Daniel Defoe, System of Magick

Kit Kincade (Indiana State University)

Ed. by Nicholas Seager, University of Keele
The Literary Encyclopedia. Volume 1.2.1.05: English Writing and Culture from the Glorious Revolution to the French Revolution, 1689-1789.
Vol. editors: Paul Baines (University of Liverpool), Daniel Cook (University of Dundee), Pat Rogers (University of South Florida), Nicholas Seager (University of Keele)

Dates

First circulation or publication 1726

Places

England (Country of Origin)

Genres and Modes

Historical representation
Prose Fiction Narrative

Resources

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Daniel Defoe’s

A System of Magick; Or, A History of the Black Art

was first published around December 1726 and was one of three non-fiction works on the occult that Defoe published towards the end of his life (the other two being

The Political History of the Devil

in May 1726 and

An Essay on the History and Reality of Apparitions

in March 1727). Little known outside of Defoe scholarship today, this work sheds some interesting light on Defoe’s commitment to educating his public on how he believed they should think about the place of magic and magicians historically and how one should understand contemporary ideas and demonstrations of both. Although most acutely debated in the previous generation of philosophical and religious thinkers, the topic was still considered one of some…

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1011 words

Citation: Kincade, Kit. "System of Magick". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 29 September 2017 [https://www.litencyc.com/php/sworks.php?rec=true&UID=1754, accessed 19 April 2024.]

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