Supernatural Short Stories: Tales of Murder and Letters on Demonology and Witchcraft

by Sir Walter Scott

One of the main forces in early nineteenth-century literature, Sir Walter Scott was not only among the greatest novelists of his time, but influenced generations of writers, including literary giants such as Stendhal and Tolstoy. Though chiefly remembered for his historical epics Ivanhoe, Rob Roy and Guy Mannering, Scott penned a number of short stories which have been unjustly eclipsed by the enduring fame of his longer works.

Mostly set in the Highlands of Scotland and presenting a vast array of memorable characters, the stories in this collection are tinged with an element of the supernatural or explore themes of murder and guilt, revealing the author’s great talent in the shorter-fiction form. This volume also includes a long excerpt from Scott’s Letters on Demonology and Witchcraft, which questions how much credit can be given to ghost stories and alleged supernatural occurrences.

The Fortunes of Martin Waldeck, Phantasmagoria, Wandering Willie’s Tale, The Highland Widow, The Two Drovers, My Aunt Margaret’s Mirror, The Tapestried Chamber, Donnerhugel’s Narrative, The Bridal of Janet Dalrymple, Letters on Demonology and Witchcraft

Alma Classics is committed to making available a wide range of literature from around the globe. Most of the titles are enriched by an extensive critical apparatus, notes and extra reading material, as well as a selection of photographs. The texts are based on the most authoritative edition and edited using a fresh, accessible editorial approach. With an emphasis on production, editorial and typographical values, Alma Classics aspires to revitalize the whole experience of reading classics.

Genres: Nonfiction, History, Classics, Witchcraft, Occult, Religion, Essays

272 pages, Paperback

First published September 14, 1830

Reviews

[Silvio Curtis · Rating 4 out of 5]

Written in 1830. A popular history of belief in witches and spirits accessible to human control, especially in England and Scotland. Not written to argue a point; Scott considered witchcraft and demonology to be ridiculous superstitions and takes it for granted that readers will agree. The basic narrative is that belief in witches and spirits was originally near-universal and a pretty understandable mistake among non-Judeo-Christian people but is in no way justified by the Christian Bible and survived the Christianization of Europe, but until the end of the Middle Ages supposed witches were only persecuted when they supposedly actually harmed someone with their magic. Then the conflict between Catholics and Protestants motivated both to intensify their witch-hunting, bringing on the outbreak of mass panics. I imagine Scott belonged to the Church of England, since he presents it as a middle way that partly (but not completely) avoided participating in the rivalry and the persecutions. Scott credits the progress of both science and religion with ending the belief in witchcraft, though he doesn't really spell out how. Sometimes the history seems mostly an excuse to retell or quote sensational stories about supposed witches and sorcerers.

[annika · Rating 3 out of 5]

sir walter scott was a reformed shaniac, confirmed!

[Alexis · Rating 3 out of 5]

Well this brought me right back to why these classics can be frustrating. This specific one being written in the 1700’s basically highlighted “Demonology and Witchcraft”. Let me break this one down quickly for everyone so they don’t have to waste time reading. Any type of ailment like concussion, pink eyes, elevated fever could have been considered a demon possession at that time. Medical knowledge was very narrow and people tended to blame the devil for basic health issues. I will absolutely say having the foresight of the future made this book very entertaining, and at sometimes funny. But the general ignorance of the time was frustrating to indulge in. I thought this book would be a lot more spooky and a lot less hokey. I’m still glad I read it and double glad I didn’t pay for it.

[Salem ☥ · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book is unfortunately not at all what I thought it would be in relation to the subject matter. I should've known going in that the author was a devout christian and would not be giving an unbiased depiction of either subject.

The letters contain various stories from people encountering spirits or otherworldly beings—despite not believing in them. Told from the point of view of a skeptic & someone who believes that those who entertain the ideas of non-christian beings are unintelligent.

Boring and convoluted.

[teacupsandunicorns · Rating 4 out of 5]

Skeptical take on witchcraft, astrology, and ghosts. Very interesting read! He basically tried to explain “mob mentality” and “group think” but he didn’t have the terms.

It was sad to hear how many women admitted to being witches simply because they’d rather die quickly rather than live a terrible life on the fringes of society starving and hated.

[John · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fantastic. Really would be a good introduction to Sir WS. And good to finish reading on Halloween.

[Richard · Rating 4 out of 5]

The chapters are addressed to a "dear friend" who commissioned the work but otherwise there is not much that is epistolary about them. I would call them essays rather than letters. This work was a long read, but still thankfully much shorter than Demonology and Devil-lore, and much more focussed to boot.

It basically debunks the unenlightened superstition that fuelled the cruel crusade against witches. This was cruel because it largely victimized haplessly innocent and vulnerable people, most of whom were tortured to extract the desired confessions of being in league with the powers of darkness. The book also discusses dealings with fairies, which were considered only slightly less evil than dealings with the devil himself. The last subject is ghostly apparitions, many of which were caused by coincidence or by clever people who orchestrated them behind the scenes.

[Tucker · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sir Walter Scott is famous for his novels. This nonfiction has a colorful, engaging style. It's a skeptical take on the witch trials in Europe in the 16th and 17th centuries along with legends and anecdotes of paranormal apparitions. Scott sympathizes with the victims burned as witches and he explains why superstitions about witches arose, why these superstitions are false, and just how illogical the accusations and interrogations were. In a typical Enlightenment sort of way, he makes it clear he's a Christian and believes that humans have souls; he just doesn't believe that God is overly generous with miracles involving resurrections, which means he doesn't believe in ghosts. A downside: The chapters aren't organized in any obvious way, and the rambling anecdotes make it like an encyclopedia with commentary rather than a grand cohesive argument.

[Gem K · Rating 3 out of 5]

My life would have been so much easier had I just sucked it up and read this two years ago

[Cee Martinez · Rating 5 out of 5]

Interesting and informative

Walter Scott wrote a series of letters in the later years of his life on the possibility of ghosts, demons, fairies and witches. He did some thorough research and cited his sources. This was written in the early 1800s which makes it a valuable contemporary account.

Some highlights include individual case accounts of witchcraft trials including the Salem witch trials, talk of ghost sightings being related to alcohol abuse and abuse of nitrous oxide as a drug, and fascinating talk on why the Catholic Church at one time tolerated witches.

This is a very easy to read well structured book which I find is a valuable historical record.

Sharp eyed fans of Diana Gabaldon's "outlander" series will be delighted to find a reference to a witch by name who shares a name with a famous witch in the novels . I'm assuming Ms. Gabaldon may have read this book as a resource!

Anyway if you have a love of witchcraft history and the paranormal then this book is for you.

[Bruce Graham · Rating 2 out of 5]

Fairly early on in this book, Scott talks about a lunatic who constantly complains how everything he eats tastes and smells of oatmeal. Because, in fact, it was oatmeal. It describes how reading this book is: oatmeal all the way through.

Even the author is bored with his own book: "I am tempted to think that, if I were to write on the subject at all, it should have been during a period of life when I could have treated it with more interesting vivacity, and might have been at least amusing if I could not be instructive."

There was one major take-away: Despite the moon-biting madness of witch-hunters and ghost gossipers, the sub-atomic level of small mindedness, the eat-your-own-arms-level of idiocies displayed, what is obvious is- they were a lot smarter than what we are seeing with our behavior today.

[B.L. Blankenship · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book accounts for an array of things from the best of Sir Walter Scott's understanding. Largely it details the trial and execution of alleged witches. The latter part of the book focuses on the author's dismissal of ghosts. The early part reflects on accounts within the Bible in regards to witches. It's interesting and overall charming.

[Book Jester · Rating 3 out of 5]

I've limped through this since the start of the month. Some of the stories were more readable and enjoyable than others, one or two were standard ghost story fare which would've definitely been more enjoyable if they had been read aloud by the fireside in a remote cottage in the Highlands on a wild and stormy night.

[Stephanie · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a slog. Dense and full of anecdotes, I would recommend this as an audiobook; I imagined it as my drunk important relative relating his wisdom for a week’s vacation.

There are great pearls of wisdom, especially from a 19th century perspective and his empathy towards the victims of superstition is refreshing. The author wholeheartedly believes its nonsense so if you’re looking for grimoire to pull demons into your life, look elsewhere.

[Cindy Belden · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very interesting and sometimes horrifying history of witchcraft and supernatural superstitions of the British Isles prior to the early 1800s.

This would be a great reference for anyone writing horror, historical fiction, and even fantasy. The print is freely available online, you just have to search for it.

[Audrey · Rating 3 out of 5]

There used to be a time I would have agreed with Mr. Scott's opinions. I hope I am never that close-minded again. I have to believe that there are more things in heaven and earth, Sir Walter Scott, than are dreamt of in your philosophy.

[Bobby Daugherty · Rating 3 out of 5]

Some information on Mathew Hopkins and a few other similar people. Some information on people who were accused of witchcraft and tormented. Sort of reminded me of Foxes Book of Martyrs in a few parts.

[Sara · Rating 2 out of 5]

Obviously this is outdated but even so, it reads like a looooong boring Wikipedia article. Not the take on the topic I wanted but one I should have expected given who wrote it. Still plenty of good information (but not worth a read ;).

[Jodelyn Perez]

reading

[Matthew Blokzyl]

Very enlightrning

Very fun to read the opinions of previous generations regarding the supernatural. The author treated the subject as a fancy and improbability at the same time.

[AttackGirl · Rating 3 out of 5]

Where is my review?

[Les Wilson · Rating 3 out of 5]

Perhaps worth more; but I read this book in audio format, and found the reader lacking.

[anafer villarreal · Rating 3 out of 5]

there is something very interesting about reading old books and seeing how the genre they belong to has evolved over time.

[Joseph F. · Rating 4 out of 5]

Oh boy, another book with no pic. I really read some obscure stuff.
Anywho, this classic of the field is a buried treasure. Scott shares his knowledge of this subject with many stories; well known and personal. I liked his skepticism, not only for (obviously witchcraft), but for the supernatural in general. This book is therefore still pertinent for this day, with all the supernatural beliefs that people still treasure. Of course, Scott is a Christian, and his religious beliefs are true as opposed to the false beliefs of the old pagan religions. But then again, it is a very old book.
Something I really liked about his letters that many other books on the history of witchcraft do not cover is his coverage of the faeries. A very beautiful and haunting couple of chapters.

[Alma · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is a compilation of shorts stories written between the XVI-XVII centuries.These stories are written based on several folk tales, mainly from the highlands of Scotland (except the first one, situated in the mountains of Germany)
This book is so old, that it has a glossary at the end of it where you can find the explanation of events, quotes and words found in the main text that are not familiar to the modern reader, I found this super interesting.
One of the tales was even written in the phonics of Scottish accent! And to be fair, as a non native speaker, it was challenging.
All of this to say that, overall, this is a solid, entertaining and educational book in my opinion. I enjoyed it a lot!

[Shawn Fairweather · Rating 3 out of 5]

An interesting look at the European Witch Trials and persecution of the accused. Most sadly was quite dry and flowed on the perspective of recounting legend and lore. Some of Scotts recollections lacked detailed facts and felt more like a campfire time of story telling. I appreciated much of Scotts skepticism especially with what we know now, however focusing on stories of fairies was a little out there even for the time period. The organization of the book left a lot to be desired in that much of his stories fell right into one another without a break sometimes causing it to be a garbled mess. An interesting period piece none the less, but not much really new to be exposed to.

[Nick Tramdack · Rating 2 out of 5]

Walter Scott's "letters" on the topics of Demonology and Witchcraft didn't really draw me in. I read this book looking for picturesque details that I could use in SF/F short stories. And to be fair, I found a few

Why is the food in Faerie saltless? Because salt, a preservative, symbolizes the immortality that is denied to the fae. Cool, right?

Unfortunately, Scott does tend to go on at length with less-than-thrilling biblical analysis (the witch of Endor AGAIN?) and more-of-the-same accounts of witch trials in puritan england. For historical interest only.

[Tslyklu · Rating 3 out of 5]

Many of the recalled stories are brilliant but I did a lot of skimming through Scott's rationalizations. A fair amount is Scott having a masturbatory skepticism carnival to anecdotes about seeing ghosts in configurations of curtains and feeling specters after touching yourself with a hand that's fallen asleep, but then the better stories don't have this cast of poshlost that most apparent ghost encounters do. I learned a lot more about the world Scott's dealing with from his asides about the aurora borealis in Edinburgh and mortal saltless fairy food, the oddities are right.

[Robert · Rating 3 out of 5]

Written to address the errors of superstition and the infamy of the witch trials. The book shows, perhaps, the type of systemic error that can result from half-thinking an issue through using Theology without the check and balance of common sense and reason.

[Naina Kaylina · Rating 3 out of 5]

I don't mind it, some of it is hard to understand because you have to put yourself inside the mind of someone who lived between 1771 and 1832 to understand a few things.

But his take and perception on things was interesting.