A History of Magic

by Richard Cavendish

Although many books on magic and witchcraft have been published in recent years, a good comprehensive history of the subject has been lacking. The gap is now filled by Richard Cavendish's A History of Magic, which deals with magic in the West from prehistoric times to the present. Mr Cavendish does not ask us to believe in magic - though he points out that some of its oldest claims are now widely accepted - but to trace the effects of belief in it on human behavior. Through the centuries magic has been inextricably entangles with the history of religion and is interwoven with art and medicine, folklore and superstition, astrology and fortune-telling, and the daily lives of generations of ordinary men and women. On the way the story takes in elements as diverse as Pythagoras and Orpheus, the Hermetica and the Neoplatonists, amulets and hieroglyphics, sacrifices and dream interpretation, the magic of herbs and healing, the history of astrology, the lore of curses and spells, folk customs, and ceremonies, Christian magic, Jewish traditions and the Cabala, Joan of Arc and Gilles de Rais, Nostradamus, Paracelsus and Faust, the witch trials, the Black Mass and Rasputin, Yoga and Tantrism, Madame Blavatsky, W. B. Yeats, and C. G. Jung. Mr. Cavendish brings a balanced sense of order to this complex and often perplexing material. A History of Magic is a lively and penetrating analysis by a leading authority, providing for the first time a clear, accurate account of a complex and fascinating subject.

Genres: Nonfiction, History, Magic

208 pages, Paperback

First published March 17, 1977

About the author

Richard Cavendish (1930 - 2016) was a writer, lecturer, broadcaster, historian & leading authority on Magic and Witchcraft. He is the author of 'The Black Arts', a study of the European tradition of magic.

Reviews

[Jane Routley · Rating 4 out of 5]

I bought this book because I thought as fantasy writer should understand the theory beind magic better. I've had it for years and boy do I wish I'd read it earlier. It clarified a lot of things for me. It's not about how to perform magical rituals but about mankind's pursuit and atudy of magic. It was a delicious book to dip into during my daily train travelling time, because Cavendish's style is very clear and enjoyable to read and occasionally fun. For instance, I enjoyed the paradigm shift of thinking of Pythagorus as a magician, which was how he thought of himself and I enjoyed the story of how the Nazi's set up an institute of magic because they believed the British to be using pendulums to find the locations of German Uboats in the Channel Although I used to be a librarian for the Theosophical Society, I'm a non-believer in magic. Yet I'm fascinated by people who do believe and the places it takes them.
At heart this is a serious little book, defining for me the aim of magic which is to gain power over the natural world and how so-called High magic, differs from the everyday magic of curses and love-potions. The secion on the medieval witch craze made sobering reading but it was also interesting to be reminded that even in those supposedly supersitious time there were people who could stand back and question the logic of it all.

[Kirsten · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a pretty good overview of the concept of magic from ancient times to the 20th century; if you've already read much on the history of magic, you're not going to run into much that's new. If you haven't, this is best as a jumping-off place rather than the be-all and end-all. Modern pagan movements get a little bit of short shrift, but since it's a short book everything gets the quick-and-dirty treatment. The real problem, other than the lack of detail, is that Cavendish's writing is deadly, deadly dull. This became my before-bed reading precisely because there was no danger I'd get wrapped up in it and read past my bedtime.

This is one of those weird books that I can't really recommend, but I also don't have any compelling reason NOT to recommend it; it's sort of a pure middle-of-the road book, not terribly bad, not terribly good.

[Mitchell Stern · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book, while relatively short in length, is a great introduction to the magical tradition. Cavendish does a great job of outlining the connections between practices and gets to the heart of its appeal today.

[Roger]

i think i bought this back in the Winter of '06 when i was starting another Mage game. looking for ancient inspiration of course. i never really cracked the book open.

another Library sale book, this one from the Palatine Public Library. the page with their internal barcode and card-sleeve has been torn out. their stamp still resides on a page in the front, though the address claims 500 North Benton St, when I'm only familiar with thier newer location at 700 North Court.

look here in the back, a Potbelly Sandwich Works receipt for when the 1 North LaSalle location still sold coffee for a dollar, even a cappuccino!

my goodness, these reviews must sound like i'm a crazy.

time for more wine.

[lisa_emily · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was quite interested in magic (the occult) at one point in my earlier life- this was a good base to understand some of the anthropological and historical perspectives on magic and its uses.

[Outmind · Rating 4 out of 5]

4/5

Amusing, although all the names mentioned as one approaches the end of the book create a jumble.