Towards a pragmatic study of magic poetry

In this paper, we introduce the basic concepts needed for a pragmatic analysis of a specific kind of magic poetry, viz. Romanian love charms. We first distinguish between five types of charms: charms for love and beauty; charms for knowing one’s fated spouse; charms for bringing one’s fated spouse; charms for hate; charms for undoing hate. Our study concentrates on charm scenarios, i.e. on the instructions transmitted by charm-performers. Each charm scenario combines two sets of textual data: charm formulas (verses or poems) and charm techniques. The technique texts contain prose directions concerning the nonverbal component of the charm. After analyzing an example of each type of charms, we suggest that some rhetorical topoi of love charms (generally, metaphors) should be understood as modal indications that “guide” the magic process by illustrating its ideal result.