Johanna Johannsdottir Damaris
Doctoral Student
Department of Literature, History of Ideas, and ReligionAbout Johanna Johannsdottir Damaris
Johanna J. Damaris is a doctoral candidate in the history of ideas at the Department of Literature, History of Ideas and Religion at the University of Gothenburg. Her thesis examines how the concept of ‘nature’ was renegotiated in the context of early modern witchcraft, with particular focus on seventeenth-century England. The analysis seeks to bring ‘nature’ to the forefront of witchcraft narratives and to explore its conceptualisation and role within English witchcraft discourse. The study aims to deepen our understanding of early modern conceptions of nature by investigating how experiences of the natural world were represented and interpreted in connection with witchcraft. This involves examining phenomena such as weather, animals and subterranean environments as they appear in both demonological treatises and the more popular genre of pamphlets.
Johanna J. Damaris has taught courses within the Europaprogrammet (EU1110), IL1105 Miljöhistoria och ekokritik(Environmental History and Ecocriticism), and IL1101 Idéhistoriens huvudlinjer 1 (Main Currents in the History of Ideas 1).
In 2020, Damaris founded the student journal IDÉ. Tidskrift för idéhistoria (https://tidskriftenide.com/).
Johanna J. Damaris is a member of Barockakademin and ESSWE (European Society for the Study of Western Esotericism).
During 2024–2025, she served as convener of Tidigmoderna seminariet (the Early Modern Seminar) at the University of Gothenburg (https://www.gu.se/litteratur-idehistoria-religion/tidigmoderna-seminariet).
In 2025, Johanna J. Damaris received the ISCH Prize for the best conference presentation at the annual International Society for Cultural History conference in Rovaniemi, for her paper titled "Rulers of the Air: Understanding Weather in English Demonological Writings" (https://www.culthist.net/isch-prize-2025-winner/).