The Severed Head

Informed by a provocative exhibition at the Louvre curated by the author, The Severed Head unpacks artistic representations of severed heads from the Paleolithic period to the present.

The Severed Head considers a remarkable range of representations of the severed head in art historical, religious, and mythological contexts.

A sinewy meditation that works its way through historical periods and modes of representation.

A text that deserves to be read closely not only by Kristeva scholars but also by those working in aesthetics, psychoanalysis, and social theory more generally.

Through her wonder and her doubt, Kristeva sets forth a compelling account of the sacred and of the intimate visionary capacity of the human soul.

The Severed Head is a reminder that art can be the best teacher, particularly when the topic is an uncomfortable one.

This beautifully written and richly layered meditation on mortality and representation will undoubtedly appeal to those readers interested in semiotic and psychoanalytically informed readings of art.

Julia Kristeva is professor emerita of linguistics at the Université de Paris VII. A renowned psychoanalyst, philosopher, and linguist, she has written dozens of books spanning semiotics, political theory, literary criticism, gender and sex, and cultural critique, as well as several novels and autobiographical works, published in English translation by Columbia University Press. Kristeva was the inaugural recipient of the Holberg International Memorial Prize in 2004 “for innovative explorations of questions on the intersection of language, culture, and literature.”

Jody Gladding is a poet who has translated more than twenty works from French.