The Traditional Cosmology Society is proud to present the next in our series of Winter Talks, on Scottish witchcraft - all welcome
Narratives of Bewitchment in Scotland
Scottish witchcraft trial records contain many statements from people presenting themselves as victims of witchcraft. Bewitchment sometimes affected their own health; at other times it was the health of a child or other family member, or the health of their farm animals, or their dairying, ale-brewing or prosperity generally. The bewitchment itself was placed within a wider narrative of community relationships, often involving quarrels, and sometimes including threats or curses.
This paper focuses on how the narrators explained the concept of bewitchment. The key legal point at issue in their testimony was: were these events caused by the suspect’s witchcraft, or not? The range of explanations that narrators offered was wide. Some explained the bewitchment in detail; others told of misfortune, but avoided saying anything about bewitchment.
The narratives reveal much about witchcraft victims’ beliefs. It may seem obvious that witchcraft victims believed in witchcraft. However, their narratives reveal a remarkably wide range of types of belief. Some victims seem to have been reluctant accusers. At the other extreme, some victims told stories of their own experience of magical events, or even of having encountered the Devil. In these narratives we glimpse the connection between the quotidian and the uncanny.