Scientific hypnotism and suggestion

Hippolyte Bernheim

1840 – 1919

Hippolyte Bernheim was a French physician and neurologist who co-founded the Nancy School of hypnotism, advancing the theory that hypnotic phenomena are rooted in normal psychological suggestion rather than any physical fluid or nervous force — directly opposing the Paris school's Charcot. His work directly influenced Sigmund Freud, who visited Bernheim in Nancy in 1889 and translated his writings into German, bridging the gap between occult-adjacent mesmerism and the emerging science of psychotherapy. His demonstration that suggestion could produce and remove symptoms helped establish the scientific legitimacy of unconscious psychological influence that underlies esoteric theories of magical and mental action.