La fiesta de la tarántula: Júbilo y congoja en el alto Aragón

Abstract

Tarantism (a mythically-based, ritualized reaction to the bite of the dreaded tarantula in the belief that the victim could only be cured by music and dance) had existed in Italy since time immemorial; yet it manifested itself also in Spain, where it has been far less studied, at least from the perspective of cultural history. Tarantism was certainly known in Aragon until well into the 20th century, as reported by informants in Fraga (Huesca) who recall "The Tarantula Festival," by which all forms of individual suffering were communally exorcised through the power of sympathy and neighbourly solidarity.