Pagan stereotypes in fiction

I've always been amused by some of the stereotypes of pagans in fiction and in film/television.

As a child I always felt sorry for the Wicked Witch of the West -- hey, she lost her sister to a dreaded house! I enjoyed WICKED by Gregory Maguire because he reversed the roles so perfectly.

Don't even get me started on Macbeth! Snerk. Cackle™

What are some of your favorite or not-so-favorite characterizations of the craft?

I'd love to get to know everyone here in this forum, and I thought this would be a fun ice breaker.

Cheers.

I know -- the whole but wait, there's more!!! Show our witch what she has won!!!! drives me a bit mental as well.

And as to Wicca/witchcraft being the only pagan religion focused on in lit/film/tv fiction... it's a theme embedded in the American psyche all the way from puritanical times. Even in Europe the theme of the cackling, warty witch is the first thing that folks think of when discussing pagans. Perhaps naked, frolicking druids draw some thoughts here or there. Merlin, King Arthur saw to that.

Native American spirituality, Norse, Welsh, Asian, Arab mysticism is definitely under represented.

And while I love the show Supernatural (those Winchester boys make me all a flutter), I hate the portrayal of witches on the show.

In the media, that "warlock" who was reacting to Charlie Sheen certainly didn't help the cause much either. But that's a personal hot button for me. Folks who insist on parading around covered in pentacles, black velvet, and proselytizing to any open ear, make me cringe. I suppose it's the pagan community's version of the guy on the corner shouting bible verses and waving a cardboard sign about the end of days.

Definitely all of us are on the same page! I enjoyed the novel Practical Magic. It was sweet and light with a positive portrayal of the craft.

What I've also found regarding depictions of other areas of "paganism" -- anything that's not the big three - Judaism, Christianity, Muslim -- is that the negative aspect is highlighted. Voodoo is all about hexes and curses and black magic (oh my!). The Native American stuff is usually skin walkers and wendigos.

Norse mythos is gaining popularity somewhat because of Thor. Let's pause for a moment and revel in his golden hair. Okay. Moment over.

The Kabbalah got very trendy for a while because of folks like Madonna, but I didn't see much of it translated into fiction. Or perhaps I missed it. Buddhism is very spiritual, and it's interesting when folks delve into things like the Tibetan Book of the Dead.

Personally, I rather enjoy the stereotype witch depictions, and collect as much as I can! The greener, wartier, and more pointy-hatted the better! It makes me giggle. My house is filled with all kinds of kitsch.

regdog said:

I don't like the misuse of warlock either.

Another pet peeve, all witches are lonely, ostracized outcasts.

And worse is the way our spells are presented. They are not parlor tricks or done to be special effects.

Click to expand...

What??? You mean green and blue sparks don't shoot out of your fingertips when you do magickkkkssss? heh.


People form opinions on Pagans based on what they see and read and hear.
I cringe every time someone refers to himself as a warlock. And admittedly that's why I don't socialize in a lot of pagan communities. I respect everyone's path choice too much, and I'm sure would giggle and roll my eyes when someone started in on the poser stuff. I value seekers and believers. I love discussing the aspects of paganism with folks who are genuinely interested. I have compassion for the ones desperately seeking something to be a part of (bad grammar, I know). But I have little tolerance for practitioners who are cocky, arrogant, know-it-alls who spout gobbledygook they memorized from a book or simply made up. I'm far from an expert, and the first one to admit there is much more to learn in this life. It's not my place to judge or be the PAGAN POLICE. Unless there's a cool uniform... Anyway, if you don't truly respect yourself, then how can you respect the spirituality? The spiritual journey is just that...a journey. There are many roads and many options, and you have to find your way to what works for you.

Whew. Alrighty then. Snark over and back to our thread discussion! hahaha.

Wondering why no one has piped in with a CHARMED reference. heh. Those wacky sisters and their power of three... blorf.

Medievalist said:

I'm really really tired of fiction depicting the ancient Celts, insular or continental as peace-loving agrarian ecologically sensitive and one-with-the land, matriarchal, and bless us, with vegetarian druids.

Click to expand...

Yes. Ugh. When I was lecturing on the subject I always drew gasps when I went into detail about "brain balls", and their use during battles.

The ancient Celts were fierce. And hardly vegetarian!!! I serve roast pork on Samhain in celebration of the De Danans. The Celts did have it going on with the scholar department, though.

I've enjoyed the recent (last twenty years) depictions of King Arthur as a Celt, and Merlin as a Druid.

Charles Farley said:

I know Lovecraft was inspired to come up with it, but, what was he inspired by?

Alister Crowley wrote his own version of his ideas

The christian bible is the same thing. Moral tales told by fishermen to scare their kids.

Is there a belief system for pagans . . and if there is . .who made it up?

Click to expand...

I'm not an expert, but as far as I know Lovecraft was not invested in the Cuthulhu Mythos beyond a plot device for his stories. The Necronomicon was a way of adding to the mystery : knowledge brought forth from the efforts of the Mad Arab Abdul Alhazred (which I had to look up BTW). This creation was just like what Tolkien did in creating Middle Earth.
August Derleth was responsible for the mythos expansion. Lovecraft was an atheist and a racist who suffered from night terrors as a child. His mother went insane and his father died of syphilis. Lovecraft was inspired by his own fears and nightmares, fears of the changing and scientific world, socio-economic standing, and simply his racist beliefs. He was a brilliant writer of the macabre and was also heavily influenced by his grandfather's stories and the works of Poe. You can see his love of greek and roman mythology throughout his work.

Crowley was representative of the hedonistic subculture of the time. His version of satanism was an ends to a means, and I am simply not familiar enough to comment further. His stuff is not my cup of tea.

Pagan belief systems are as broad and diverse as the bristles on a brush. The beliefs and rituals evolved from humanity's yearning to understand, anthropomorphize, and commune with the world around them. Reverence of nature and the one unifying energy of life and creation is a recurring theme throughout many forms of paganism.
Who started it? That's the million dollar question.

However a respect for all faiths is essential. While you may believe that the bible is just a book of stories created by fisherman to scare their children, that's a blanket statement that is less than kind. Almost all faiths have a kernel that contains the same message : Be kind. Rewind. Heh.

Pagans respect other people's paths. May your journey take you where you need to go. Blessed Be.