Moral Power: The Magic of Witchcraft - Ingram Academic — Witchcraft Wicca

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Moral Power: The Magic of Witchcraft - Ingram Academic

Name: Moral Power: The Magic of Witchcraft - Ingram Academic
Price: 34.95 USD
Availability: InStock
ISBN: 9780857456595

✍️ Stroeken, Koen

Reader Score

4.4

(1 review)

$34.95

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📚 WHAT THE BOOK IS ABOUT

An anthropological study of Sukuma moral power and witchcraft in Tanzania.

Stroeken challenges the reader to reconsider how magic operates in Sukuma society. He uses his personal initiation and patient case studies to show that witchcraft is a social exchange. The text argues that this force blocks healing through bodily and social mechanisms. It does not rely on traditional cosmology but instead looks at gifts and sacrifices. This approach questions established theories in the field of medical anthropology.

Key Themes

Sukuma witchcraft moral power gift and sacrifice

Literary Context

The book focuses on Sukuma farmers in Tanzania during times of crisis. It engages with anthropological theory and medical anthropology discourse regarding magic and witchcraft, drawing on ethnographic data from this specific East African cultural context.

Stroeken, Koen

📚 all books by this author (2) →

Difficulty

●●● Challenging

Recommended For Fans Of

Marshall Sahlins · Roy Rappaport · E.E. Evans-Pritchard

🌙

Witchcraft & Wicca

Praise for this book

“Although challenging to follow at times, Moral Power...will certainly stimulate debate on ideas and methods within medical anthropology. Through rich ethnographic vignettes that focus on Sukuma healers and patients, as well as his own initiation as a Sukuma healer, Stroeken challenges the anthropological discourse on witchcraft. Rather than focusing on Sukuma cosmology, Stroeken examines social exchanges of gift and sacrifice and the moral power of magic and witchcraft.”

— Medical Anthropology Quarterly

“The book is thoroughly engaging and a timely contribution to the literature on witchcraft. It may be found too provocative and controversial for some, but I appreciated the analysis as a useful interrogation of the 'certainties' of much anthropological theory and practice in the study of magic and witchcraft.”

— Joanne Thobeka Wreford, University of Capetown

“Koen Stroeken's work is fascinating, thought-provoking, theoretically challenging and ethnographically penetrating. It is anthropology, yes, and very true anthropology for that matter, but it is also a deep and unsettling experience finding its voice.”

— Per Brandström, Uppsala University

🏛 Berghahn Books 📅 2012 📖 284 pages 📔 Paperback ISBN: 9780857456595

Fun Fact

Stroeken’s 'Moral Power' is an intellectually rigorous exploration, expertly bridging anthropology and esoteric studies. It excels in dissecting complex cultural beliefs with academic precision, offering a profound look into the Sukuma understanding of witchcraft and its societal impact. Those seeking prescriptive magical practices will be disappointed, as this is a scholarly examination, not a grimoire. However, for serious students of cultural anthropology, medical humanities, or comparative religion, it stands as a significant contribution to understanding the intricate dance between belief, health, and community.

📝 Description: Moral Power: The Magic of Witchcraft - Ingram Academic

Koen Stroeken examines the concept of moral power within Sukuma witchcraft traditions in Tanzania. The work moves beyond standard cosmological explanations to analyze social exchanges of gift and sacrifice. Stroeken draws on rich ethnographic vignettes involving Sukuma healers and patients, alongside his own initiation as a healer, to challenge established anthropological discourse. The book is structured with an Introduction titled The meaning of witchcraft, followed by References and an Index. This text offers a provocative interrogation of the certainties found in much anthropological theory regarding magic. It presents a universal process that is both bodily and social, one that obstructs patient recovery during times of crisis. Sukuma farmers attribute this unknown force to their witch, viewing it as neither purely power nor morality but both. The analysis focuses on how these moral powers function within the community. Medical Anthropology Quarterly notes that the book will stimulate debate on ideas and methods within medical anthropology. Joanne Thobeka Wreford from the University of Capetown describes the work as thoroughly engaging and a timely contribution to witchcraft literature, though she acknowledges it may be too controversial for some readers. The volume is suitable for those interested in alternative medicine and cultural social studies who can handle challenging theoretical frameworks.

📑 What's inside

Acknowledgements Preface
Introduction: The meaning of witchcraft
References Index

💎 Expert review

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💎

Esoterica Books editorial team

Occult literature desk

Stroeken’s work is a dense, scholarly exploration that demands patience from the reader. It is not suitable for those seeking entertaining narratives or practical guides to witchcraft practices. The text focuses heavily on theoretical frameworks and social processes rather than mystical experiences. Readers looking for light reading or immediate applicability to modern Wiccan practice will find this dry and overly academic. However, for those committed to serious anthropological inquiry, it offers a vital, albeit difficult, perspective on how belief impacts reality in specific cultural contexts.

✓ EDITOR'S REVIEW

📖 Why choose it

📖

Why this book is worth reading

You should read this book if you are deeply interested in the intersection of anthropology, psychology, and cultural belief systems. Koen Stroeken offers a rigorous examination of how the concept of 'moral power' operates within Sukuma society during times of crisis. It is essential for scholars and readers who wish to understand how attributions of witchcraft influence physical recovery and social relationships. The work provides a unique window into indigenous perspectives on well-being, showing how societal upheaval shapes individual experiences of illness and healing. If you value detailed ethnographic analysis over sensationalist tales of magic, this text offers profound insights into the complex mechanisms that govern health and community cohesion in Tanzania.

⭐ Reader reviews

The starting rating comes from the team Esoterica Books —

⭐ Esoterica editorial review Editorial rating 4.5/5

★★★★★

If you're fascinated by the anthropology of belief, the sociology of healing, or the intricate cultural dimensions of spiritual power, this book offers profound insights. It's perfect for those seeking to understand how non-Western societies interpret and respond to crisis and illness.

Reader rating

4.4

Based on 1 reviews

Esoterica Books editorial team

Stroeken’s work is a dense, scholarly exploration that demands patience from the reader. It is not suitable for those seeking entertaining narratives or practical guides to witchcraft practices. The text focuses heavily on theoretical frameworks and social processes rather than mystical experiences. Readers looking for light reading or immediate applicability to modern Wiccan practice will find this dry and overly academic. However, for those committed to serious anthropological inquiry, it offers a vital, albeit difficult, perspective on how belief impacts reality in specific cultural contexts.

❓ Frequently asked questions

In this context, 'moral power' refers to a potent, ambiguous force, understood by Sukuma farmers as neither purely good nor evil. It's a capacity attributed to a 'witch' figure during crises, believed to influence events and well-being through social and bodily means.

The Sukuma are a prominent ethnic group residing in Tanzania, East Africa. Stroeken's research focuses on their specific cultural interpretations of witchcraft and 'moral power' within their agricultural communities, particularly how these beliefs impact societal responses to illness and crisis.

📖 Who should read this

🎯 Key themes and symbolism

The Nature of Moral Power

This book intricately defines 'moral power' not as a simple dichotomy of good or evil, but as a complex, dualistic force. It explores how Sukuma communities attribute this power to a shadowy witch figure, influencing not only social interactions but also individual health outcomes, particularly in moments of community stress or crisis, making it a central analytical lens.

Witchcraft's Social Dynamics

Stroeken examines witchcraft beyond mere superstition, positioning it as a fundamental social mechanism within Sukuma society. The text details how the belief in a witch's influence shapes community responses to suffering and illness, highlighting the collective negotiation of blame and responsibility. It reveals the deep social structures that underpin and perpetuate these powerful perceptions.

Illness, Belief, and Recovery

The author meticulously investigates how the attribution of moral power to a witch can directly impede a patient's healing process. This theme explores the profound psychological and social obstacles that arise when illness is perceived as supernaturally instigated, demonstrating the critical link between cultural beliefs, bodily experience, and the pathways to recovery or prolonged suffering.

📜 Historical context

Drawing from a rich tradition of anthropological fieldwork, Stroeken's work positions itself within the lineage of studies exploring indigenous magic, belief systems, and their societal functions. It contributes to a deeper understanding of witchcraft accusations not as archaic folklore, but as complex social phenomena that reveal much about community cohesion, moral order, and the human response to adversity, particularly in African contexts.

📚 Glossary

Moral Power
Witch
Sukuma

📔 Questions to reflect on

How do the concepts of 'moral power' and witchcraft in Sukuma culture resonate with or diverge from similar beliefs in other traditions you know?
Consider a time of personal or community crisis. How might an attribution of 'moral power' or a 'witch' figure have altered perceptions or outcomes in that situation?
Reflect on the idea that an unseen, attributed force can physically obstruct recovery. What does this suggest about the interplay between belief, psychology, and physical health?