CMEMS: Marek Tamm (Tallinn University; Visiting Scholar, Stanford)

Organized and hosted by the Center for Medieval and Early Modern Studies (CMEMS).

Marek Tamm will give a talk titled "New Techniques of Truth Production: The Rise of the Questio Culture in Thirteenth-Century Europe" with a response from Rebecca Adams (English).

This presentation discusses a research project on novel truth-finding techniques in 13th-century Europe. The project aims to explore the emergence of a new “regime of truth” around the concept of quaestio. In this new regime, truth is no longer seen as something revealed through divine grace but is actively sought through interrogation. The project examines the rise of this truth regime in four key areas: inquisition of heretics, confession of sinners, canonization of saints, and exorcism of demoniacs. The talk will focus on new truth production techniques in legal and confessional practices, offering a close reading of select 13th-century manuals of confession and inquisition.

The CMEMS Workshop series meets most Wednesdays during the academic year. See the CMEMS website for the list of upcoming speakers.