Tabitha Stanmore on Practical Magic in Shakespeare’s England

Folger Shakespeare Library: Shakespeare Unlimited

Folger Shakespeare Library

Arts

4.7 • 837 Ratings

🗓️ 8 October 2024

⏱️ 31 minutes

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Summary

Forget witches, broomsticks, and cauldrons bubbling over—when it came to real magic in Shakespeare’s time, most people turned to their local cunning folk. These magical practitioners wielded spells to cure illnesses, recover lost items, and even spark a bit of romance. Far from the dark, devilish image popularly associated with witchcraft, cunning folk were trusted members of society, providing magical services as casually as a modern-day plumber or dentist. In this episode, Barbara Bogaev talks with Tabitha Stanmore, a scholar from the University of Essex, about the fascinating, overlooked world of practical magic in early modern England. Drawing from her new book, Cunning Folk: Life in the Era of Practical Magic, Stanmore sheds light on how cunning folk, who served as diviners, astrologers, charm makers, and healers, shaped the lives of both ordinary people and royals alike. These practitioners were called upon for everything from predicting the future to healing the sick, and their magic was seen as helpful, not harmful. Stanmore explains how these magical practices were woven into the fabric of daily life and how cunning folk managed to steer clear of the persecution that plagued so-called witches. Stanmore shares the fascinating methods cunning folk employed—from using bread and cheese to identify thieves to casting love spells with fish (seriously!)—and why their magic was essential in a world that still sought out supernatural help. If you thought magic in Shakespeare’s time was all witches and broomsticks, think again—Stanmore takes us on a magical journey that’s far more practical…and surprising. Tabitha Stanmore is a social historian of magic and witchcraft at the University of Exeter. She is part of the Leverhulme-funded Seven County Witch-Hunt Project, and her doctoral thesis was published as Love Spells and Lost Treasure: Service Magic in England from the Later Middle Ages to the Early Modern Period. From the Shakespeare Unlimited podcast. Published October 7, 2024. © Folger Shakespeare Library. All rights reserved. This episode was produced by Matt Frassica. Garland Scott is the associate producer. It was edited by Gail Kern Paster. We had help with web production from Paola García Acuña. Leonor Fernandez edits our transcripts. Final mixing services are provided by Clean Cuts at Three Seas, Inc

Transcript

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0:00.0	From the Folger's Shakespeare Library, this is Shakespeare Unlimited, I Barbara Bove gave.
0:07.3	When shall we three meet again in thunder, lightning, or in rain?
0:14.9	Ah, the weird sisters, love them.
0:17.5	Even if you don't know much Shakespeare, you know Macbeth's witches. They're probably
0:22.4	who you think of first when anyone mentions magic in his plays. But according to my guest today,
0:28.3	Tabitha Stanmore, our modern minds are way too fixated on witchcraft when we think about Shakespeare's
0:33.9	time. Stanmore's a scholar at Essex University University and in her new book, Cunning Folk,
0:39.9	she argues that most people in early modern England believed in practical magic, spells that
0:45.8	could help you find lost possessions or make someone fall in love with you. And if you needed some
0:50.7	of this day-to-day magic done, you wouldn't go to a witch.
0:58.0	You'd see your local cunning man or cunning woman.
1:04.1	Stanmore defines cunning people as service practitioners, kind of like car mechanics or dentists.
1:09.7	They were a normal, accepted part of society, and their magic services weren't illegal.
1:12.4	Stanmore found traces of these practices mentioned in church court records and other archival sources from the 15th through the 17th century.
1:18.8	And she's on the line with us for Bristol in the UK. Hi, Barbara. Hello, it's such a pleasure
1:24.0	to have you on the podcast. I really am enjoying the book. Oh, thank you. I'm so glad.
1:28.4	Magic. I'm so excited to talk about magic. I did think, though, maybe we were going to talk
1:33.4	about witches, but you make the point at the start of your book that it's not about witches.
1:38.4	So what were cunning men and women, and what's the distinction? Yeah, lots of people have the same reaction. When I say
1:46.1	I look at magic in the 16th century, they go, oh, cool, witchcraft. And I go, no, no, which is why my
1:52.4	handle on most social media is now magic not witches. But yeah, so the difference, it's a difference
1:59.8	that I was surprised existed. I didn't realize
	...

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