COMMENT:A history of "rejected knowledge," the alternative Western religious tradition, particularly as it surfaced in the 19th century "flight from Reason." The list of bizarre personalities and beliefs alone make for an entertaining read, but Webb does manages to impose a degree of coherence onto this, in terms of a reaction to a "crisis of consciousness" brought on by the lack of moral comfort provided by rationalist and pragmatist views. The occult is important in understanding artistic and cultural history, as well as politics, particularly nationalisms and romantic socialisms. Curiously, the greatest weakness of the book is its rather ahistorical and sharply dichotomous treatment of a "Reason" that provides the background to understand the occult against.
