Witches and the Dead
The Case for the English Ghost Familiar
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 8930624 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Victoria Carr (0000-0002-3421-8898, corresponding author) |
| Year | 2019 |
| Volume | 130 |
| Issue | 3 |
| Pages | 282-299 |
| Publication date | 2019-07-03 |
| Peer Reviewed | Yes |
| Open Access | No |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Folklore (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 0015-587X • E-ISSN: 1469-8315 |
| Publisher | Routledge (PUBLISHER • GB) |
| DOI | 10.1080/0015587x.2018.1545735 |
| OpenAlex | W2967498320 |
| Language | EN |
| References cited | 12 |
Descriptions of the early modern English witch frequently mentioned her familiar, an entity that most often appeared as an animal such as a cat and would harm the witch’s enemies and feed upon her blood. However, the animal familiar was not the only type of familiar that assisted the witch. Here, the case is made for the presence of the ghost familiar: a demonic entity that would approach the witch in the form of a dead loved one who requested that she align herself with the Devil and in return would enact her vengeance upon those who had wronged her. Using archival sources alongside published texts, this article examines these ghost familiars and their role in the emotional lives of the accused witches
Art · Harm · Literature · Political science · Witch · Ecology · Folklore, Mythology, and Literature Studies · Historical Economic and Social Studies · History · Law · Medieval Literature and History
| Citation velocity | historical |
|---|---|
| Highly cited | No |