#cursed britain

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currently reading.

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Cursed Britain: A History of Witchcraft and Black Magic in Modern Times, by Thomas Waters, Yale University Press, 2019. Info: yalebooks.co.uk.

The definitive history of how witchcraft and black magic have survived, through the modern era and into the present day. Cursed Britain unveils the enduring power of witchcraft, curses and black magic in modern times. Few topics are so secretive or controversial. Yet, whether in the 1800s or the early 2000s, when disasters struck or personal misfortunes mounted, many Britons found themselves believing in things they had previously dismissed – dark supernatural forces. Historian Thomas Waters here explores the lives of cursed or bewitched people, along with the witches and witch-busters who helped and harmed them. Waters takes us on a fascinating journey from Scottish islands to the folklore-rich West Country, from the immense territories of the British Empire to metropolitan London. We learn why magic caters to deep-seated human needs but see how it can also be abused, and discover how witchcraft survives by evolving and changing. Along the way, we examine an array of remarkable beliefs and rituals, from traditional folk magic to diverse spiritualities originating in Africa and Asia. This is a tale of cynical quacks and sincere magical healers, depressed people and furious vigilantes, innocent victims and rogues who claimed to possess evil abilities. Their spellbinding stories raise important questions about the state’s role in regulating radical spiritualities, the fragility of secularism and the true nature of magic.

Contents: One. Black magic in modern times Two. Blood the witch, swim the wizard: 1800-30 Three. Tough supertitions: 183-60 Four. Secret beliefs: 1860-1900 Five. Healing black magig: the unwitchers of late Victorian Britain Six. Occultists study dark arts: 1850s-1900 Seven. Gone native: witchcraft in the British Empire and beyond Eight. Witchcraft's decline: 1900-60s Nine. Multicultural magic: 1970-2015 Ten. Coclusion: witchcraft's decline and return Endnotes Select bibliography List of maps and illustrations Acknowledgements Index

[semper-legens]

177. Cursed Britain, by Thomas Waters

Owned?: No, library Page count: 265 My summary: A non-fiction book about witchcraft, and attitudes to witchcraft, in Britain from 1800 to the present day. My rating: 2.5/5   My commentary:

So if you know me, you know I have an interest in the occult. Witchcraft is a particularly interesting one - what can I say, I don’t live too far away from Pendle, the site of one of England’s most notorious witch trials. This book, however, interested me because it’s talking about witchcraft and the occult from after the time period it’s most associated with, from 1800 to now. Did it live up to its promise? I mean, ultimately it was fine, but I had a couple of nagging issues regardless.

The first is that, because of its scope, it’s really just an overview of shifting attitudes towards the idea of witchcraft, with a few more specific examples thrown in and given a few pages of detail here and there. Which is fine, honestly, it just wasn’t really what I was here for. The author makes some big and sweeping statements about attitudes and why folklorists at the time were wrong, and I’m not sure he evidences them well enough to justify the air of ‘I’m smarter than you’ that was emanating from the book.

The other is the race thing. Some kudos have to be given in that he correctly refers to the Roma and Traveller communities with their proper names, rather than the g-slur, which only appears in quotations. However, the chapter he has about witchcraft in the British Empire in the 1800s starts by asking the question of ‘does education kill superstition’, which plays right into the idea of people of colour (in these examples Indian, Maori, and African people) being inherently ‘pagan’ and ‘superstitious’. There’s a line between the spirituality of these various cultures and white English witchcraft, and the author does not draw it at all, equating things like Afro-British cultural practice and the cunning-men and women of 1800s Britain. It’s...uncomfortable, at least. Not helped by the fact that his examples of modern witchcraft cite cases of abuse linked to Afro-British spirituality, while the whiter people cited are presented as neutral to beneficial. The takeaway seems to be that Afro-British traditions are Bad and Wrong, whereas white British traditions can be bad, but can also be good. I don’t need to tell you that this view is racist and harmful.

That’s all about this one - ultimately, it’s alright, nothing to write home about. Next up, back to fiction, and a good old-fashioned ghost story!

[booksellergothic]

Cursed Britain : A History of Witchcraft & Black Magic in Modern Times - Thomas Waters

Though I am a little disappointed in Cursed Britain it’s cover is beautiful enough that I am glad I bought it anyway.  The main issue I have with Waters book - which is well researched, indeed nearly academic, which makes sense as he is a lecturer in history at Imperial College London - is that it isn’t so much about witchcraft or black magic, as study of common superstitions, folklore, and the work of healers.  Maybe it’s my dark side, but when I buy a book that claims to be about black magic I don’t want to spend quite so much time with people who use prayer and blessings to heal people they think have been afflicted by black magic.  If you are interested in the very British phenomenon of the Cunning Man this is the book for you.  

Waters also seems to think anything with a touch of new age, spirituality, or non-conventional religion can be pulled under the blanket of witchcraft.  Perhaps if the title was Occult Britain, or Supernatural Britain, I would have liked it more.  

Still, that cover!

Let me know if you want to be tagged reviews.

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'Cursed Britain' Covers the History of Black Magic in Britain

‘Cursed Britain’ Covers the History of Black Magic in Britain

Britain has a rich history of witchcraft and the occult. While most of the books we have focus on the sheer body counts stacked up during Britain’s witch trials, very few focus on the traditional folk magic, cunning folk, and quacks. In the new book Cursed Britain, Thomas Waters has seemingly endless examples of folks who claimed to suffer bewitchment from a long while back to the early 2000’s. …

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