Magic, Witchcraft, and Curing (American Museum Sourcebooks in Anthropology)

x, 346 pp. "The debate as to the borderline between 'religion' and 'magic' is an old one in anthropology; nonetheless, in general the distinction is fairly clear. We may say that the realm of magic is that in which human beings believe that they may directly affect nature and each other, for good or for ill, by their own efforts (even though the precise mechanism may not be understood by them), as distinct from appealing to divine powers by sacrifice or prayer. Witchcraft and sorcery are, therefore, close to magic, as the processes of oracular consultation, divination, and many forms of curing. This volume of readings presents ethnographic accounts of magical beliefs and behavior, covering most of the usual aspects described by anthropologists. All the writers whose work is included have places their analyses firmly in their social contexts. They are describing, not exotic bugaboos, but beliefs actually held by people who accept them and take note of them in their everyday life."