Looijenga stated early on in her book, that in order to understand runes, one must differentiate between the archaic and Anglo-Saxon period of the Futhark writing system (18) Imer addresses the implications of co-inflating runic artefacts from the third century and those created during the Middle ages. He points out that Northern Europe overcame many changes in-between these periods, which in no doubt has had an influence on the aesthetics and function of the Futhark language. (56) This is supported by Flowers, who explains that the Futhark became more "complex and theistic" over time (71) I believe the romantic notion that runes were connected with some occult ritual, became a self-fulfilling prophecy when they were re-appropriated for such use in later history. It can't be refuted as a result that the Futhark shares no connection with the occult, but only after the fact.