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Life in Puritan New England was controlled by piety and toil. Devoting their lives to worshipping God, hard work and the belief in predestination was an existence most Puritans stoically accepted; they had, after all, gone there to carve out new lives. Beneath the surface of most settlements in Puritan New England, however, coursed dark currents of “immorality”. Witches and witchcraft in Puritan New England were not some wild superstition but a serious expression of disorder embedded in Puritans’ view on politics, religion and law. This seminar aims at looking at the roots of witchcraft in Puritan New England and the traces this rather dark chapter of early American history has left until the present times. We will discuss key texts and other media to get a closer understanding of events such as the Salem Witch Trials. Furthermore, we will look at concepts like gender and patriarchy to find reasons why many of those accused of witchcraft were women.
The material used in this class will be made available via Moodle. Information how to access Moodle will follow in the first session of the seminar. |
