Board Thread:General Discussion/@comment-24722049-20151003205534/@comment-26145872-20160204182515

Well, there are multiple reasons as to why many people, the Redguards and Nords in particular, see magic as weak.

First and foremost, almost all races of Men, excluding the Bretons, who posess Elven blood, are not magically attuned to the arcane arts as Mer are. There have indeed been many Nords or other humans who went on to become incredibely powerful mages, but they are few and far between when compared to Mer. As opposed to magical affinity, the races of Men instead posess great physical strength, hardy constitutions, and great endurance, which naturally make then excellent melee fighters. Because of this natural ability, the races of Men take advantage of this by excelling at traditional warfare.

However, this does not mean the race of Men oppose the use of magic completely. Since the race of Men first discovered magic in ancient times, they have indeed used it, particularly by those who posessed rare talent in magic typically seen only by those with Elven blood. To name a few examples of talented human mages, there is, of course, the legendary Atmoran mage known as Ahzidal. There is also the Nord mage known as Tolfdir residing at the College of Winterhold in Skyrim, who is not only the master of Alteration at the College, but he also becomes Master Wizard after the College's questline has been completed, clearly showing that he is one of the rare few who posess great talen in magic, which is typically seen, again, only by those with Elven blood.

For the Nords in particular, they were apparently fond of Frost spells, as seen by the Draugr, who are ancient Nords risen from the dead. When encountered, these Draugr are indeed capable of using this magic against you. As for the Redguards, it is known that they are fond of Destruction spells, due to the fact that these spells in particular compliment the war-like culture and lifestyle of the Redguards well.

No doubt the largest impact on false prejudice towards magic has been caused by past events in Tamriel's history. In particular, past events caused by Mer have created this prejudice, due to the fact that, because Mer are typically associated with magic, they have given magic a poor reputation among Men, the Nords and Skyrim in particular. Additionally, the Great Collapse in Winterhold only served to strengthen this prejudice towards magic users due to the fact that, after the Great Collapse ended leaving most of Winterhold completely destroyed, the College is the only thing which was practically untouched by the natural disaster, leading some Nords to believe that the College is responsible for the disaster, but the College denies this.

The Oblivion Crsis which crippled Tamriel with hordes of Daedra was partially caused by magic users known as the Mythic Dawn, who worship the Daedra known as Mehrunes Dagon, and had a significant role in causing the Crisis. Because the Oblivion Crisis caused such a large amount of damage, and the fact that magic was involved in causing said Crisis, false prejudice rose to unprecedented heights as a result, causing many mages to be met with prejudice, if not outright hostility and aggression. This also lead to further hate towards Mer, who are, again, often associated with magic users due to their Elven blood, which is naturally attuned towards magic.

And finally, take in the troubles now in the Fourth Era between the Empire and the Aldmeri Dominion, who are both comprised of Mer and magic users. When one considers all of this, it is easy to understand why the races of Men feel the way they do about magic.