"The author traces the paradigm of conversion and identity in relation to the spiritual turning points of three protagonists of Christianity: Saint Augustine, whose mainly intellectual conversion is studied through the analysis of the symbol of the fig tree; the Magdalene, whose emotional turning point is approached through a semiotic analysis of both the mirror and the ointment; and Saint Paul, whose 'conversion of actions' is studied through a semiotic investigation of the symbol of the horse. Religious Conversions and Identity focuses mainly on the early-modern epoque, especially in the Catholic area, but also considers the way in which modern authors (such as Saramago, Claudel, Rilke, Proust and Pasolini) adopted previous stories of conversion as models for the representation of the turning points of human life."--BOOK JACKET.