Wiccan witchcraft, a contemporary religion, frequently suffers from misunderstandings; the worst of which, arguably, being that it thrives in a postfeminist society. Although it remains unclear why witches, despite their specific traditions, would not immediately embrace feminism, this study claims that whether practitioners agree or disagree, they are performing feminism. In this study, I argue that Wiccan rhetoric (both discursive and non-discursive) functions epistemically to encourage feminist values. The thesis analyzes three typical forms of Wiccan rhetoric using Sonja K. Foss and Cindy L. Griffin’s approach of invitational rhetoric and the values of equality, immanent value, and self-determination. / Includes bibliography. / Thesis (M.A.)--Florida Atlantic University, 2016. / FAU Electronic Theses and Dissertations Collection

Submitted by Filipe dos Santos (fsantos@pucsp.br) on 2016-11-01T11:27:48Z No. of bitstreams: 1 Celso Luiz Terzetti Filho.pdf: 1806807 bytes, checksum: 187cff518ca2190267819f5e227c3b4f (MD5) / Made available in DSpace on 2016-11-01T11:27:48Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Celso Luiz Terzetti Filho.pdf: 1806807 bytes, checksum: 187cff518ca2190267819f5e227c3b4f (MD5) Previous issue date: 2016-09-19 / Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior / Created in England at the end of the first half of the twentieth century Wicca was widespread in the United States from the 60's, and in Brazil from the end of the 90s. Based on the works of the founder, Gerald B. Gardner, productions of American and Brazilian groups as well as field observations in Brazil and the United States, this study sought to identify the elements and ideas that contributed to the deterritorialization of religion and its reception in different contexts. Our thesis is that through the combination of two project identities Wicca previously restricted to a nationalist interpretation has been reoriented to a global context / Surgida na Inglaterra no final da primeira metade do século XX a Wicca foi amplamente difundida nos Estados Unidos a partir da década de 60, e no Brasil a partir do final da década de 90. Partindo da análise das obras do fundador, Gerald B. Gardner, das produções de grupos estadunidenses e brasileiros, bem como observações de campo no Brasil e nos Estados Unidos, esta pesquisa buscou identificar os elementos e ideias que contribuíram para a desterritorialização da religião e sua recepção em diferentes contextos. Nossa tese é a de que através da articulação de duas identidades de projeto a Wicca antes restrita a uma interpretação nacionalista foi reorientada para um contexto global

Made available in DSpace on 2016-04-25T19:20:14Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Ana Carolina Chizzolini Alves.pdf: 11558279 bytes, checksum: cd623a65eec9ca5df0e2639eab694153 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2011-05-23 / Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior / The aim of the present research is to examine the relations established between corporeality and Wicca the modern witchcraft. Such relations can be explored due to a new imaginary of the body, originated from the western society history, with the advent of Modernity, and still developed nowadays. This new imaginary goes a long way toward new religious movements known as The New Age. The so-called New Age represents a sort of fertile ground upon which new religions, from a tradition-based perspective, have steadily strengthened and established in the western part of the world, combining oriental symbols, mixing beliefs freely and promoting creativity among their followers. This is the case of Wicca, which is presented as old witchcraft merging into everyday urban elements. Wicca is closely related to a religion of corporeality because, in the same way as a New Age moviment, the body is viewed as the core of practice, and a means of social transformation Wicca aims at. Ecological, psychological and corporeal transformation, making its followers´ bodies a magical extension of nature / Esta pesquisa tem como objetivo analisar as relações tecidas entre Corporeidade e Wicca a bruxaria moderna. Entendemos que tais relações são possíveis devido à construção de um novo imaginário do corpo, advindo da história da sociedade ocidental, na chegada da modernidade e desenvolvido em nossos dias. Este novo imaginário se constrói e se legitima no espaço dos Novos Movimentos Religiosos que chamamos de Nova Era. Este espaço, a Nova Era, é o lugar promissor de desenvolvimento das novas religiões que, com uma roupagem antiga, se fortaleceram e se estabeleceram no Ocidente combinando símbolos orientais, mesclando crenças com muita liberdade e promovendo a criatividade de seus adeptos. Este é o caso da Wicca, que se apresenta como uma antiga arte de bruxaria e hoje é praticada adaptando-se confortavelmente aos elementos urbanos do cotidiano. Falar de Wicca é falar de uma religião de corporeidade porque, assim como uma religião de Nova Era, o corpo está no centro das práticas e é instrumento para a realização da transformação social que a Wicca pretende alcançar. Transformação ecológica, psicológica e corporal, fazendo do corpo de seus adeptos e adeptas uma extensão mágica da natureza

Made available in DSpace on 2016-04-25T19:20:19Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Celso Luiz Terzetti Filho.pdf: 1284343 bytes, checksum: 87a3503abceaa7b50093c806b47c799c (MD5) Previous issue date: 2012-04-03 / Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior / This dissertation examines the history of Wicca, a religious system created by Gerald Gardner in England in the late 40th through three of his works that deal specifically with its conception of witchcraft, " High Magic s Aid" (1949) "Witchcraft Today" (1954) and "The Meaning of Witchcraft" (1959). Within a perspective that takes into account your inspirations for the creation of a system resulting from their original religious movement as a seeker in the occult milieu of his time, we seek to understand Wicca as a religious system through a counter cultural interpretation. Thus this work asks in what sense the works of Gardner is a historical product of their social time. Our hypothesis is that his works are a product of the social history of postwar England to the extent that Gardner, in constructing his conception of witchcraft in his works, appropriated counter-trend to compose a countercultural religious system / Esta dissertação analisa a história da Wicca, um sistema religioso criado por Gerald Gardner na Inglaterra em fins da década de 40, através de três de suas obras que tratam especificamente de sua concepção de bruxaria, Com o auxílio da Alta Magia (1949), A Bruxaria Hoje (1954) e O Significado da Bruxaria (1959). Dentro de uma perspectiva que leva em consideração suas inspirações para a constituição de um sistema religioso original resultante de sua circulação como um seeker dentro do milieu ocultista de sua época, busca-se entender a Wicca como um sistema religioso através de uma interpretação contra cultural. Sendo assim este trabalho questiona em que sentido as obras de Gardner são um produto histórico social de seu tempo. Nossa hipótese é a de que suas obras são um produto histórico social da Inglaterra do pós-guerra na medida em que Gardner, ao construir sua concepção de bruxaria em suas obras, apropriou-se de tendências contraculturais para compor um sistema religioso contracultural

This essay aims to provide an analysis of three wiccan bloggers descriptions of their religious lives. Namely how they present the relationship between wicca and nature, and whether nature conservation and environmental issues are described as religious activities and if the language makes use of religious arguments.  In an attempt to present a selection of core concepts shared by the bloggers that could be used for educational purposes. The essay first gives an introduction to the topic, followed by its aims and research questions. It then presents the methods and theory used. Which is a mixture between Fairclough's (1995) critical discourse analysis and the descriptions of content analysis of Alan Bryman (2012). Following is a presentation of the research field surrounding wiccan religious practice, wicca for educational purposes and also research discussing the core concepts of wiccan religious practice. The results and analysis are both presented in a three part structure based upon the mixture of methods used. Where the word analysis is first presented, followed by content and later a qualitative analysis. Lastly the essay concludes with a didactical reflection and the conclusion of the essay. The didactical reflection aims to provide thoughts on the validity of the results place in education and to argue the importance of wiccan education. The conclusion of this essay determines that there are a core concepts that link the bloggers in their descriptions of their religion and that the language used surrounding environmental issues and nature preservation are deeply intertwined with religious arguments and themes.

The purpose of this essay is to concisely present an overview of the Pagan ritual practice before the Christianization of Ireland and the United Kingdom, which enables tracking down the connection and relationship between them and three American and British, Wiccan Youtube-creators nicknamed Witchtubers. Witchtuber’s description of Samhain and objects visible in chosen videos are analyzed from Christopher Partridge’s theory of Occulture along with the parameters of acceptance, harmonization and the centralization of Goddess-worship concluded by previous studies. Also causes of the development of Neo-Paganism and Wiccain the U.K. and USA have been a part of this research in being able to further draw connections between today’s practice amongst Witchtubers and previous research. In able to do this, Content analysis has been applied to the transcriptions made by the author of this essay in order to analyze the parameters of reference-features, proportional and thematic content. In conclusion, the analysis of Witchtuber’s videos along with previous research by scholars confirm the theory of Occulture along with the question of acceptance and harmonization though leaving the question of Goddess-centering as more of a possibility of representing the mere majority of practitioners. Fragmented pieces of information about the Pagan past is left and scholars claim Irish and British Paganism to have been extinct since the overthrow by Christians. It has left the practitioners of Wicca with their own interpretation and manipulation of Paganism. Witchtuber’s statements and showcasing of objects match scholar’s descriptions of historical context to the development of the Wiccan movement apart from a few exceptions. Those which cannot be directly connected rather indicate the continuous development of the movement as of being a personal religion.

The musical neo-matriarchy is linked to the growing popularity of Neo-Paganism. This pseudo-religious scene is based on romantic heritage, real or invented folk traditions and more or less serious historical, theological and anthropological studies of neo-matriarchy. In the focus of the scene stands the veneration of the Great Goddess and its worshipers are exclusively women. The main ideas of this eco-feminist movement are being conveyed also through (popular) music. My contribution encompasses the origins of the musical neo-matriarchy, the mythology it is based on, the message of the songs for the Great Goddess, the musical characteristics of the material collected, the use of typical instruments, and the dissemination of (musical) knowledge as the rather ‘modern’ way of distribution and consumption of the allegedly ‘archaic’ issues.

<p>My essay is a description about the religion Wicca; laws, ethics, history, rites, inauguration and how they relate to the gods and the different seasons.It’s also about the wiccan history and how wicca have created their own history by taking old mythic stories and making them their legacy.</p>

My essay is a description about the religion Wicca; laws, ethics, history, rites, inauguration and how they relate to the gods and the different seasons.It’s also about the wiccan history and how wicca have created their own history by taking old mythic stories and making them their legacy.

Too often women have a secondary place in religious institutions, with no possibility to influence or come into leading positions. This thesis aims to understand women’s empowerment by searching for such examples in Neo-Paganism, a growing New Religious Movement (NRM) in the west. Grace Jantzen’s development of Foucault’s power theory is utilized to analyze and understand the results. A mixed method is used; four interviews are conducted with Wiccan and Druid women, a survey of 332 women is analyzed, and literature and studies on Neo-Paganism are analyzed. I draw the conclusion that Neo-Paganism can empower women in different ways, however, this can be influenced by socio-cultural factors, as empowerment can look very different in different countries. The result is meant to provide us with an understanding of women’s needs in a religious and spiritual context, so that women may become empowered within their religious communities.