Magic?

LevitationHarrison Ford and a LemonsKaty Perry and a Rabbit?

Beach trickRipping Bodies apart

Compare: African Shaman (from Ch. 6)

Tricking Police

Illusion vs. Magic vs. Sorcery• Illusion:– Acts that rely on some

sort of trickery and deception• Ex: Chris Angel, David

Blaine, Gob• May also be used by

Religious Specialists to add to the ambience of ritual, to bring the audience in on the experience of the specialist.

Illusion vs. Magic vs. Sorcery• Magic:

– Methods that somehow interface with the supernatural and by which people bring about particular outcomes• Early Anthropologists

(Edward Tylor, James Frazer, Èmile Durkheim) saw magic as separate from religion because it did not involve spirits, only manipulation of supernatural forces.– Evolutionary school:

magicreligionscience– Arguments still remain as to

whether Magic should continue to be defined within the realm of religion.

Illusion vs. Magic vs. Sorcery• Sorcery:– Compelling the

supernatural to behave in certain ways, usually with evil intent. Done in secret and can be severely anti-social.• Ex: Kuru and Sorcery

among the Fore

Ways of understanding the worldScience vs. Magic

• Science– A methodology for coming to an understanding of reality through

• Objective observations• Experimentation• Hypotheses

– Tentative statements based upon experimental and observational data that is subject to further study. • Theories

– A framework for understanding that is supported by a large amount of consistent scientific data.

– Deals only with empirical observations (observations made through the senses)

– Scientific conclusions must be testable• And have the capacity to be proven false

– Methods similar to the above are practiced the world-over for those trying to gain control over their surroundings (ex: planning for a good harvest, building the right boat to sail on a long journey), but what about the intangibles, the swerves thrown by nature?

Ways of understanding the worldScience vs. Magic

• Magic– What if an infestation of an

unknown pest eats the planter’s crops? Rain does not come? Fire burns down materials needed to make a boat?

– Magic as an attempt to control unpredictability through the manipulation of supernatural forces.• Ex: Magic in sports