The Witchcraft Reader ed. by Darren Oldridge (review)

Understanding premodern beliefs can be a difficult undertaking, due not only to the nature of existing sources, which rarely represent the views of ordinary people, but also to our modern beliefs—or rather, lack thereof. As Darren Oldridge states in the introduction to this third edition to The Witchcraft Reader, "the most profound obstacle to understanding the witch trials of the early modern period is also the most obvious: most Western people find the claims associated with witchcraft impossible to believe" (8). Today, many find the practice of things like magic and witchcraft absurd and fantastical, a figment of the imagination instead of part of the "cultural reality" for premodern peoples (8). This presentism, according to Oldridge, "encourages the stereotype of such people as 'hysterical' or brutish that still dominates mass-media representations of witch trials" (8). Yet, if modern scholars are going to be able to understand the mental worlds of premodern peoples, and perhaps even be able to combat these persistent stereotypes, we must be able to sympathize with the tribulations of those involved in order to gain insight into their thoughts and beliefs.

First published in 2002, The Witchcraft Readerremains, in its third edition, one of the most relevant and essential collections of historical essays on the period of the witch trials that spanned the late medieval period through the eighteenth century. These essays, all extracted from important articles or books published over the last forty-five years, are collected and organized into ten parts, each of which begins with a short introduction by Oldridge. Together, they offer an interdisciplinary exploration into the major themes, timeframes, and ideological shifts spanning the era of the witch trials. New to this collection is "Part Ten: Witchcraft Today," where essays explore perceptions of witchcraft in the modern Western imagination.

In the "General Introduction," Oldridge offers a thorough but concise timeline of the ways in which scholars have previously sought to understand and define witchcraft. There are two primary themes that he identifies as necessary for understanding witchcraft in premodern communities: the belief in the nature of magic and magical practices throughout these communities and the relationship between the ordinary people and elites writing about and interpreting their beliefs (5). From the writings of these elites sprang "the cycle of theoretical witchcraft literature," which by the sixteenth century created an increase in the fear associated with the practice of witchcraft and the ever-growing connection between witches and diabolic entities (10). Grounded in scripture and the writings of church fathers as well as contemporary demonological literature, the prosecution of witches created a large body of archival source materials for the scholarly study of medieval and early modern witchcraft.

Part 1 of this collection explores the prosecution of witchcraft in the late Middle Ages and begins with Richard Kieckhefer's essay, "Witch Trials in Medieval Europe," in which he offers a historical overview of the nature and prosecution of witchcraft between 1300 and 1500, noting that there were four stages of prosecution during this period. Among the many trends Kieckhefer discusses in this essay is his insight that during the third stage, from 1375 to 1435, two events led to the rise in witchcraft trials: the growing use of inquisitorial procedure and the social implications of the plague (24). Another highlight is chapter 5, "Ulrich Molitor and the Imagery of Witchcraft," in which Charles Zika analyzes eight striking images that allow us to glimpse the perception and imagery of the witch in the premodern imagination.

The essays collected in part 2 offer readers an exploration of the practice of magic and witchcraft in the everyday lives of premodern peoples. For instance, Robin Briggs, in chapter 6, "The Experience of Bewitchment," touches upon how natural misfortune and common "medical failure" could be "explained away by alleging witchcraft" (69). Edward Bever, in chapter 9, "The Medical Effects of Witchcraft in Early Modern Europe," also discusses witchcraft as an explanation for physical ailments and other...