The Esoteric Library: The Superstitions of Witchcraft

by Howard Williams

The belief in Witchcraft is, indeed, in its full development and most fearful results, modern still more than medi�val, Christian still more than Pagan, and Protestant not less than Catholic.

Genres: Witchcraft, Nonfiction, History

176 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1865

About the author

Howard Williams (1837–1931) was an English humanitarian and vegetarian, and author of the book The Ethics of Diet, an anthology of vegetarian thought.

Reviews

[Michelle · Rating 2 out of 5]

Wow this book is tough, is very factual, wordy and difficult to follow. It's full of references to other writings on witchcraft and it's writtern in typical seventeenth century style. This actually reads like a reference book therefore if you are looking to understand more on witchcraft for leisure, do yourself a favour and find a easier book!

[Halina · Rating 1 out of 5]

Wow! One of the worst books I have ever read. Okay I understand people might have been scared of this stuff back then but these kind of books and people just fed into that fear. I thought this was gonna be a good book but just after the first 10 pages, I couldn't help but roll my eyes after every sentence.

[Tracy Jones · Rating 1 out of 5]

Too heavy for me sorry....

[Vincent Konrad · Rating 3 out of 5]

A pretty solid overview of how witchcraft has been portrayed and related to up until the time of writing. It is largely a timeline comprised of description and anecdote.

There is limited analysis beyond a skepticism that positions belief in witchcraft as rather credulous, or at least something we ought to know better about by now, and therefore attacks based on it are unwarranted.

The scope is limited to Europe and Colonial America, though the apparent biblical basis for a lot of the furore about witchcraft necessitates some discussion of Egypt and the Middle East. A few other traditions are mentioned in passing for context or contrast.

[Zephyrin · Rating 2 out of 5]

was a difficult book for me to read, got lost many times. has a lot of references to other books on the topic