Magical legal theory (MLT) or magical jurisprudence is an intellectual framework used to examine the intersection of law and magic. MLT interrogates the law's role in the oppression, persecution, and subordination of witches and those accused of witchcraft.[1] The theory combines law, religious studies, and critical theory.[2] The project of magical jurisprudence is twofold. First, MLT seeks to explain the role of law in anti-magic persecution. Second, it offers a critique and challenge of magical subordination. Magical legal theorists argue that looking at past witchcraft prosecution cases allows for a deeper apprehension of the intersection of law and magic.[3] A struggle of these theorists has been promoting religious freedom globally, particularly regarding the right to practice witchcraft and magic.
Pretext Dispossession
[edit]Pretext dispossession refers to the practice whereby one actor in a legal dispute accuses the other of witchcraft under the pretext of anti-magic morality to win the dispute.[4] Historically, witchcraft accusations often took place as a means of resolving legal disputes, particularly regarding land. The intertwining of secular and ecclesiastical doctrines in witchcraft trials provided a unique judicial venue where property disputes could be covertly settled under the guise of morality.
Intersectionality
[edit]Intersectionality says that identities intersect and enhance to produce unique experiences with subordination.[5] For example, enslaved Africans were often associated with witchcraft and were surveilled for magical behavior.[6] Similarly, women and Jewish people were also targeted and accused of practicing witchcraft.
Intellectual property
[edit]In preliterate societies, magical rituals created by practitioners functioned as a form of intellectual property.[7]
References
[edit]- ^ Mitchell, Stephen A. (2011). Witchcraft and Magic in the Nordic Middle Ages. University of Pennsylvania Press. ISBN 978-0-8122-2255-5. JSTOR j.ctt3fh7tt.
- ^ Wallace, Dale (2015). "Rethinking Religion, Magic and Witchcraft in South Africa: From Colonial Coherence to Postcolonial Conundrum". Journal for the Study of Religion. 28 (1): 23–51. ISSN 1011-7601. JSTOR 24805679.
- ^ Woodward, Walter W. (2003). "New England's Other Witch-Hunt: The Hartford Witch-Hunt of the 1660s and Changing Patterns in Witchcraft Prosecution". OAH Magazine of History. 17 (4): 16–20. doi:10.1093/maghis/17.4.16. ISSN 0882-228X. JSTOR 25163616.
- ^ "Border Disputes". Salem Witch Museum. Retrieved 2024-08-08.
- ^ Crenshaw, Kimberle (1991). "Mapping the Margins: Intersectionality, Identity Politics, and Violence against Women of Color". Stanford Law Review. 43 (6): 1241–1299. doi:10.2307/1229039. ISSN 0038-9765. JSTOR 1229039.
- ^ McMillan, Timothy J. (1994). "Black Magic: Witchcraft, Race, and Resistance in Colonial New England". Journal of Black Studies. 25 (1): 99–117. doi:10.1177/002193479402500106. ISSN 0021-9347. JSTOR 2784416.
- ^ Suchman, Mark C. (1989). "Invention and Ritual: Notes on the Interrelation of Magic and Intellectual Property in Preliterate Societies". Columbia Law Review. 89 (6): 1264–1294. doi:10.2307/1122830. ISSN 0010-1958. JSTOR 1122830.