Magi and Sorcerers: Magic, Ideology and Stereotypes in the Ancient World

It seems that the image of the powerful witch or all-powerful sorcerer has always existed in Western culture. But when and under what circumstances did it appear?

Kimberly Stratton suggests viewing magic as a discourse that has its own cultural, social, and political history. The author analyzes the images of witches and magicians in the literature of four interconnected historical periods – classical Athens, early imperial Rome, pre-Constantinian Christianity, and rabbinic Judaism. Stratton compares the development of the discourse on witchcraft in these cultures, identifies common features among them, and builds connections between these ideological constructs and the social factors that produced them.

One of the main tasks of the book is to show that in the ancient world accusations of witchcraft were not merely a simple slander but attempts to define the boundaries of power and legitimacy, to draw a line between oneself and the Other.

Kimberly Stratton is a historian of religion and an associate professor at Carleton University.