Medieval Anxiety Towards Magic: An Analysis of the Fantastic Mode in 'St. Austin at Compton' and 'St. Erkenwald'

Todorov’s Introduction à la littérature fantastique (1970) sparked an eclectic, enduring debate, and its applicability to medieval literature has often been the object of scholarly investigation. This article adapts Todorov’s theory of the fantastic for the analysis of two Middle English saint’s legends, namely the adespota St. Erkenwald and John Lydgate’s St. Austin at Compton. Specifically, it explores the spectators' reactions to a supernatural phenomenon prior to the revelation of the event's divine causation. By examining the broader theme of magic in the Middle Ages and the complexity of its categorization, this study highlights how the audience's hesitation stems from the fear of potential demonic influence, particularly evident in Lydgate's text. It also investigates hesitation within sources and analogues of the two Middle English poems to assess the originality of these vernacular works in relation to the Latin tradition. This study ultimately demonstrates the valuable applicability of Todorov’s theory of the fantastic to the study of medieval literatures, and of these two poems specifically, enhancing our understanding of the contextual factors that influenced their composition.