Magic In The Middle Ages
(RICHARD KIECKHEFER)
In Magic in the Middle Ages Kieckhefer has produced an insightful account of magic as a kind of crossroads where different pathways in medieval culture converge. His approach is fairly tightly focused on the sources; he starts by looking at two from fifteenth century Germany, an estate management handbook in the vernacular that contains scattered magical elements and a Latin handbook for conjuring demons. In defining magic he eschews modern anthropological frameworks such as the coercion/supplication typology, instead using the term for those phenomena which intellectuals would have recognized as either demonic or natural magic ? while recognizing that distinguishing between natural and demonic forms of magic was not easy... The history of medieval magic is essentially one of conflicting perceptions on just this issue. Kieckhefer devotes two chapters to the sources for medieval magic. The first surveys magic in Greek and Roman philosophy, science, and fiction, and in early Christian writings (and in late antiquity as Christianity became an established religion). One significant contribution was the association of magic with women; another was the persistent strand of Christian thought that considered all magic demonic (in contrast to widespread classical sentiment that magic was bad only when used to evil ends, or when it posed a threat to the social order). Turning to Germanic and Celtic influences, Kieckhefer doesn''t downplay the difficulties of using later Christian sources, but he looks at a range of sources: early Christian penitentials, runic inscriptions, Icelandic sagas and poetry, and Irish literature. Recognizing that much of the magic in medieval Europe was distributed widely, and that it was not limited to any specific group, Kieckhefer surveys what he calls the common tradition of medieval magic. Magic had strong connections with healing, at all levels (from midwives to physicians), and the preparation of medicines often involved taboos, sympathetic magic, and attention to heavenly bodies. Charms (prayers, blessings, and exorcisms) were considered magic by some, though most probably worried about whether rather than how they worked. Amulets and talismans were natural magic; even if they were holy objects used improperly that was usually considered superstition rather than demonic magic. Sorcery was the use of any of these, and particularly of healing magic, for evil ends. Divination and popular astrology were also part of the tradition, as was performative magic that used trickery and sleight of hand for entertainment. Three chapters then look at more specialized aspects of magic. Here courtly culture was not so different to broader society: it is misleading to portray the situation at court as different in principle from that elsewhere. There were rivalries and animosities in all walks of life that led to the use and suspicion of magic. But of course the more expensive forms of magic were specific to courts: automations and mechanical wonders and magical gems and lapidary handbooks. Many rulers also had official astrologers and diviners, and more about courtly magic survives in written sources. The courtly romances are particularly useful: unhelpful as sources for events, but invaluable as guides to attitudes and values. Another strand in medieval magic was associated with the growth of universities and the importation of Arabic learning. Kieckhefer gives a nice account of the practice and principles of astrology, and the debates over its claims. Much astrology was entirely non-controversial ? the belief that the stars have influence on earthly persons and objects in ways that are not manifest was common to Aquinas and Aristotle ? but at the other extreme there was astral magic. Kieckhefer also covers alchemy (looking at the fifteenth century English alchemist Thomas Norton), the cult of secrecy and books of secrets, and Hermes Tsmegistus and the Kabbalah (associated with the Humanist scholars such as Marcilio Ficino and Giovanni Pico della Mirandola).
Resumos Relacionados
- The Origins And Meanings Of Roman Witchcraft
- Roman Magic And Witchcraft In Late Antiquity
- Magic For Dummies
- Magic: A Reunião -- Enciclopedia Oficial Volume 4
- Harry Potter And The Goblet Of Fire
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