Case file · Folklore / legend
Zora Neale Hurston's hoodoo initiations
In 1928 Zora Neale Hurston studied with hoodoo doctors in New Orleans, undergoing initiations she described in 'Hoodoo in America' (1931) and 'Mules and Men' (1935).
1928 CE · 29.96, -90.06 · status: account
The account
She named her teachers as Luke Turner, who claimed descent from Marie Laveau, and others, and recorded their rituals, spells and remedies.
The sceptical view
Scholars note she sometimes combined or changed informants for literary effect.