Who Believes in Belief?

Who Believes in Belief? William Pooley (bio) modernity, belief, alief, doubt, Jason Josephson Storm, Michael Saler, Jeanne Favret-Saada, Nils Bubandt The "disenchantment of the world" remains a guiding metanarrative for many histories last four hundred years Europe. There are those who continue to argue what Keith Thomas called general "decline magic," even if they disagree about chronologies and causes.1 Yet there is enduring evidence that magic never went away. In fact, specialist literatures on modern illuminism, esotericism, Hermeticism, Mesmerism, Spiritualism, occultism, ritual magic, Paganism now so extensive historians might struggle identify period recent history when supernatural beliefs were not experiencing some kind "revival." Summarizing sociological investigations, Josephson-Storm has pointed out belief "paranormal" phenomena, including ghosts, witchcraft, or UFOs norm rather than exception European societies today.2 For both process disenchantment inherently "self-refuting, producing very thing it describes as endangered, animating occult revivals, [End Page 371] paranormal new attempts spiritualize sciences."3 Even authors most critical disenchantment, decline meta-narrative, but one must be supplemented with an understanding always engenders revival. I want propose more fundamental critique. Disenchantment itself depends under-conceptualized term: belief. Do today know we mean our ancestors "believed" claim do not? Is "belief" correct term talking about? among us believes belief? And consequences abandon Belief impossible yet alluring historical subject. persistent tradition study calls scholars believe As Stuart Clark argued over twenty ago, have often struggled protagonists early witch hunts really believed witchcraft.4 was only researcher suggest functionalist arguments social tensions—around labor, poverty, gender, family, sexuality—that lay behind witch-hunting tend direct historians' attention away from fact: communities hunted witches because feared witchcraft.5 This call can traced back Thomas's Religion Decline Magic witchcraft "self-confirming" "system thought." 6 More examples include Water's survey Britain since eighteenth century, which argues "[w]itchcraft like religious faith scientific common-sense theory how world works. It imaginative, uncanny wishful way thinking. . willed belief."7 others—as Bruno Latour out—is characteristic self-consciously "Modern" Eurocentric worldview.8 372] But hard enough truly understand living interlocutor "believes," let alone long dead. danger believing just much risk reifying complex contradictory attitudes into coherent dogmas. Has ever been systematic "Moderns" believed? On closer inspection, referred turns belief-like, belief-ish. properly, anthropologists philosophers "beliefs" studied "doubts," "aporias," "aliefs"—terms explain below. instance, system thought, shared diverse groups societies? Leaving aside old debates around "popular" "elite" cultures, worth simply noting inconsistent. anthropologist Favret-Saada borrowed phrase psychoanalyst Octave Mannoni summarize villagers Normandy 1970s she lived talked witchcraft: "je sais bien. mais quand-même" ("I well [that witchcraft...