"In this well-crafted and scholarly work, Reineke argues that an analysis of the contemporary culture of violence through the lens of gender reveals a sacrificial economy." —Religious Studies Review

" . . . handled with the kind of concise, cogent, and insightful criticism that readers of Reineke have come to expect . . . " —Women's Studies International Forum

"By elaborating key notions of Kristeva in the context of her questions about violence, Reineke develops aspects of Kristeva's work that will interest not only students of Kristeva, but those who are interested in all forms of social violence, feminist theory, and women's issues as well." —Tamsin Lorraine

Why did medieval women mystics starve themselves? Why were "witches" hunted, tortured, and killed? Why has the Christian West found maternal figures threatening? To answer these questions, Reineke advances a theory of sacrifice, inspired by Julia Kristeva and René Girard, that attempts to account for women's special vulnerability to violence in Western culture.