Abrakadabra – The demonic origin of the illusion

The literary texts refer to theoretical writings in which the devil and his influence on people are the focus. These are also called demonological treatises and were written in France around 1580–1610 during the witch hunts. The Démonomanie (1580) by Jean Bodin, for example, served as the legal basis for witch trials. These treatises were also read to protect one’s own soul from the harmful influence of the devil. Here one could learn in which situations the devil could be suspected as the originator of mirages and deceptions. These writings also conveyed magical knowledge, so that one could avoid the magician who used the devil to create illusions. The fascinating potential of evil is often revealed in the way the devilish material is presented.

This also applies to the theatre: many plays from the French pre-modern period are characterised by the appearance of magician figures who seem to conjure up a devilish effect. To what extent do the authors play with the audience’s demonological ideas? How do the plays’ dialogues respond to the demonisation of the magician on the one hand and the criticism of the theatre space as a place of magical-devilish effects on the other? In this tense exchange of demonological knowledge and theatrical staging, a pre-modern ‘different’ aesthetic can be discovered. An example of this is a scene from Nicolas de Montreux’s Arimène ou le berger désespéré.

Here you can hear how Arimène, together with the old shepherd Ermage and the jester servant Furluquin, visit the magician Circiment. He hopes that with his help he will be cured of his lovesickness. Circiment shows him the incredibly devilish wonders of his magic...

If you follow the dialogue between Circiment and Furluquin, you will notice that the magician and the wise jester seem to talk past each other. Furlequin connects Circiment's magic with the devil, but Circiment himself seems to be blind to the diabolical origin of his magic and ignores Furlequin's caustic comments. The latter indirectly accuses Circiment of hubris several times. And Circiment does indeed claim godlike power: for example, when he conjures up snakes like Moses (Exodus 7) or when he makes himself master of the elements by wanting to make eternal water spring from a rock. He also puts himself on the same level as the Christian son of God, whose baptismal order he wants to carry out (John 4:10). And when the magician wants to tear open the earth, this can be read as a parallel to the supernatural earthquake at the resurrection of Jesus (Matthew 27:52).

This (self-)staging of Circiment becomes recognisable in the context of the demonological treatises as the perfidious power of the Antichrist and the devil, because “Satan can transform himself not only into an angel of light, but into a man of light who would like to become God if he could, and who would like to seduce the elect [...] with his false miracles” (Pierre Le Loyer, Historie des spectres). The audience can thus uncover Circiment’s demonic traits in the stage play and declare him, along with Furluquin, to be devilish. This is how contemporary criticism of the magician figure is expressed: Circiment’s hubris is exposed and serves as an example of sacrilegious behaviour that puts all the shepherds who idolise him as a “holy father” and hope to get help from him in their love troubles in a dubious light.

Furluquin’s foolish perspective as a jester makes it possible to defuse the fear of Circiment’s power and its magical effect, which was a real threat to the contemporary audience in the theatre. With the help of the jester figure, the audience can expose Circiment’s illusion for what it is. The staged magic is expressed in clichéd, increasingly pointed and repetitive incantations that reveal the magician as a master of language. Ultimately, however, at Montreux it is the audience themselves who decide whether they accept Furluquin’s criticism or consider the foolish jester himself to be unbelievable.

The lustful play with the diabolical ideas of magic and the moral evaluation of these shows the ambivalent fascination with evil. The audience may have been repelled and educated by this ambivalent game, but they were certainly also attracted.

And today? Even if the specific reference to the devil is rarely made explicit, the belief in diabolical superpowers continues to exist in various ways. A look at the conspiracy theories of our time shows that the belief that state or political authorities are in league with diabolical powers is fundamental and therefore still relevant.

The QAnon movement serves “all the needs that made people feel attracted to conspiracy myths in the first place” (Tagesspiegel “A conspiracy belief is spreading around the world”, September 6, 2020). The founder claims to be a US official who knows state secrets. In his messages published online under a pseudonym, he reports “about an apocalyptic battle [...] in secret”. The elites who are to be fought in this alleged battle are demonised and proclaimed to be “Satanists, paedophiles and Jews” who strategically abuse children. Q’s followers see themselves as knowing saviours who want to eliminate these satanic rulers. A particularly explosive issue lies in the possible connection between former US President Donald Trump and these conspiracy circles.

Overall, the QAnon movement draws connections between people’s fears and demonisations of politicians and other elites. However, the demonisations are not used to expose illusions. Rather, they serve to manipulate: whether the fear of COVID-19 or dissatisfaction with the political elite – the demonic deception serves as an explanation for the unknown and unwanted. Within the framework of conspiracy theories, the supposed exposure of the demonic pursues its own goals.

The more or less explicit association of leading figures with dark powers is therefore fundamental to conspiracy theories, but why is that? And what points of contact does demonological knowledge offer in this context in conjunction with the staging of magician figures on the French stage? A few thoughts to listen to...