FRANZ ANTON MESMER: THE WIZARD OF VIENNA Chloe Kauffman
A YOUNG MESMER • Born May 23, 1734 in Iznag, • During his childhood he was a Swabian town in the able to mingle with high frontier region where lake born aristocrats Johannes Constance divides Franziskus Schwenk von Switzerland and Germany. Stauffenberg and Damian Hugo von Schönborn who • His parents were Anton taught Mesmer how to Mesmer and Maria Ursula conduct himself among Michel who were devote royals. Catholics. • In 1743 a 9 year old Mesmer • Not much is known about entered a monk ran school his home life but we do to prepare him for University know they lived above and then Priesthood thanks poverty and had a to von Schönborn who respectable status. agreed with Mesmer’s mother that such a smart child should be a priest.
EDUCATION • In 1750 Mesmer went from • It was during this time Mesmer Monastic school to the University realized that he had no aptitude of Dillingen in Bavaria where he or interest to continue with the studied philosophy for 4 years. church so he turned to law school at the University of Vienna • He then went to the University of in 1759. Ingolstadt in Bavaria to study theology. • He began medical studies in Vienna which continued for 6 • When reading Descartes, years. Mesmer came across a point that really grabbed his attention: • Mesmer got the best medical medicine could be turned into education in all of Europe. He an exact science by extending completed his course, passed his cosmological laws to the examinations, and wrote his physiology of the human body. dissertation called, A Physio- Medical Inquiry Concerning the Influence of the Planets . In later years he referred to it as the, Influence of the Planets on the Human Body.
DR. MESMER’S VIENNA • As a physician and • The Eulenschenks, Bosches, psychologist he believed in and Mesmers were a very one idea- idéé fixe of the powerful clan with influence cure of psychosomatic through the capital of the illness by animal magnetism. Holy Roman Empire. • Mesmer began observing • 1767- 1773 wasn’t a patients in the clinic taking significant period in notes on every ailment Mesmer’s life. He simply ran possible. his private practice from his home where he had an • January 10, 1768 he married office, dispensary, and Maria Anna von Bosch who laboratory. was 10 years older than him. • Mesmer had the reputation as a fashionable Viennese physician with taste for science and music.
FIRST STEPS INTO ABNORMAL PSYCHOLOGY • Francisa Oesterline was a • July 28, 1774, is the first record woman in her 20’s that was a of using Mesmer using cousin to Frau Mesmer. Franzl, magnets for treatment. as they called her, could not • This marked an important care for herself because of time for Mesmer: possible her hysterical fever. cure for hysteria and the • Mesmer followed all the beginning of the quarrels, traditional treatments for controversies, and feuds that hysteria such as: bleeding, he would deal with for the purging, and blistering but rest of his life. nothing seemed to work. • The first marked quarrel being • Maximillian Hell, a professor of when Mesmer reported to astronomy at the University of Hell his successes. Hell turned Vienna, to manufacture a around and wrote an article number of magnets in claiming he was the one to specific shapes. show Mesmer how to treat Franzl.
FIRST STEPS INTO ABNORMAL PSYCHOLOGY • Mesmer found many things, • In 1779 the Memoir on the even nonmagnetic objects, Discovery of Animal Magnetism finished her story to her cure. functioned as conductors and gave the same results. Mesmer • Mesmer performed his technique concluded that he was in fact for the first time for a Dutch an animal magnet. physician who was an expert in medical biology(he discovered • Mesmer took to Storeck, head photosynthesis) and was known of the Faculty of Medicine and for experimenting with magnets. personal physician to the empress of Vienna, to review • Mesmer made an untrue his work and make a decision conclusion that he was on animal magnetism. convinced and a supporter when in fact Ingenhousz warned • Refusing defeat, Mesmer wrote, him NOT to publicize his work due Letter to a Foreign Physician on to fear of ridicule. January 5, 1775 to Dr. Johann Unzer. When she rejected his findings, Mesmer had his utter copied and distributed to German Universities and beyond.
FIRST STEPS INTO ABNORMAL PSYCHOLOGY • What Mesmer really did discover at • When treatments did fail Mesmer this point was the power of claimed it was because not all suggestion and how to put a people are subject to animal patient into hypnotic trance. magnetism and some even possessed a countervailing force • Mesmer tried to make work that repelled it prominent in the medical community with no success so he • Mesmer couldn’t give all of his went to the public. patients individual attention so he started experimenting with group • Mesmer became so popular that therapy. he was requested to treat notable patients and even went on tour • Mesmer’s pride was still hurt by from 1775-76 through his Swabian Hell’s disapproval of his magnetism homeland, Bavaria, Switzerland, so he dropped the magnets all and Hungary. together. • Mesmer is called a wizard for the first time in print while treating the Baron Hareczky de Hoka of Hungary who suffered from throat spams.
THE BLIND PIANIST • Maria Theresa Paradies was • Mesmer’s diagnosis was, “It born in 1759 and was a was a complete amaurosis normal and healthy child attended by spasms of the until the age of 3 when she eye. As a consequence, she suddenly woke up blind. suffered from deep depression and obstruction • Mesmer 1 st heard of Maria of the spleen and liver, as a young medical student which caused her to go into so he knew her condition transports of delirium bad and what other enough to make her fear professionals had tried. she was losing her mind.” • The Paradies turned to • Mesmer began the Mesmer in 1777 as a last treatment by building a hope even though they rapport with Maria so that had been warned against there was a bond of trust it. between them and in hope her emotions would help in the cure.
THE BLIND PIANIST • By the time Mesmer got to treat • Professor Joesph Bart an Maria her eyes were horribly ophthalmologist, Maria’s distorted, forced out of previous Dr. and now Mesmer’s alignment, and swollen due to all rival, believed that since he the past “treatments” from failed to cure Maria so did doctors. Mesmer because she would mislabel items. • Mesmer’s treatments for Maria included: locating centers of • Maria refused to leave treatment sensitivity on her head, cupping that was working and she feared his hands above her ears, brining her home life. When Maria’s his fingertips in a stroking motion parents came to get her, all hell from the occiput to the broke loose. forehead, and making circular movements with his thumbs around her eyes. • Mesmer convinced her parents that she needed to be seen daily and under close supervision, so Maria moved to Mesmer’s clinic
THE BLIND PIANIST • The scandal of Vienna was born. • Maria died in 1824 at the age of 65, The Paradieses claimed Maria was she never regained her sight. held against their will, some said he • The scandal and failure was performing dangerous surrounding Maria drove Mesmer experiments, or that he was a out of Vienna. Mesmer’s marriage wizard doing strange things, and was strained after 6 years of living above all what he did with his different lives . female patients behind closed doors. • There were now only 2 categories: those who agreed with him were • May 2 , 1777, the rumors got back his friends and those that to the empress and so Storeck disagreed or were uncommitted wrote to Mesmer that he had to were enemies. stop his practice immediately and to return the girl. • Mesmer would go to the intellectual capital of Europe: Paris • Maria’s father regained control of to be the Austrian ambassador. Maria by promising she could return to treatment whenever she needed. Maria never returned and ultimately relapsed.
PROBLEMS IN PARIS • Mesmer arrived in Paris in • The scandals from Vienna February 1778 and est. had labeled him as an himself in rooms in the Place occultist and professionals Vendôme but Vienna had were already on edge. followed him. • Mesmer started on his journey • Undaunted Mesmer of scientific recognition at the launched his Paris tour to French Academy of Sciences seek scientific vindication with president Charles Leroy, rather than medical a chemist and physician. acceptance. • Leroy arranged a meeting at • Mesmer felt he belonged in the academy so Mesmer Paris but there was one could present his evidence problem- this was during the but he never got a chance. age of reason and there was • Ultimately Leroy cut all ties a strong bias against with Mesmer and Mesmerism anything mystic. once he knew he would only accept full backing.
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