Why is it that I hear people call magic a black art? Fifty-two cards being shuffled is a black art?

I personally like the name illusionist over magician. It seems that the word "magic" has a bad vibe to it, like something taboo, unholy or evil. I do not practice magic per se. I practice card sleights. When some people hear the word magic it seems to indicate to them you are some sort of worshiper of evil, and that's were your "power" comes from.

So why do people still call it magic?

There is a form of magic called black art. It's not what you think. We call it magic because that's the fun of it! Why did so many people go see Spiderman? That silly kid in the funny red-and-blue suit can't REALLY climb walls! Why go see him? Some people don't call it magic, and if they have another way of making what they do interesting, then fine.

I really don't think people think it's taboo, unholy, or evil except maybe some folk that live way up in the mountains and get one radio station that plays one 45-minute tape of old country like Hank Williams over and over. Sadly I think there are more people that will use the words geeky pathetic and lame, but I guess that's still a bad vibe.

Yes, I also have people telling me magic is a black art. Interestingly, black art is also a type of magic, but it's not the same as what people think. I also have a few audience came up and ask me if is magic real.

Who specifically called magic a black art? In what context?

I've occasionally run into those easily frightened types who think everything in the world is out to get them. You know the ones I mean. I think that they're unavoidable. They are always going to see something as simple as magic as evil and a tool of temptation wielded by only the blackest of devils.

Now, to be fair, many magicians are a-okay with this and may even help to perpetuate this viewpoint. And I don't blame them; it's their schtick.

But some of these people just make me laugh. I once had a lady at a carnival tell me that it was "shameful" that I had forsaken my soul so easily. I was like, "Lady! Relax! It's a frigging card trick!"

Oh, well.

Lots of ultra-religious will turn away or RUN if they see a deck of cards. They will also not allow their kids to see magic shows.

The work of the devil, you know.

I did one show where I ended up using UNO cards because "they" would not allow playing cards.

Perhaps this is the type that calls it a black art?

I'm not sure.

I remember years ago, when I was a kid, I had a neighbor ask me what some of my hobbies were. When he heard magic was one, he sat and told me how magic was evil and against the Bible and so on. I am still amazed at the people who still feel this way.

The last situation I have had personal experience with is the Harry Potter movies. All the protests and so on from a lot of people who never read the books or know how to distinguish reality from fantasy.

To answer the question, though, I believe that for the laity, most of the effects, if done properly, seem to be magical in a traditional sense.

My ex-wife's relations won't allow playing cards in their house because gambling is evil, not because of card effects being evil.

To say magic is evil is the same as me saying that gymnastics is evil! If I run on a mate and attempt to make any of the jumps you see in the Olympics I will break my neck. Thus since those people make it look so easy they must be evil.

That's the logic that a lot of people use. Since they do not know how it's done and you have fooled them and made the impossible seemingly possible they think you have powers of some sort.

Usually, I notice this trait among people who "think" they know everything, thus they assume that you cannot be that good at sleight of hand since their "superior mind" would have seen it. So it must be real and evil. To a lot of these people ignorance is bliss.

My Grandmother didn't allow my father to have cards. She called them "the devil's playthings". Until I was 18 and moved out I didn't play cards.

It wasn't that my dad didn't allow me, but because we never had any in the house so I never knew how to play any card games. I am 31 and have been doing magic for a little over a year now and doing card tricks for my dad (who is 71). It is kind of like doing card tricks for my four-year son (and he may understand more than my dad).

Until last year, my dad didn't know what pips were, the suits in a deck, or values of the cards. I asked him why my grandmother had those feelings, and he said that she believed that someone who was playing card games would eventually wind up playing for money and that was no good.

So anyway a little of my family history. When I decided I wanted to learn card magic, I couldn't even riffle shuffle a deck. It's been a long road for me, but it's been great.

Wade

Curmudgeon,

I think that is exactly why they weren't allowed in the family. I think I remember the saying that cards and gambling ruined more marriages and families, so they'll never be welcomed in our house, or something like that.

I, for one, had a father that showed me my first cards tricks and games, and it was great. He told me he learned some of them from Tommy Windsor, who was from my hometown.

I grew up with the fascination of cards and magic. Remembering back, I think dad also showed us how to play poker on a minor level, but threatened us with bodily harm if we ever played for money, so that is one thing that never happened.

I'm 39 now and have been seriously into magic for about four years now. My daughter calls me obsessed, but I am still fascinated at some of the magical effects I see and have not learned. Always hoping to turn the magical favor out to others. I'm fascinated even more that people don't see things happen when they are quite obvious to me. Magic is everywhere.

Leppy,
I wish I would have been exposed to cards at a young age. My son shows interest in magic now even at 4 years old so I will continue to show him him things and I understand that he may not fully understand cards right now but still take time to show him effects and it will help him in the long run if he is still interested in magic.
Wade

I've actually found the opposite.

When I started doing magic, I was really afraid to show some of my religious friends and family. I was really worried that they would try to "redeem" me.

I found that those who understood magic as entertainment done with "illusions" were more than willing to be entertained.

Not that I dislike being called a "magician" I prefer to be classed as just an entertainer.

There is magic (illusions) and then there is magik (Wicca/Paganism/Witchcraft). Most people against magic associate the two as one and the same. The Bible does speak out against magik but not against magic. (Unless you're using it to deceive people or start your own religion!)

How you present yourself and what it is that you're doing have a lot to do with how people perceive you. If you start pulling heads off chickens and then restoring them you're going to have a lot of people freaking out! If you look and perform like Criss Angel the same thing is going to happen. If you present yourself as an illusionist (so there's no confusion as to what you're doing) and make it clear that you don't have an special powers then you're far less likely to generate the "something's not right with that man" reactions. (Although there are always going to be those who freak out in a bad way no matter what you do.)

Craig

I agree with Pete on the entertainer moniker. I also try to refer to the illusions and such as effects, as I think it takes away from the "cheap trick" aspect of the art. But I still slip and call them tricks on occasion. I like all the input and am glad that I found the Café to see how other people see things. I am amazed at how I can see what I'm doing and it seems like everyone should be able to see it also, but don't. I find that watching their faces look in astonishment when I perform something that is second nature, brings more satisfaction than I thought it could.

Thanks again...Patrick

It's ironic that such an evil, satanic "black art" would have a thriving, popular branch devoted to Christian-themed performances.

Next time someone tells you magic is evil, lay some Gospel magic on 'em, complete with scripture references.

I have one or two effects of that sort in my repertoire just for such moments.

Frank Starsini writes: "Lots of ultra-religious will turn away or RUN if they see a deck of cards."

Lots of non-religious people will run is they see a deck of cards, too -- if they're smart! LOL!

In the UK, they differentiate between magic, which is not what we do, and conjuring, which is what we call "magic" over here.

The reason that so many people, especially those who have very primitive belief systems, associate what we do with the "black arts" is two-fold. One is that in ancient times, some people who practiced witchcraft used sleight of hand tricks and various gimmicks, as well as ventriloquism, to gain control over the populace. Another is that many have not discovered "The Discovery of Witchcraft."

Ok everyone, here's the fact of the matter:

The word "NECROMANCY" is derived from the words "NEKROS" which means "corpse" or "dead", and "MANCY" which means "divination". In essence, "the art of communicating with the dead in order to predict the future"... or "magic of the dead."

The spelling of "NECROMANCY" is a confused distortion of the Latin "NIGROMANCY" or "NIGROMANTIA" where "nigro" means "black"... hence the name "the black art".

Here endeth the lesson.

-E

I was working my way around a vaguely conservative crowd doing small close-up effects one night. I noticed that one lady was going out of her way to stay on the far side of the room. Later I caught up with her and apparently my even being in the same room with her had her terrified. I politely left her alone and there was no trouble. I never did figure out the basis in her mind for the terror that a few silly tricks were apparently causing.

Luckily, that is the closest brush I have had with that kind of paranoid world-view. I generally find overbearing dogmatism annoying, and if confronted with a "leave now or we go get the tar and feathers" type of overt threat I would probably pick at the problem until they actually did go look for tar and feathers.

Several years later and more confident in my performing personality, the trickster in me would want to turn things up until they saw how silly they were.

Then I turn on the news and find people talking seriously about Harry Potter fomenting evil. Still, it makes me want to take out a nationwide ad campaign to shout "get a life, move out of your parents basement, its just a TV show..." Wait, that already happened...

Interestingly, many of the top grossing movies and books have incredibly strong conservative messages at the same time as they disturb the conservative. Look at Harry Potter, Star Wars, Lord of the Rings, Spiderman (I and II), or even Hellboy (ok, it didn't do as well as it should have). All of these are fundamentally good vs. evil stories where conflicted characters work for the cause of Good to overcome great Evil.

I'll abandon the Soapbox now for someone else to use...