Toil & Trouble: Witchcraft as Cultural Explanation for Catastrophe and as a Means of Social Control

"Double , double, toil and trouble..." -Macbeth

Witches and witchcraft have been popular topics of conversation and study for centuries.  From the countless witch hunts over the centuries, popular depictions of witches in literature and television, and the resurgence of "witchcraft" in various Neopagan religious movements humans just cannot seem to get enough of witches and witchcraft.  Investigations of witchcraft was one of the earliest areas of study among anthropologists, and courses focusing on the anthropology of witchcraft remain very popular today.  This blog post will explore this very topic: the anthropology of witchcraft., which will be discussed through the contributions of notable anthropological scholars, followed by a summary of their explanations for the existence of witchcraft in various cultures: witchcraft as a cultural explanation for catastrophe and bad luck and witchcraft as a means of social control.

Our current anthropological understanding of witchcraft ironically enough has as many different definitions as it does scholarly contributors.  For the purposes of today's post witchcraft is defined as supernatural act(s) that contribute to the harm of an individual or the physical environment he or she resides in and depends upon.  Witchcraft itself is not inherently bad or evil in every culture around the globe, and witchcraft can be used for positive and beneficial purposes.  Unfortunately, much of the anthropological and scholarly study of witchcraft has and continues to focus on the negative aspects of it.

Figure 1: Evans-Pritchard and the Azande

Various anthropological scholars have contributed to our current understanding of witchcraft.  Bronislaw Malinowski, in his study of the Trobriand Islanders, provided some of the earliest insights into witchcraft in his study of Trobriand religious practices.  His contributions are very small as compared to other scholars who are credited with providing a much more substantial contribution to this area of study.  Two scholars in particular, Edward Evans-Pritchard (Figure 1) and Cylde Kluckhohn (Figure 2), have been instrumental in delivering the majority of scholarly contributions to this topic.  Evan-Pritchard's work with the Azande is cited as significant in regards to anthropological understandings of witchcraft, as is Kluckhohn's work with the Navajo as it provided additional but contrasting interpretations on the subject.

From these and other scholars two interpretations of the purpose of witchcraft exist: witchcraft as an explanation of catastrophe and bad luck vs witchcraft as a mode of social control.  In many cultures witchcraft is used as a means of explaining seemingly improbable and unfortunate series of events.  Not all events that fall within these criteria are considered related to witchcraft, but when they cannot be explained through any other means then witchcraft and witches are blamed.  This explanation is not exclusive to cultures with little to no scientific knowledge as even individuals in Western cultures have and continue to point to witches and witchcraft as a means of explaining their or others' ills.

Figure 2: Navajo family.  The Navajo were the subject of research for Cylde Kluckhohn in his study of witchcraft.

Typically, catastrophic events such as deaths of people, livestock, or crops are most often considered the act of witches, and the "witch" is typically a member of society who has a weak role in society.  Women, children, as well as men of little or no social status are blamed in such cases.  Individuals who are considered deviant within society are also often targeted and accused of witchcraft.  In this way accusations of witchcraft and the designation of being a witch are used as a means of social control (a means of enforcing norms, values, and rules within society among individuals through either formal or informal means).  Accusations of witchcraft are not taken lightly and typically resolve unfavorably against the accused who typically suffers incredibly negative consequences, including but not limited to ostracization, banishment, and/or death.  Often times, accusers will label certain individuals witches in order to gain control of the accused and/or their property, which the accused forfeits either voluntarily as a means of removing the deviant label or involuntarily by members of the society and culture.

In conclusion the anthropological study of witches and witchcraft is well documented and there is a lot of information available to those interested in the topic.  While these resources may seem exhaustive there is new information on this subject collected daily through the continued study of witchcraft because of the changing attitudes in societies and cultures regarding witches and witchcraft.  Some cultures have become more accepting of behavior that was once considered deviant and as a result people are embracing notions of witches and witchcraft, considering not strange or taboo but normal and acceptable.  Other societies, however, are reverting back to previous fears of witches and witchcraft and the number of accusations and their consequences are on the rise.  Overall, the fascination with witchcraft is far from over and will most likely continue for generations to come.

Monty Python and the Holy Grail

Works Cited

Campbell, A. F. (1973). Anthropological approaches to the understanding of witchcraft and sorcery : an historical and critical study with special reference to the work of E.E. Evans-Pritchard and Clyde Kluckhohn. (T). University of British Columbia. Retrieved from https://open.library.ubc.ca/cIRcle/collections/831/items/1.0101396 (Original work published 1973)

  

Dein, S.  2016.  “The Anthropology of Uncertainty: Magic, Witchcraft and Risk and Forensic Implications.”  Journal of Forensic Anthropology 1: 1-7.

Friedman, P.K. 2015. “Witchcraft in the Modern World.” Savage Minds http://savageminds.org/2005/08/10/witchcraft-in-the-modern-world/

O’Neil, D.  2006.  “Magic & Religion.”  Anthro Palomar.  http://anthro.palomar.edu/religion/rel_5.htm

Spencer, J.W. 2015.  Contexts of Deviance.  Oxford University Press.