Book contents
- Frontmatter
- Contents
- List of Illustrations
- Preface
- Introduction
- Music as Metaphor in Etty Hillesum’s Spirituality
- A “staretz” in Camp Westerbork: The Connections Between Slavic Orthodoxy and the Spirituality of Etty Hillesum
- Etty Hillesum: Humanity as a Task
- Etty Hillesum & Albert Konrad Gemmeker: A Twofold Analysis of the Perpetration of the Westerbork Commander
- “Now is the Time to Put into Practice: Love Your Enemies”: Several Notes on Hillesum’s “Love for Enemies” in Levenskunst
- The Cares of the Pagans: The Reading of Matthew 6:25-34 by Søren Kierkegaard and Etty Hillesum
- Dialogizing Life amidst a Culture of Death: Etty Hillesum, Dostoevsky’s Grand Inquisitor and Nazi Reductionism
- Patience and Hope in the Writings of Julian of Norwich and Etty Hillesum
- The Girl Who Could Not Kneel: Etty Hillesum and the Turn Inward
- Etty Hillesum and Charlotte Salomon: Pregnancy as a Theme in Their Lives and Works
- Wandering Beyond Words: Etty Hillesum and Clarice Lispector
- “Verbalize, Vocalize, Visualize”: Creative Death and Performative Writing in the Testimonies of Hillesum and Levi
- A “No” that Is an Affirmation: Etty Hillesum and Simone Weil Against the Laws of Force
- From Enclosure to Disclosure: Images of the Self in Etty Hillesum’s Diary
- A Story of Individuation in the Writings of Etty Hillesum: A Jungian Perspective
- Mad Midrash in the Diaries of Etty Hillesum
- The Mystery of Encounter: Poetry and Faith After Auschwitz in the Work of Paul Celan and Etty Hillesum
- Can Religion Help Heal a World Broken by Trauma?: Etty Hillesum as Our Ancestor in the Qahal Goyim
- The Contours of These Times:Etty Hillesum as Chronicler of Love Transcending Hate in Her Times, for Our Time, for All Time
- Etty Hillesum’s Hand Analysis: The Prologue to Her Diaries
- Suffering, Silence, and Wisdom in the Life of Etty Hillesum
- Feeding the Soul: Etty Hillesum’s Pedagogical and Spiritual Path
- Am I Really a Woman?: A Question About Female Identity in Etty Hillesum
- A Powerless God: Etty Hillesum and Dietrich Bonhoeffer
- New Light on Etty Hillesum’s Actions in Camp Westerbork
- “My Beloved Desk, the Best Place on this Earth”: Etty Hillesum Says Goodbye to Her Familiar Surroundings
- Etty Hillesum’s Humanism: Ethical, Philosophical and Theological Comments
- Etty Hillesum’s Struggle to See Clearly: A Story of Two Worlds
- Present Traces of a Past Existence: Through the Lens of Photography
- Etty Hillesum Bibliography
- Works on Etty Hillesum
- Index of Names and Subjects
- Index of Citations
Etty Hillesum’s Hand Analysis: The Prologue to Her Diaries
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 21 November 2020
- Frontmatter
- Contents
- List of Illustrations
- Preface
- Introduction
- Music as Metaphor in Etty Hillesum’s Spirituality
- A “staretz” in Camp Westerbork: The Connections Between Slavic Orthodoxy and the Spirituality of Etty Hillesum
- Etty Hillesum: Humanity as a Task
- Etty Hillesum & Albert Konrad Gemmeker: A Twofold Analysis of the Perpetration of the Westerbork Commander
- “Now is the Time to Put into Practice: Love Your Enemies”: Several Notes on Hillesum’s “Love for Enemies” in Levenskunst
- The Cares of the Pagans: The Reading of Matthew 6:25-34 by Søren Kierkegaard and Etty Hillesum
- Dialogizing Life amidst a Culture of Death: Etty Hillesum, Dostoevsky’s Grand Inquisitor and Nazi Reductionism
- Patience and Hope in the Writings of Julian of Norwich and Etty Hillesum
- The Girl Who Could Not Kneel: Etty Hillesum and the Turn Inward
- Etty Hillesum and Charlotte Salomon: Pregnancy as a Theme in Their Lives and Works
- Wandering Beyond Words: Etty Hillesum and Clarice Lispector
- “Verbalize, Vocalize, Visualize”: Creative Death and Performative Writing in the Testimonies of Hillesum and Levi
- A “No” that Is an Affirmation: Etty Hillesum and Simone Weil Against the Laws of Force
- From Enclosure to Disclosure: Images of the Self in Etty Hillesum’s Diary
- A Story of Individuation in the Writings of Etty Hillesum: A Jungian Perspective
- Mad Midrash in the Diaries of Etty Hillesum
- The Mystery of Encounter: Poetry and Faith After Auschwitz in the Work of Paul Celan and Etty Hillesum
- Can Religion Help Heal a World Broken by Trauma?: Etty Hillesum as Our Ancestor in the Qahal Goyim
- The Contours of These Times:Etty Hillesum as Chronicler of Love Transcending Hate in Her Times, for Our Time, for All Time
- Etty Hillesum’s Hand Analysis: The Prologue to Her Diaries
- Suffering, Silence, and Wisdom in the Life of Etty Hillesum
- Feeding the Soul: Etty Hillesum’s Pedagogical and Spiritual Path
- Am I Really a Woman?: A Question About Female Identity in Etty Hillesum
- A Powerless God: Etty Hillesum and Dietrich Bonhoeffer
- New Light on Etty Hillesum’s Actions in Camp Westerbork
- “My Beloved Desk, the Best Place on this Earth”: Etty Hillesum Says Goodbye to Her Familiar Surroundings
- Etty Hillesum’s Humanism: Ethical, Philosophical and Theological Comments
- Etty Hillesum’s Struggle to See Clearly: A Story of Two Worlds
- Present Traces of a Past Existence: Through the Lens of Photography
- Etty Hillesum Bibliography
- Works on Etty Hillesum
- Index of Names and Subjects
- Index of Citations
Summary
Abstract
Ever since the publication of An Interrupted Life, it has been obvious that Etty Hillesum's first encounter with Julius Spier was a major stepping stone in her personal development. In this paper, it is argued that the notes made during their first meeting, i.e. the report of Spier's hand analysis dated 3 February 1941, are powerful evidence to back up this assumption. Several elements that Spier noticed about Hillesum through “reading” her hands, became themes in Hillesum's diaries. Consequently, the report can be viewed as the prologue to these diaries. However, to understand this particular text, first the content is examined and an amended, more easily readable version is presented.
Keywords: Julius Spier, hand analysis, protocol of Etty Hillesum's hand analysis, personal development, balance between feelings and thinking, Dicky de Jonge, Adri Holm
On 3 February 1942, Etty Hillesum, Julius Spier, and Adri Holm celebrated Hillesum's “spiritual birthday.” Precisely one year prior, Hillesum had had her hands analyzed by Spier and a few of his students, including Dicky de Jonge. The report on Hillesum's hand analysis made by Holm in that session in 1941, was among the papers that De Jonge carefully safeguarded from her time as a student of Spier.
In this article, I will argue that Holm's report should be considered the prologue to Hillesum's diaries. To understand the importance of Spier's analysis, I will first examine the content of Holm's report on Hillesum's hands and then go on to present an amended, more easily readable version of this initial report.
Hillesum's protocol consists of a series of eighty-five statements
When a person attended Spier's course as the subject of study with the aim of having his/her hands analyzed by Spier and his students, one of the students present made a handprint of the “subject” for each student present at the meeting. Usually, the student making these handprints was the one who had invited the person to serve as a subject of study. Additionally, one of the students took notes during the session. At the time Hillesum attended, this was often Adri Holm, but Dicky de Jonge was also willing to do this task.
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- Lasting Significance of Etty Hillesum's Writings , pp. 281 - 292Publisher: Amsterdam University PressPrint publication year: 2019