Sceptic Publications

Question 1

Reginald Scot

Answer 1

The Discoverie of Witchcraft

Question 2

Samuel Harsnett

Answer 2

The fraudulent practices of John Darell

Question 3

Thomas Ady

Answer 3

A Candle in the Dark

Question 4

John Webster

Answer 4

The Displaying of Supposed Witchcraft

Question 5

Balthasar Bekker

Answer 5

The Enchanted World

Question 6

Reginald Scot

The Discoverie of Witchcraft

Answer 6

1584

Question 7

Samuel Harsnett

The Fraudulent Practices of John Darrel

Answer 7

1599

Question 8

Thomas Ady

A Candle in the Dark

Answer 8

1650

Question 9

John Webster

The Displaying of Supposed Witchcraft`

Answer 9

1677

Question 10

Balthasar Bekker

The Enchanted World

Answer 10

1691

Question 11

What was The Discoverie of Witchcraft about?

Answer 11

Questioned whether there was any biblical basis/ foundation for witch hunting

Question 12

What was The Fraudulent Practices of John Darrel

about?

Answer 12

Rejected all witchcraft. Harsnett was deeply suspicious about the Boy of Burton case, claimed Darell was a fraud

Question 13

What was A Candle in the Dark about?

Answer 13

Witches do exist, but they don’t have a pact with the Devil, used the Bible to support his argument, saying there was no reference to witches and hunts. Critical of James I’s book ‘Daemonologie

Question 14

The Displaying of Supposed Witchcraft

Answer 14

Reinforced Ady’s suggestion that the Bible failed to mention witchcraft, he argued that witches existed but are not in control of the supernatural - promoted rational/ materialistic thinking

Question 15

What was The Enchanted World about?

Answer 15

Most influential publisher, continued to build on Ady’s arguments using the Bible to undermine the argument for witchcraft- believed witchcraft was deception. Published at a time when intellectual thinking was changing

Question 16

Impact of Scot’s ‘The Discovery of Witchcraft

Answer 16

• Scot’s book went against the beliefs people held at the time → heightens its ability to change attitudes as it provided a radical way of viewing the witch-craze
• King James ordered all copies of the book to be burned, and denounced Scot in his book Daemonologie, → suggests that people saw his argument as a genuine threat to their beliefs
• Scot was the first English author to show scepticism. He planted the seed
• Scot’s work inspired later sceptics, like Ady and Bekker, none of whom really went beyond his ideas

Question 17

Limitations of Scot’s Discoverie of Witchcraft

Answer 17

• Scott still maintained a belief in witches and the Devil’s power → he failed to penetrate the heart of the problem but also he was writing before the scientific revolution got going
• Scot’s work preceded the most ferocious period of witch-hunting in England → the 1604 act and from 1645-1647, 300 women were executed during the East Anglia Witch Hunt
• The book was re-published, the 1651 edition, was more popular than the first edition

Question 18

Impact of Samuel Harsnett The Fraudulent Practices of John Darrel

Answer 18

• Led to discussion and debate via the pamphlet war
• Puts forward the idea that possessions can be faked: as witches were often thought responsible for demonic possession this undermined accusations of bewitchment

Question 19

Limitations of the Fraudulent Practices of John Darell

Answer 19

-Despite accusations of fraudulence many still supported Darrell - Joseph Hall, who later became Bishop of Exeter - wrote that Darrell did perform exorcisms
-Harsnett, Deacon and Walker’s views remained in the minority
-The pamphlet war centred on exorcism and the power of the Devil and so did not seem to challenge a belief in witchcraft at all
-It was simple a case of factional fighting within Christianity
→ Harsnett was a Church of England conformist, and suggests exorcism is a false and heretic act.
→ Darrell is a Puritan, and in Puritan circles prayer and fasting were widely accepted forms of exorcism

Question 20

Impact of Thomas Ady A Candle in the Dark

Answer 20

• The bible was used to justify the witch-hunts, Ady undermined the hunts by arguing that the Bible actually contradicted witchunting
• To Ady, witches did not possess supernatural power: it suggests that women accused of maleficium are in fact innocent - thereby undermining the law and all accusations. → Ady was reflecting materialism.
• By explaining magic tricks Ady exposed certain magic as fake and helped to separate magic from reality. People began to understand that sometimes phenomenons can be explained using rational explanation
• His criticisms of the tactics of witch-hunters may have influenced judges, who adopted higher standards for evidence
• Witchcraft trials did decrease from 1660 onwards and this could in part be attributed to Ady

Question 21

Limitations of A Candle in the Dark

Answer 21

• The book did not put forward a different view from Scot’s and it failed to question the existence of witches
• The book came after the most intense hunting had already happened → supports the idea that a decline in witchcraft trials was due to people’s negative experiences of the witch-craze
• The book should be seen as part of a far wider intellectual change that was taking place by the 1650s/1660s

Question 22

Impact of John Webster The Displaying of Supposed Witchcraft

Answer 22

• By arguing that witches did not command supernatural powers or have assistance from the Devil, Webster dismisses maleficium and diabolism
• The response his work garnered from high profile people (Seth Ward, John Wilkins, Henry More) show he was well respected and his ideas influenced others.
• His thorough use of evidence (some first hand) lends him a credibility that sets him apart from other sceptics
• Webster’s support from the Royal Society, a newly scientific organisation, suggests he influenced scepticism amongst the elite intelligentsia
• Webster was a non-conformist, so needed the Royal Society in order to have his ideas published and promoted

Question 23

Limitations of The Displaying of Supposed Witchcraft

Answer 23

-Webster’s work was not particularly radical (he repeats the arguments of Ady and Scot), it did not fundamentally challenge a belief in witches

Question 24

Impact of Balthasar Bekker The Enchanted World

Answer 24

• Gottlieb Soldan, the first historian of the witch craze, claimed that Bekker struck at the heart of the witch-craze by destroying belief in the Devil
• His argument challenged the idea that the Devil can form pacts with people or give them supernatural power - which brings into question the existence of witches
• Bekker fused his religious conviction with materialism → the devil was a symbol with no way of intervening in the material world
• Bekker’s ideas spread quickly, with 4000 copies being sold in Holland within the first two months of publishing → evidence that he did have a great influence on attitudes
• Bekker received many critical pamphlets → suggests his work cut through society’s attitude
• Bekker was put on trial for blasphemy and atheism, which implies that his beliefs challenged church doctrine regarding witchcraft → the Church saw him as a threat

Question 25

Limitations of The Enchanted World

Answer 25

• Bekker’s publication came when witchcraft trials were already on the decline → Alice Molland became the last witch executed in England in 1685
• Could be argued that any rise in scepticism after Bekker was due to advancements in science as it provided explanations for natural events that made a belief in the supernatural redundant
• Trevor-Roper describes Bekker’s significance as ‘largely a myth’, → controversy surrounding his work was confined to the Dutch language, therefore his importance in an English/British context should not be overstated