The Anthropology of Magic

Description

Magic is arguably the least understood subject in anthropology today. Exotic and fascinating, it offers us a glimpse into another world but it also threatens to undermine the foundations of anthropology due to its supposed irrational and non-scientific nature. Magic has thus often been 'explained away' by social or psychological reduction. The Anthropology of Magic redresses the balance and brings magic, as an aspect of consciousness, into focus through the use of classic texts and cutting-edge research. Suitable for student and scholar alike, The Anthropology of Magic updates a classical anthropological debate concerning the nature of human experience. A key theme is that human beings everywhere have the potential for magical consciousness. Taking a new approach to some perennial topics in anthropology - such as shamanism, mythology, witchcraft and healing - the book raises crucial theoretical and methodological issues to provide the reader with an engaging and critical understanding of the dynamics of magic.Join the live discussion on Facebook!

Susan Greenwood is Visiting Senior Research Fellow, University of Sussex

'This book invites students of anthropology on a journey of discovery both academic and personal. Greenwood gently persuades that 'magic' is capable of rigorous analytic treatment, while also giving them the tools to begin doing this themselves. She provides a clear, systematic and attractive approach to complex and difficult issues.' - Professor Geoffrey Samuel, University of Cardiff 'The Anthropology of Magic is an exceptional book. Written by an ethnographer who is simultaneously a scholar and a practitioner of magic, it explores academic debates about the history and nature of magic and reveals what magical practitioners say and do. The language sparkles with inner knowing and outer sophistication.' - Barbara Tedlock, Distinguished Professor, Department of Anthropology, State University of New York at Buffalo.