French Literature Reviews - 2026

Amy Wygant, Recent Publications on Witchcraft
History, Politics and Society

Recent publications by Amy Wygant on witchcraft.

· Medea, Magic, and Modernity in France: Stages and Histories, 1553-1797. Ashgate, 2007,

· Ed. The Meanings of Magic from the Bible to Buffalo Bill. Oxford and New York: Berghahn Books, 2006.

· Ed. ‘Stagecraft and Witchcraft'. Forum for Modern Language Studies, special issue. 2007.

Amy Wygant has established herself as a significant scholar in the interdisciplinary study of magic, theatricality, and early modern French culture. Her monographs and edited collections examine how supernatural themes, witchcraft, and classical mythologies were staged, interpreted, and transformed across centuries. By bridging the gap between literary studies, cultural history, and performance, this body of research sheds light on the complex anxieties surrounding modernity and the occult in European tradition.

These publications serve as essential resources for scholars, researchers, and students interested in early modern French literature, theatrical history, and the shifting definitions of magic from the Renaissance to the Enlightenment. They offer rigorous theoretical frameworks and detailed historical contextualization, making them particularly valuable for those investigating the intersections of gender, power, authority, and spectacle in pre-modern and modern European societies.