Elizabethan Demonology / An Essay in Illustration of the Belief in the Existence of Devils, and the Powers Possessed By Them, as It Was Generally Held during the Period of the Reformation, and the Times Immediately Succeeding; with Special Reference to Shakspere and His Works

The essay examines Elizabethan and early post-Reformation beliefs about devils, spirits, and witchcraft, tracing theological, folkloric, and cultural causes that sustained supernatural explanations for illness, misfortune, and unexplained events. It surveys classifications and popular images of devils and fairies, disagreements among Catholics and Reformers over ghosts, possession, and exorcism, and contemporary accounts and witch trials that reinforced popular credulity. The author links these belief-systems to dramatic representation, showing how playwrights drew on folk lore and demonological texts to shape stage apparitions, witches, and temptations, and argues that understanding those media clarifies readings of the period's drama, particularly Shakespeare's plays.