The Triumph of the Moon
A History of Modern Pagan Witchcraft
Format:Hardback
Publisher:Oxford University Press
Published:4th Nov '99
Currently unavailable, and unfortunately no date known when it will be back
This hardback is available in another edition too:
- Paperback£14.99(9780192854490)
Ronald Hutton is known for his colourful, provocative, and always exhaustively researched, studies on original subjects. This work is no exception: the first full-scale scholarly study of the only religion England has ever given the world, that of modern pagan witchcraft, which has now spread from English shores across four continents. Hutton examines the nature of that religion and its development, and offers a microhistory of attitudes to paganism, witchcraft, and magic in British society since 1800. Village cunning folk and Victorian ritual magicians, classicists and archaeologists, leaders of woodcraft and scouting movements, Freemasons and members of rural secret societies, all appear in the pages of this book. Also included are some of the leading figures of English literature, from the Romantic poets to W B Yeats, D H Lawrence, and Robert Graves, as well as the main personalities who have represented pagan witchcraft to the world since 1950.
Hutton's book is a must-read not only for anyone interested in modern Paganism, or the occult, but it also embodies a deep insight into the development of British society and culture. * Pavel Horak, Czech Academy of Sciences *
A remarkable book ... passionate yet written with calm and clarity ... a passionate, important and consistently fascinating book. * Journal of Ecclesiastical History *
Important insights. * Journal of Contemporary History *
The Triumph of the Moon, which is densely argued and heavily annotated, leaves little doubt that the history which modern occultism has constructed for itself is bunk ... It all makes for riveting reading and, despite Hutton's demolition of the supposed lineage of witchcraft, I am tempted after reading his book to become a witch myself. * Robert Irwin, The Independent *
Hutton's book is excellent ... Hutton uses his historical skills to tease apart some of the themes in this popular rural romanticism, and to locate their purely modern origin. * T. M. Luhrmann, Times Literary Supplement *
An excellent study of the only religion England gave the world: pagan witchcraft. Scholarly and incisive, writing with verve and passion, Hutton exposes the Victorian fascination with the pagan ... Hutton writes a brilliant history of a faith that draws on ancient texts yet speaks to present concerns. * Kevin Sharpe, The Sunday Times *
ISBN: 9780198207443
Dimensions: 242mm x 162mm x 31mm
Weight: 1g
502 pages