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The Triumph of the Moon  Hot PDF Print E-mail
Books Nonfiction
Written by Ben Gruagach   
Wednesday, 26 September 2007

Editor's rating
5.0
out of 5
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Book Info
ISBN-10 / ASIN: 0192854496
Author: Hutton, Ronald
Difficulty Level: Introductory

Ronald Hutton is known for his colourful and provocative writings on original subjects. This work is no exception: for the first full-scale scholarly study of the only religion England has ever given the world; that of modern pagan witchcraft, which has now spread from English shores across four continents. Hutton examines the nature of that religion and its development, and offers a microhistory of attitudes to paganism, witchcraft, and magic in British society since 1800. Its pages reveal village cunning folk, Victorian ritual magicians, classicists and archaeologists, leaders of woodcraft and scouting movements, Freemasons, and members of rural secret societies. We also find some of the leading of figures of English literature, from the Romantic poets to W.B. Yeats, D.H. Lawrence, and Robert Graves, as well as the main personalities who have represented pagan witchcraft to the world since 1950. Densely researched, Triumph of the Moon presents an authoritative insight into a hitherto little-known aspect of modern social history.

Editor review : a must-read detailing Wiccan history
Rating
5.0
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1 of 1 people found the following review helpful

The subtitle of the book is "A History of Modern Pagan Witchcraft." It is one of the best books to come out in a long time on the topic of witchcraft and Wicca, and should be required reading for anyone exploring the topic. Ronald Hutton is a Professor of History at the University of Bristol in the UK. He is not a Wiccan, but he has studied the history of Christian and pre-Christian traditions in the British Isles and is an expert on the subject. One of his previous books, "The Stations of the Sun" traces the origins of numerous festival times and practices such as those of Beltane and Samhain.

Hutton presents an engaging account, based on solid historical evidence, of the influences in British society which set the stage for Gerald Gardner's work in the 1940's and later "bringing witchcraft out of the broom closet." Hutton discusses the varied sources which went into what is known today as Wicca, clearing up some myth and misunderstanding about the religion in the process.

This book does a good job debunking the all-too-common claims made in Wicca 101 books that Wicca is a tradition which has been passed down, intact, from pre-Christian times. Although some Wiccans will be disturbed by this revelation, Hutton concludes that Wicca is indeed a valid and enriching religious path, with a lot of interesting history behind it leading to its emergence in the twentieth century, and providing a solid foundation for its growth through the twenty-first century.

There are some things that Hutton says which he's since corrected in other books and articles. For instance, he was a bit hard on the topic of ritual nudity in "The Triumph of the Moon" and admits this in his newer book, "Witches, Druids and King Arthur." Every author makes mistakes and Hutton is humble enough to admit it. Despite the minor errors "The Triumph of the Moon" is still a must-read.

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