Woman, thy name is witch

The Malleus Maleficarum is one of those texts that, when I was reading it, I was thinking that it deserved to have its own blog post. So…TA-DA! Here it is.

The thing that struck me the most about the text was how misogynistic it was. Many of the past texts that we read targeted women, but never to this scale that the Malleus Maleficarum reached. To me, the other texts referred to witches as being either men or women. And looking back, we can sort of see a slow evolution from men and women being involved in witchcraft to rampant misogyny. In this text, witches are identified primarily as women. Heinrich Kramer and Jacob Sprenger, the authors of the Malleus Maleficarum, say that “a wicked woman is by her nature quicker to waver in her faith, and consequently quicker to abjure the faith, which is the root of witchcraft” (Kors and Peters 185). This statement shows that they believe that a woman is not dependable or able to be faithful, so therefore a woman is more likely to turn to witchcraft.

Kramer and Sprenger use a lot of historical “facts” and Biblical sources to back their claims up. At one point, they bring up ancient history with their claims that “The kingdom of the Jews suffered much misfortune and destruction through the accursed Jezebel, and her daughter Athalia…who caused her son’s sons to be killed, that on their death she might reign herself…Therefore it is no wonder if the world now suffers through the malice of women.” (187) It’s really easy to take historical events out of context, as these two so obviously did just so they could point the finger at women in general.

And, of course, Heinrich and Sprenger have to bring up the sexuality of women. They say that “All witchcraft comes from carnal lust, which is in women insatiable.” (188) And then they whip out a Biblical quote from Proverbs and conclude: “Wherefore for the sake of fulfilling their lusts they consort even with devils. More such reasons could be brought forward, but to the understanding it is sufficiently clear that it is no matter for wonder that there are more women than men found infected with the heresy of witchcraft.” (188) Oh, well, doesn’t that just make absolute, complete sense! When I was reading this, all I could think was: “Wow, they clearly put a lot of thought and effort to this! And this makes perfect sense to them!”

Anyway, the reason I bring up this sexuality of women is that the authors went into is so extensively that I was just kind of surprised, and I felt like it definitely needed a mention.

 

Kors, Alan Charles and Edward Peters. Witchcraft in Europe: 400-1700. Philadelphia, PA: University of Pennsylvania Press. 2001. Print.

Necromancy Performers: Clerics, Necromancers, and the Lady Down the Street Baking Brownies.

Sadly I missed our last class due to working at the great store of American Eagle. The only thing magical thing there is the awesome underwear collection :)
ANYWAY. I wanted to make my statement disagreeing that clerics were the "right sort of people" to perform necromancy. Frankly, I disagree with this statement. In our book by Kieckhefer on page 152, it states necromancy was explicitly demonic magic. It also say that all other forms of magic were taken as implicitly demonic. A necromancer comes in direct contact with demons or the Devil. Clearly, necromancy was the WORST type of magic to dabble in, regardless who you were. Even though clerics were trained and taught to deal with this dark magic, this magic is so evil, no one is safe from it.
The best solution to this problem is not to use this magic. No one. No clerics, no necromancers, not even the old lady baking down the street. If no one messes with the darkness of this magic, the world would have been such a better place.
Lets say we have this great cleric that has mastered the skills of dominating necromancy. He has performed many exorcisms and is on the top of his game. This guy is good. However, in his training he learned of these mysterious "evil" books that supposedly give a necromancer even more "power". This well trained man of course gets curious and decides to read these magical books. This man has now doomed himself. On page 155 of Kieckhefer, he says that it is this curiosity that kills these "good" clerical men. Just reading and performing the rituals in these books would gain these men a one way ticket to the clerical underworld.

Clearly we know the lesson to be learned here. Don't perform necromancy.
(Insert Mean Girls quote: "You will get pregnant and die").


                                 This is totally the old woman who bakes down the street!

                                                      
https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqHBhjoIt5M5GFtO9lI12eisOfd5Eq3CGCRRH7s8xD16SZbWlyB5DhGIn-JIrU2hTJGL-j6uvuwyD2x6vqhT_uF9okvPR_8gJLqXPqhLee_Fi9dRxgGT_Y-ZHbDeVEooJVL0Zy6Pm310I/s400/Crazy_Old_Lady_Peace.jpg

Was he just paranoid or was it real?

                                          Anyone else think Martin Luther was paranoid?

How did Martin Luther become a influential leader when it seems to me that he was just paranoid. He believed the devil was watching him. If a women claimed she was hearing voices and seeing devilish figures, she would be claimed a witch and probably killed. What did Martin Luther do right? I might be the only one to think Martin Luther was paranoid but in chapter eight, there are multiple examples that convinced me Martin Luther was paranoid. on Page 259, the author briefly mentions that Martin cited his person encounters with the devil. The author goes on to page 261, where he mentions that Martin feared the devil was going after the public too. No where in the text does it say if anyone questioned his reasoning though. To me, Martin probably was schizophrenic and was in a delusional state. I only say this because he says he was assaulted by the devil yet he was able to overcome the devils powers and stay true to God. If the devil wanted to get Martin Luther to gain him as a follower, there is multiple ways Satan could have approached Martin (323). So why is it that Martin Luther only encountered Satan but did not turn to the dark side? So I am asking you classmates and professor, why did no one question if Martin Luther was paranoid or how he was able to overcome Satan's powers? 

Women Are Wicked Because They Have Vaginas

Chapter Six in our Witchcraft book was kind of crazy. And by "kind of", I mean a lot.
One of my favorite quotes was one the presenters used on page 183: "All wickedness is but little to the wickedness of a woman." What we can learn from this quote: Women are wicked. Women are more wicked than the devil. The mere fact that they are women makes them crazy, therefore they must be wicked and do magical things.

lucyspearls.com 

(I apologize if this picture offends anyone.)

 

Women are created in a defective manner because they are "formed from a bent rib" and that is "in a contrary direction to a man" (Kors/Peter, 184). Oh, that makes sense. Men are perfect beings, so women must be the crazy ones who do evil things just for fun. NEVER MIND THAT THE DEVIL IS A MAN. Or does he not count because he goes against mankind? Oh, never mind. Basically, men can do no harm. Therefore, in my mind, all men must be Ryan Gosling.

 

poodlestalkers.blogspot.com 

Now, is that really the case? I think not. This section of the book loves to explain how women are inferior to men and that's why they are more susceptible to practicing magic. But where does their information come from? Women are "more credulous" than men, they are "naturally more impressionable" and have "slippery tongues" (Kors/Peter, 183). Slippery tongues? Really? Women like to gossip which means they must practice magic. Makes perfect sense. Did Kramer and Sprenger do research on this topic? Or did they just look at the people around them and decide men are superior to women? I'm voting for the latter. This whole chapter focuses on the imperfections of women, which implies that men are better than women because, remember, women are created in the opposite direction of men. We all know the reality of the situation:

 

 

www.wolfescape.com 

 

Lillith, Adam's First Wife

 So after hearing about Lilith in class the other day I decided to find out the whole story behind her as I became quite curious. After doing a bit of background, I found there are a couple different versions of the story and how everything happened. In one version she is a demon who murders babies, much like the witches we heard about in class. Another version she is a succubus who gives men wet dreams, another scenario much like the witches we talked about in class. She was a goddess in one story, and then became Wife of Death. Some stories even turned her into a good guy by making her a model for oppressed womanhood. The one I decided to look at closer was the one most commonly accepted and dates around the medieval ages, which I thought was perfect for our class.

  The story starts off with God creating Adam from dust and clay. But as Adam is the only person, he gets a little lonely. God hears Adam's woe and decides to create Lilith from the same dust and clay he created Adam from. When Lilith was first created however, she and Adam fought often. Adam tried to rule over Lilith as he was the alpha male, Lilith did not like this one bit. Lilith demanded she be treated as an equal since she was in fact created from the same dust and clay as Adam was. Lilith got fed up with Adam and his domineering ways, so she left the Garden. God sent three angels to chase Lilith and bring her back to the Garden, but when they caught Lilith, she refused to go back. Lilith then claimed that she would kill children and babies to get back at Adam. The angels then proceeded to overpower Lilith and demanded that she not kill children and babies. Lilith, being inferior to the angels, decided to strike a deal with the angels. Lilith would not harm any children or babies as long as the mother hung an amulet around their neck with the names of the three angels. This amulet would tell Lilith to stay away from that household as it would be guarded by the angels (heh get it "guarded by angels," they are guardian angels, ha hilarious, the story didn't say that specifically but I put it in there because I liked the idea, okay back to story time) So seeing how Lilith turned out, God decided to make a new woman to be Adam's mate. This time he did not make her from the same materials as Adam so she could not claim to be equal. God decided to make this new woman from Adam's rib. This woman, of course as we all know, was named Eve. But Lilith still flew around the world, looking for babies to kill, and swearing vengeance upon men. They say she would howl through the night, giving her the nickname "The Howling One."

Magic vs. Magick

Magic as defined by Webster’s Dictionary: a power that allows people (such as witches and wizards) to do impossible things by saying special words or performing special actions.

Magic: what is it?  It has been described as many things: miracles, curses, hexes, alchemy, and knowledge.  All to some extend are true and the answer will greatly depend on whom you ask.  For the most part magic through the years has had a negative connotation with it and that is because it was closely associated with witches: a group of people who were persecuted, tormented, and murdered throughout history because of their different beliefs.  It is only through recent advancements such as Harry Potter or Kiki’s Delivery Service that the view of witches has begun to change.   

However, there is a fact about the word magic that I did not find in the books.  While discussing Wicca (a religion that is closely associated with use of magic) with a High Priestess I am acquainted with, she asked if I was aware of the different spellings of the word magic.  Upon hearing that I was not, she went on to explain. 

“Magic is what is known as parlor tricks or deceptions.  Magick – also sometimes spelled Magik – is the embodiment of energy cast within a spell.” 

By learning this, I have discovered that a new level to the word magic and it helps to better define it.  There are different spellings of the word with different meanings, though they are frequently confused for one another.  And knowing the difference may help give a better understanding when viewing the word in historical or modern settings.   

Burt, Miss. V. Personal interview. 1 Sept. 2013.

Surgeons, Stars, & So Much More....

Jessica Morales
Blog Post #1

Ah where to begin with the topic of magic.... With all the topics being covered; I wanted to talk about some of the readings with did from Kieckhefer. Throughout chapter 6, there was a strong emphasis on the use of astronomy and horoscopes. On pages 120-122, it stated "The most basic use of astrology was in making horoscopes, which would indicate the influence that the stars and planets had on a person at birth or at any other juncture in life.....Astrology had implications for medicine. A surgeon or barber- surgeon was supposed to know which signs of the zodiac governed which parts of the body, because it was dangerous to operate or bleed a patient when the wrong constellation was dominant." I thought that this definitely showed the emphasis that magic was an active role. The barber and or surgeon was definitely capable of performing such surgery, yet he did not act upon it because he or she knew it might not have been a good idea to go against the stars. It also revealed how much this magic and even simple things like astrology took apart in a big role in their lives at the time.

A little bit of everything

When I read the Kors and Peters’ text I honestly think it would be extremely horrifying if we were to live during the medieval period. Wouldn't you guys agree? It would be really cool for a second or two there but I mean can you imagine? The food and clothes would be completely different and no technology! Do you guys recall talking about what super powers we could have in the start of the semester? If you time traveled back to this era and just popped out of nowhere, the people would call you witch! And you would probably be in grave danger from that point on. I guess what I’m trying to say is living in this place/time is a great privilege I think.

Source: http://wonderfulworldofworldhistoryemrc.wikispaces.com/Middle+Ages

I just wanted to talk a little bit more about my sections for the presentations. Do you guys remember Pope John XXII and Nicolau Eymeric (Document 21 & 22)? This was in the 1300’s but these two powerful leaders were so harsh and cruel. The tongue piercing that was executed as punishment for heretics to people was I think just inhumane and Pope John was so worried about heretics. He says that “…many who are Christians in name only…sacrifice to demons…ally themselves with death and make a pact with hell” (120). It was such a serious issue back then and I don’t think I can fully comprehend that still. What do you guys think they should have done instead for punishment? Lock them up and isolate them like the prison (Nurmengard) in Harry Potter?

Source: http://harrypotterfanon.wikia.com/wiki/File:NurmenGuard.jpg

I know you guys have heard of the phrase, “beauty is in the eye of the beholder”? Well, I honestly think that if you were to just take the “beauty” piece out and substitute in the word “magic” I think it is a legitimate fact. One of the first things I thought of was the Nickelodeon cartoon show The Fairly Oddparents. Do you guys know what I’m referring to? I know some of you do! It was one of my favorite shows to watch when I was younger. I was trying to prove that not everyone thought of this show first when you hear “magic”. See? 

Source:http://fairlyoddparents.wikia.com/wiki/File:821516~The-Fairly-Odd-Parents-Group-Posters.jpg

More about Bernardino's Sermon

I really liked reading the sermon by Bernardino; and didn’t really get a chance to expand upon this particular section in class so I figured here was the next best place.

Just in case people have forgotten Bernardino was a preacher who liked to preach about sins that would affect communities as a whole. Obviously in this sermon he was talking about the repercussions of letting a witch continue to practice.

One of the consequences that Bernardino mentioned was that the area that you lived in would be ravaged by enemies, deserted, and severely damaged and disgraced. He goes on to further state that: “Wild beasts dwelled there as is there had always been a forest there. Where once lived so many men of high estate, now there lived wild beasts. (134)” In this section Bernardino suggests that if the people of Siena don’t act on the knowledge that there are witches in your town then it will not only be reduced but it will return to the wild.

This poses interesting concepts; because witch craft is already closely linked with mysticism and the unknown and the uncontrollable the idea that Witchcraft perpetuates that throughout an entire area is no doubt scary. The comparison of “men of high estate” and “wild beasts” also paints a rather vivid picture. I might suggest that these people were run out by wild beasts, eaten by wild beats or that they turned into wild beast. I think that this really drives home the idea that magic and those who wield it are wild, untamable beasts.  This is furthered by the idea that witches can turn themselves (and potentially others) into animals. Later in his sermon Bernardino talks about creams that he found that made the women think that they were cats which I think helped fuel the fire that witches and magic were primal and uncivilized.  The fact that magic is uncivilized also makes it easier to fear and dismiss as turning to the devil. The foul stench he speaks about may also promote the idea that magic was evil and a terrible, wild thing, as it seems to him just as repulsive as the idea of Siena becoming wild again.

One last thing that I think really solidifies the idea that witchcraft and magic where considered wild and animalistic; even though all the preachers were saying that even if they only do “good magic” they are still in league with demons we’ve rarely read about a witch being burned at the stake for making a potion that actually cured someone. I think that this had a lot to do with the fact that they didnt understand how these plants were helping them get better so there must be something helping them. Since God hadnt done anything it must be demons or Satan working in some unknown way.

Fear, instability, and community

Over the past few days' worth of readings and classes, I have realized a glaring omission from my own magic influence map:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:The_Witch_of_Blackbird_Pond.jpg

I am mortified to have forgotten one of the formative books of my childhood! Not only was it the first book I read that used the word "Damn!" (I will never forget seeing that on the page - we were on a road trip to my grandparents' house. I thought I was so grown-up and sophisticated to be reading a book with cursing!) but it was also the first time I'd ever thought about what it meant to be accused of witchcraft in a small town in the 17th century.

Although our sympathies while reading this novel do not lie with the accusers, Speare nonetheless shows us why perfectly reasonable, faithful people might look for a witch among them. The people of Wethersfield, CT, live in a small and tight-knit community. When crops are bad, everyone suffers. When disease strikes, everyone knows a victim. Times are hard, and it's sometimes hard to believe that the God you love is allowing you and yours to suffer.

Who wouldn't understand the desire to find a scapegoat?

Of course, the scapegoats they find are the outsiders: young Kit Tyler, the newly-arrived granddaughter of a prominent Royalist from Barbados, is suspect at a time when the king is trying to take away the colonies' hard-earned rights. Hannah Tupper, a Quaker who was branded and expelled from Massachusetts Colony, is suspect because she refuses to attend the town's religious services, which do not fit her beliefs. 

Our friend Bernadino of Siena is like the folks who accuse Kit and Hannah. Is he misguided? Sure. Are his methods questionable? Absolutely. But does he act out of hatred, or a desire to do harm? Unlikely. He's concerned for his community, and fearful that by harboring unorthodox behavior, he and everyone he knows may be held to account, either on earth or in heaven. 

He and all of the accusers and inquisitors have many important lessons to teach us. Most of them are lessons about what NOT to do. But in today's world, where we are taught to look out for #1 rather than caring about our responsibilities to others, we also have to remind ourselves that their regard for their neighbors is nothing to be outraged about.