What if the Lunar Society of Birmingham was a place for enthusiasts of magic, rather than of science? The BBC miniseries “Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell” offers an alternative history of early nineteenth-century England as a time when magic was undergoing a renaissance. The series, which came out in 2015 and is available in the U.S on Netflix, has been adapted by Peter Harness from Susanna Clarke’s 2004 novel of the same name. The novel is a faux-academic treatise, larded with footnotes and bibliographical digressions that reinforced the notion that magic had “come back” and the history of its practice was a legitimate academic subject. Harness’s adaptation takes up some of the scholarly trappings of the book, and offers some fun for historians of science who might be interested in seeing some of the themes of their discipline lightly fictionalized. Mr. Norrell, brilliantly played by a splenetic Eddie Marsan in an ill-fitting powdered wig, is a wealthy magic enthusiast who seeks to become the doyen of English magic, removing it from the province of street conjurors in pointy hats and turning it into a tool of modernity and statecraft. Norrell begins his magical career by astonishing the York Society of Magic, a social club for provincial magicians reminiscent of the Lunar Society. The difference being that the Lunar Society did science, while the York magicians were “theoretical” ones, all talk. “Do you not expect an astronomer to create stars or a botanist to create new flowers?” quips one of the members when asked why these magicians do not perform magic. Gentlemen do not cast spells; they do not sully their hands with labor or perform tricks in the street. Norrell’s astonishing public proof to the York society of his magic’s efficacy made the papers, attracting Jonathan Strange. Strange (Bertie Carvel) is an idle landowner who is pushed to get a profession by his fiancée. After he is told by a mysterious vagabond that he is to be a magician, Strange discovers he has a knack for casting spells and becomes Norrell’s apprentice. The relationship between Strange and Norrell swiftly turns antagonistic, as they have two warring visions for magic’s place in modern England. Historians of science can easily see Norrell and Strange as the Antoine-Laurent Lavoisier and Joseph Priestley of magic. Like Strange and Norrell, Lavoisier and Priestley were reformers of their field of chemistry as well as originators of new theories and technologies that could be put to practical use. Norrell’s push to keep magic as the province of trained professionals runs into Strange’s interest in returning magic to the English people, in a rough

中文翻译：

---

神奇的革命

如果伯明翰月球学会是魔法爱好者而不是科学爱好者的地方怎么办？BBC 迷你剧“乔纳森·斯特兰奇和诺雷尔先生”提供了 19 世纪早期英国魔法复兴时期的另类历史。该系列于 2015 年问世，可在美国 Netflix 上观看，由彼得·哈内斯改编，改编自苏珊娜·克拉克 2004 年的同名小说。这部小说是一篇虚假的学术论文，充斥着脚注和离题的书目，强化了魔法已经“卷土重来”并且其实践历史是一门合法的学术主题的观念。Harness 的改编占据了本书的一些学术特色，并为科学史家提供了一些乐趣，他们可能有兴趣看到他们学​​科的一些主题被轻轻地虚构化。Norrell 先生由戴着不合身的粉状假发的脾气暴躁的 Eddie Marsan 出色地扮演，他是一位富有的魔术爱好者，他寻求成为英国魔术的先驱，将它从戴着尖顶帽子的街头魔术师的领地中移除，并将其变成一个现代性和治国方略的工具。诺雷尔的魔术生涯始于约克魔术协会，这是一个由省级魔术师组成的社交俱乐部，让人联想到月球协会。不同之处在于，月球学会是做科学的，而约克魔术师是“理论”的，都是空谈。“你不指望天文学家创造星星或植物学家创造新花吗？” 当被问及为什么这些魔术师不表演魔术时，其中一位成员打趣道。君子不施咒；他们不会用劳动玷污自己的手，也不会在街上耍花招。诺雷尔向约克社会证明了他的魔法功效的惊人公开证明登上了报纸，吸引了乔纳森·斯特兰奇。斯特兰奇（伯蒂·卡维尔饰）是一个闲置的地主，被他的未婚妻逼着找一份职业。在一个神秘的流浪汉告诉他他将成为一名魔术师后，斯特兰奇发现他有施法的诀窍，并成为诺雷尔的学徒。斯特兰奇和诺雷尔之间的关系迅速转变为对立，因为他们对魔法在现代英格兰的地位有两种不同的看法。科学史家很容易将诺雷尔和斯特兰奇视为魔术界的安托万-洛朗·拉瓦锡和约瑟夫·普里斯特利。与 Strange 和 Norrell 一样，Lavoisier 和 Priestley 是化学领域的改革者，也是可以付诸实践的新理论和新技术的开创者。作为受过训练的专业人士的省份，诺雷尔推动保持魔法的努力遇到了斯特兰奇将魔法归还给英国人民的兴趣，在粗糙的情况下