The Rules of Magic

Romantic love is both what threatens to destroy the Owens clan and the highest form of self-actualization and making the most of life itself. The paradox that sits at the heart of Hoffman’s universe in the Practical Magic series shows that there are no definitive answers regarding love and that each character must muddle through, following their heart, while trying to minimize the damage a romantic involvement will do.

When the Owens daughters learn about the ancestral curse and see it enacted before their eyes in the hyperbolic manner of their dates being struck by lightning, they become wary of falling in love, for the damage it will wreak on themselves and others. Jet and Frances initially vow to never fall in love in an attempt to keep everyone safe. Frances goes further and gives herself the nickname “the Maid of Thorns” who has “no heart” and prefers the company of birds to humans (77). She assumes a spiky attitude to warn potential suitors off, especially Haylin, whom she has the potential to love more than anyone. The imagery of thorns also suggests sharp protection for something tender, like a rose or a heart, and as Jet says of her sister, Frances has “the softest heart of any of us” (175), evidenced in her lifelong devotion to Haylin and her sensitivity toward Sally at the end of the novel.