Demon Lovers

467 Pages·2003·18.283 MB·English

by  Walter Stephens

DEMON ioyEl{S

DEMON L0 yE US
Witchcraft, Sex, and
the Crisis of Belief
WALTER STEPHEMS
THE UNIVERSITY OF CHICAGO PRESS CHICAGO AND LONDON
The University of Chicago Press, Chicago 60637
The University of Chicago Press, Ltd., London
© 2002 by The University of Chicago
All rights reserved. Published 2002
Paperback edition 2003
Punted in the United States of America
11 10 09 08 07 06 05 04 03 2345
ISBN: 0-226-77261-6 (cloth)
ISBN: 0-226-77262-4 (paperback)
Title page illustration: Devil Seducing Witch, illustration for Uluch Miillcr
(Molitons), Von den Unholden und Hexen (Konstanz, [1489?]).
Library of Congress Cataloging-m-Publication Data
Stephens, Walter, 1949-
Dcmon lovers : witchcraft, sex, and the cnsis of belief / Walter Stephens.
p. cm.
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 0-226-77261-6 (alk. paper)
1. Witchcraft and sex—History. 2. Demonology—History. 3. Trials
(Witchcraft) I. Title.
BF1572.S4 S74 2002
133-4*09—dezi
2001043393
@ The paper used in this publication meets the minimum requirements of
the Amencan National Standard for Information Sciences—Permanence of
Paper for Punted Library Materials, ANSI Z39.48-1992.
I a
For Janet and Catherine

She said something even stranger,
Which causes me great horror:
That the Devil became a man
And took ardent lustful pleasure
With her. Oh, God, what horror!
Great God, what a strange couple!
O true God, Jesus, what a transgression!
The woman is married to the Devil!
—Martin Lefranc, Le Champion des dames (1441)
L
CONTENTS
List of Illustrations xi
Acknowledgments x i i i
Note on Translations xv
Introduction: Sex Fiends
i Witchcraft Theory: Copulation with Demons as Carnal
Knowledge 1 3
2 Why Women? The Malleus tnalejicaruni 32
3 Sexy Devils: How They Got Bodies 5 8
4 Incredible Sex: Confronting the Difficulty of Belief 87
5 From Dreams to Reality: Why Witches Fly 125
6 Experiments with Witches 145
7 The Theory of Witchcraft Power 180
8 “This Is My Body”: Witches and Desecration 207
9 Witches, Infanticide, and Power 241
10 Illusion and Reality, Part One: Crib Death and
Stealthy Cats 277
I I Illusion and Reality, Part Two: Witches Who Steal Penises 300
12 Interview with the Demon: From Exorcism to
Witchcraft
13 Witchcraft, Body, and Soul 343
Conclusion: Talking around the Unspeakable 365
Notes j 75
Works Cited 421
Index 44}