The performance of magic involves words (e.g, spells, incantations, or charms) and symbolic numbers that are thought to have innate power, natural or man-made material objects, and …

Magic realism, chiefly Latin-American narrative strategy that is characterized by the matter-of-fact inclusion of fantastic or mythical elements into seemingly realistic fiction. Among the most …

Märchen, folktale characterized by elements of magic or the supernatural, such as the endowment of a mortal character with magical powers or special knowledge; variations expose the hero to …

Oct 3, 2025 · Phenomena associated or confused with magic include forms of mysticism, medicine, paganism, heresy, witchcraft, shamanism, Vodou, and superstition. Magic is …

Magic number, in physics, in the shell models of both atomic and nuclear structure, any of a series of numbers that connote stable structure. The magic numbers for atoms are 2, 10, 18, 36, 54, …

American editor and anthologist Clifton Fadiman discusses the elements of a short story, 1980. The video features clips from Encyclopædia Britannica Educational Corporation's …

Oct 9, 2025 · Thus, in place of the traditional five elements (tattvas) of the Hindu cosmos, these Tantrists used the five m’s: mamsa (flesh, meat), matsya (fish), madya (fermented grapes, …

Magic - Supernatural, Sociological, Theories: Another line of theorists, including sociologists Durkheim and Mauss, widened the discussion by defining magic in terms of its social function.

The work ranges over three and a half centuries and includes elements of magic realism, experimenting with the narrative voice and wreaking havoc with notions of time and materiality.

It has been used throughout history as a symbol, often in magic or the occult. Its meaning has varied wildly over time, and it has functioned as a symbol of protection, of perfection, of the …