaustion.[4]: 126 Midelfort, however, describes how some ended up in a state of ecstasy.[6]: 39 Typically, the mania was contagious but it often struck small groups, such as families and individuals.[6]: 37–38
Tarantism
In Italy, a similar phenomenon was tarantism, in which the victims were said to have been poisoned by a tarantula or scorpion. Its earliest-known outbreak was in the 13th century, and the only antidote known was to dance to particular music to separate the venom from the blood.[2]: 133 It occurred only in the summer months. As with dancing mania, people would suddenly begin to dance, sometimes affected by a perceived bite or sting and were joined by others, who believed the venom from their own old bites was reactivated by the heat or the music.[2]: 134 Dancers would perform a tarantella, accompanied by music which would eventually "cure" the victim, at least temporarily.[2]: 135
Some participated in further activities, such as tying themselves up with vines and whipping each other, pretending to sword fight, drinking large amounts of wine, and jumping into the sea. Sufferers typically had symptoms resembling those of dancing mania, such as headaches, trembling, twitching and visions.[2]: 134
As with dancing mania, participants apparently did not like the color black,[2]: 133 and women were reported to be most affected.[2]: 136 Unlike dancing mania, tarantism was confined to Italy and southern Europe. It was common until the 17th century, but ended suddenly, with only very small outbreaks in Italy until as late as 1959.[2]: 134
A study of the phenomenon in 1959 by religious history professor Ernesto de Martino revealed that most cases of tarantism were probably unrelated to spider bites. Many participants admitted that they had not been bitten, but believed they were infected by someone who had been, or that they had simply touched a spider. The result was mass panic, with a "cure" that allowed people to behave in ways that were, normally, prohibited at the time.[2]: 135 Despite their differences, tarantism and dancing mania are often considered synonymous.[2]: 134
Reactions
As the real cause of dancing mania was unknown, many of the treatments for it were simply hopeful guesses, although in some instances they were effective. The 1374 outbreak occurred only decades after the
Prayers were also made to
Theories
Numerous hypotheses have been proposed for the causes of dancing mania, and it remains unclear whether it was a real illness or a social phenomenon. One of the most prominent theories is that victims suffered from ergot poisoning, which was known as St. Anthony's fire in the Middle Ages. During floods and damp periods, ergots were able to grow and affect rye and other crops. Some historians link ergot poisoning to phenomena like the dancing plagues during the late medieval and Renaissance periods, and even the Salem Witch hysteria, as suggested by Oliver Sacks.[13] Ergotism can cause hallucinations and convulsions, but cannot account for the other strange behaviour most commonly identified with dancing mania.[2]: 140 [4]: 126 [6]: 43 [10]
Other theories suggest that the symptoms were similar to encephalitis, epilepsy, and typhus, but as with ergotism, those conditions cannot account for all symptoms.[4]: 126
Numerous sources discuss how dancing mania, and tarantism, may have simply been the result of stress and tension caused by natural disasters around the time,[6]: 43 such as plagues and floods.[12]: 72 The recurring waves of the Black Death, other natural disasters, would have combined with the dawn of Reformation to make for a great deal of uncertainty and challenge for the people of Europe during this time period.[14]
Hetherington and Munro describe dancing mania as a result of "shared stress";[12]: 73 people may have danced to relieve themselves of the stress and poverty of the day,[12]: 72 and in so doing, attempted to become ecstatic and see visions.[15]
According to Deborah Hyde, the spontaneous spread of this phenomenon through social networks played a significant role: "It’s hard to deny that the dancing mania was marked by social contagion exacerbated by stress. Outbreaks occurred along trade routes or reoccurred in the same areas – where people had knowledge of the format, in other words. Beliefs and behaviour can travel just like pathogens."[14]
Another popular theory is that the outbreaks were all staged,[12]: 71 and the appearance of strange behaviour was due to its unfamiliarity.[2]: 137 Religious cults may have been acting out well-organised dances, in accordance with ancient Greek and Roman rituals.[2]: 136 [2]: 137 Despite being banned at the time, these rituals could be performed under the guise of uncontrollable dancing mania.[2]: 140 Justus Hecker, a 19th-century medical writer, described it as a kind of festival, where a practice known as "the kindling of the Nodfyr" was carried out. This involved jumping through fire and smoke, in an attempt to ward off disease. Bartholomew notes how participants in this ritual would often continue to jump and leap long after the flames had gone.[2]: 139
It is certain that many participants of dancing mania were psychologically disturbed,
See also
- Dance marathon
- Ee ja nai ka, a cultural practice in 19th-century Japan with some similarities
- Flash mobs sometimes come together to dance
- Maenads, a somewhat similar religious practice in ancient Greece
- Social contagion
References
- ^ ISBN 0-89859-160-0.
- ^ ISBN 978-0-7864-0997-6.
- Perseus Project.
- ^ ISBN 978-1-4419-1222-0.
- ^ S2CID 35094677. Archived from the originalon 8 November 2014. Retrieved 4 September 2010.
- ^ ISBN 978-0-8047-4169-9.
- ^ ISBN 978-1-4191-5424-9.
- ^ "NINDS Sydenham Chorea Information Page". NINDS. US: NIH. Retrieved 4 September 2010.
- ^ PMID 326865.
- ^ a b c d e f Waller, John (July 2009). "Dancing plagues and mass hysteria". The Psychologist. 22 (7). UK: British Psychological Society: 644–647. Archived from the original on 8 July 2015.
- ^ ISBN 978-0-7661-8166-3.
- ^ ISBN 978-0-631-20768-9.
- ISSN 0065-7743.
- ^ a b Hyde, Deborah. "Hilary Evans Paranormal Picture Library: We Can Dance If We Want To". The Skeptic. Archived from the original on 30 January 2024. Retrieved 30 January 2024.
- ISBN 978-0-88048-930-0.
Further reading
- Dancing Mania, by Leah Esterianna & Richard the Poor of Ely
- Bartholomew RE (May 1994). "Tarantism, dancing mania and demonopathy: the anthro-political aspects of 'mass psychogenic illness'". Psychol Med. 24 (2): 281–306. S2CID 13090774.
- Donaldson LJ, Cavanagh J, Rankin J (July 1997). "The dancing plague: a public health conundrum". Public Health. 111 (4): 201–204. PMID 9242030.
- Giménez-Roldán S, Aubert G (June 2007). "Hysterical chorea: Report of an outbreak and movie documentation by Arthur Van Gehuchten (1861–1914)". Mov. Disord. 22 (8): 1071–1076. S2CID 23556702.
- Hecker, Justus (1859). The dancing mania of the Middle Ages.
- OCLC 00338041.
- Krack P (December 1999). "Relicts of dancing mania: the dancing procession of Echternach". Neurology. 53 (9): 2169–2172. S2CID 36892826.
- Okun MS, Thommi N (July 2004). "Americo Negrette (1924 to 2003): diagnosing Huntington disease in Venezuela". Neurology. 63 (2): 340–343. S2CID 24618596.
- Waller, John (2008). A Time to Dance, A Time to Die. Icon Books. ISBN 978-1-84831-021-6.
- Waller, John (12 September 2008). "Dancing death". BBC.
- Waller, John (18 September 2008). "Falling down". The Guardian.
- Davidson, Andrew (1867). "Choreomania: An Historical Sketch" (PDF). Oliver and Boyd. Archived from the original (PDF) on 1 April 2019. Retrieved 25 January 2014.
External links
Media related to Dancing mania at Wikimedia Commons
- The Dancing Mania public domain audiobook at LibriVox