The Lady and the Beast

Abstract This book presents a critical analysis of the life and works of Frieda, Lady Harris (1877–1962), wife of Sir Percy Harris (1876–1952), Liberal MP and party Chief Whip. Although Lady Harris is acknowledged as the artist of Aleister Crowley’s Book of Thoth, this monograph is the first academic consideration of Harris’s full contribution to Western esotericism. To date, studies have focused on Harris’s role as Crowley’s artist executant, and almost exclusively from Crowley’s perspective. As argued in this study, Harris’s involvement extended far beyond the artwork itself: The Book of Thoth was a collaboration in which each partner fulfilled a variety of roles, building on Crowley’s magical theories and practices and Harris’s artistic skills and social awareness that enabled her to promote and exhibit their work as it evolved. Harris’s life before, during, and after her collaboration with Crowley is presented. The book assesses the influences that drew her to Crowley, and the impact their partnership had on her before and after his death. Using a variety of contemporary and historical written sources, including diaries and personal correspondence, this monograph seeks to establish how such an ostensibly conventional Victorian middle-class woman, married to a prominent Liberal politician, became involved with someone of Crowley’s notoriety. The study is presented within the context of British social, cultural and art history, illustrating the actual and perceived changes in women’s status during the period 1877–1962, thereby contributing to gender studies as well as esotericism in general and Crowley scholarship in particular.