
Magic and Witchcraft with Phillips Stevens
From Driven to Discover by University at Buffalo
October 7, 2025 · 21 min · Season 4 · Episode 2
About this episode
Phillips Stevens discusses his experiences with magic and witchcraft and insights from his new book on cultural anthropology.
As a Peace Corps volunteer in Nigeria in his early 20s, Phillips Stevens witnessed an act of sorcery that blew his mind. He turned that moment into a 50-year career as a cultural anthropologist at the University at Buffalo, exploring religion, spirituality and the supernatural in cultures across the world. In this episode, Stevens joins host Tom Dinki to share insights from his new book, “Rethinking the Anthropology of Magic and Witchcraft: Inherently Human.” He explains why magical thinking ...
People in this episode
Host: Tom Dinki
Guest: Phillips Stevens
Topics covered
- magic
- witchcraft
- cultural anthropology
- religion
- spirituality
- supernatural
Keywords
- sorcery
- Peace Corps
- Nigeria
- cultural anthropology
- supernatural
- religion
- spirituality
Mentioned in this episode
Organizations: University at Buffalo
Books & works: Rethinking the Anthropology of Magic and Witchcraft: Inherently Human
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