PARRA, Alejandro (2024). Entre médicos y médiums: Saberes, tensiones y límites en el espiritismo argentino (1880-1959). Buenos Aires: Biblos. ISBN 978-987-814-262-3. Pp. 267.

Abstract

In this work, Alejandro Parra presents a study of the discussions around magnetic theories that, in the mid-nineteenth century, penetrated the recognized medical practices in Argentina in a culture that accepted and validated the use of electricity and magnetism as a positive science. In fact, the Argentine mesmerists created a society, published books, magazines and carried out a large assistance program emphasizing the therapeutic properties of mesmerism. As positivists, mesmerist magnetologists appreciated the measurement of vital radiation and built artifacts using sensitive objects as “physical” proof of it, showing a promising interest in acquiring and applying instruments to measure human radiation in medicine.