Reginald Scot
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Reginald Scot (circa 1538 - 1599) was the English author of The Discoverie of Witchcraft, which was published in 1584. It was written to show that witches did not exist, by exposing how (apparently miraculous) feats of magic were done. The book is often deemed the first textbook about conjuring.
Scot believed that the prosecution of those accused of witchcraft was irrational and un-Christian, and he held the Roman Church responsible. All obtainable copies were burned on the accession of James I in 1603 and those remaining are now rare. (In 1586, the Star Chamber greatly tightened the censorship laws.)
To this day the book is considered a "Bible" to magicians as it is one of the first English publications to explain how magical effects could be performed. It is also the text that helped to lift the ban on "entertaining" magic that was imposed by the Catholic Church.
The book also narrates stories of strange phenomena in the context of religious convictions. The devil is related with such stories and his ability to absorb people’s souls. The book also narrates stories of magicians with utterly supernatural powers performing in front of courts of kings.
[edit] Bibliography
- Haight, Anne Lyon (1978). Banned Books, 387 B.C. to 1978 A.D., updated and enl. by Chandler B. Grannis, 4th ed., New York: R.R. Bowker. ISBN 0-8352-1078-2.
[edit] External links
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