Witchcraft in Early Modern Europe: Studies in Culture and Belief

by Jonathan Barry (Editor), Marianne Hester (Editor), Gareth Roberts (Editor)

This important new collection of essays offers a wide readership both an up-to-date account of the present state of scholarship on early modern European witchcraft and an indication of the direction of new research. The contributors build on and respond to the issues raised in Keith Thomas' classic study Religion and the Decline of Magic, and suggest a greater emphasis on cultural history, notably issues of power, gender and language. The essays are European in scope, with examples from Germany, France and the Spanish expansion into the New World, as well as a strong core of English material.

Genres: History, Nonfiction, Witches, Anthropology, School

Hardcover

First published July 13, 1996

Reviews

[J.M. Hushour · Rating 3 out of 5]

An uneven collection of essays on the subject which veer from the curiously useful (Behringer's living essay-bibliography, basically, of German scholarship, five-star priceless if you know German) to the excruciatingly banal (the introduction, surprisingly, which peels apart Keith Thomas' work).
Much of the essays here focus on fringe European or non-European areas, bizarrely. There's a chapter on Quakerism and demonology in England and Matthew Hopkins, an essay on American devilishness, and a few other random topics (patriarchy, death of demonology). Not universally satisfying but I guess a little something something for everybody...

[Brian · Rating 3 out of 5]

The contributors to this volume are broadly concerned with offering a critique of the broad spectrum of received wisdom in historical witchcraft studies, taking as their primary point of reference the field-defining work of Keith Thomas in his Religion and the Decline of Magic. They address a range of theoretical and historiographic issues relating to witchcraft's sociological context, including the implications of, and in, the spheres of politics, religion, gender, and media culture. That being said, while readers familiar with the field can still find some insights among the chapters collected here, in the more than twenty years since its publication many of the basic arguments have been more fully developed, nuanced, and critiqued elsewhere.

[Heather · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a really great place to start to learn about witchcraft in early modern europe. It is a collection of essays written by some of the topic historians in the field. This is a great and easy way to find out what some of the historians are thinking without having to buy all their individual books. I highly recommend this!

[Margaret · Rating 4 out of 5]

Bought this book while I was studying in England for a Gender History studies class and a paper on witchcraft. Informative and good read.