Исследуется проблема интерпретации исторического факта в работах Олдоса Леонарда Хаксли и Мишеля Борже де Серто. Выявляются причины различий авторских подходов к луденскому судебному процессу 1632-1640 гг., инициированному одержимыми монахинями местного монастыря против приходского священника Урбена Грандье, а также причины противоположности в понимании авторами феномена одержимости и его значения в общественной жизни позднесредневековой Западной Европы.

The article discusses the problem of a historical fact interpretation in The Devils of Loudun by Aldus Huxley and The Possession at Loudun by Michel dе Certeau. The reasons for distinctions in the authors' approaches to the process of Loudun of 1632-1640, to the phenomenon of possession and its value in the social life of early modern Europe are studied. A short description of the phenomenon of possession during the "witch-hunt" period is made. A judicial incident in Loudun in 1632-1640 is studied. The authors' views on the events in Loudun are given: A. Huxley's theory of conspiracy and M. Certeau's "game" interdisciplinary approaches. A number of key terms are allocated due to which distinctions in the authors' concepts become more evident: "church", "exorcism", "possession". The author definitions of these concepts are offered. On the basis of the given distinctions in the views, the author of the article identifies a complex of reasons for the refraction of a historical fact and for the formation of a new view on events. The first reason is the personality of the author of the work. The analysis of how the author's personality influences its research is made. A short curriculum vitae of A. Huxley's personality and its reflection in his The Devils of Loudun is given, as well as a short curriculum vitae of M. Certeau's personality and its reflection in The Possession at Loudun. The second reason is the time the work was written in. A short description of the time The Devils of Loudun (1950s) was written, and its influence on the text are given. The topical character of the book and its connection with McCarthyism in the USA and with struggle against cosmopolitism in the USSR are stressed. A short description of the time The Possession at Loudun (1970s) was written, and its influence on the text are given. The connection of the work with the process of church renovation. The third reason is the concept (philosophical, historical) the author followed when writing the work. The theory of "synthesis" of humanitarian and scientific knowledge was A. Huxley's philosophical system. The "pontific" has its role in the overcoming of the separation of the worldview of a person. Problems of good and harm in a human nature, the problem of a human nature and its transformation is discussed, as well as issues of Bovarism, the soul and body opposition, the concept of an internal demon and "possession". A. Huxley's philosophical system and research methodology were reflected in his work. M. Certeau's work shows his theory of "The Other" and his historical concept, states the problem of interpretation of a source, historiography and heterology as the basic terms of his concept, identifies polyphony as his main method of research. Generalising conclusions are presented in the article.