Kimberly B. Stratton
- Published in print:
- 2014
- Published Online:
- October 2014
- ISBN:
- 9780195342703
- eISBN:
- 9780199387748
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195342703.003.0001
- Subject:
- Religion, Religion in the Ancient World, Religion and Literature
This chapter surveys the history of scholarship on women and magic in antiquity to the early modern witch-hunts in order to situate the contributions of this volume in a broad theoretical ...
More
This chapter surveys the history of scholarship on women and magic in antiquity to the early modern witch-hunts in order to situate the contributions of this volume in a broad theoretical conversation. This chapter divides theoretical explanations for the frequent gendering of magic into five categories, and explores the strengths and weaknesses of each approach. Finally, evidence that men constituted the majority of accused witches or magicians in certain times and places serves to challenge universalizing theories and raises questions about scholarly presuppositions that bias the interpretive process in favor of a gender-based explanation. This chapter complicates the relationship between gender and magic, providing an appropriate theoretical introduction for the chapters that follow.Less
This chapter surveys the history of scholarship on women and magic in antiquity to the early modern witch-hunts in order to situate the contributions of this volume in a broad theoretical conversation. This chapter divides theoretical explanations for the frequent gendering of magic into five categories, and explores the strengths and weaknesses of each approach. Finally, evidence that men constituted the majority of accused witches or magicians in certain times and places serves to challenge universalizing theories and raises questions about scholarly presuppositions that bias the interpretive process in favor of a gender-based explanation. This chapter complicates the relationship between gender and magic, providing an appropriate theoretical introduction for the chapters that follow.
Peter Elmer
- Published in print:
- 2016
- Published Online:
- March 2016
- ISBN:
- 9780198717720
- eISBN:
- 9780191787201
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780198717720.003.0002
- Subject:
- History, British and Irish Early Modern History, Cultural History
This chapter begins with a radically new analysis of one of the most important demonological texts in English literature: Reginald Scot’s Discoverie of Witchcraft (1584). Scot is today lauded as the ...
More
This chapter begins with a radically new analysis of one of the most important demonological texts in English literature: Reginald Scot’s Discoverie of Witchcraft (1584). Scot is today lauded as the most thorough-going sceptic in the annals of European witchcraft. Here, I suggest that his motives in writing the Discoverie were shaped by a profound reaction against the emergence of a new and divisive force in English religion, puritanism, which Scot had briefly flirted with as a young man. In following sections, I examine further the relationship between puritanism, demonology, and witch-hunting, concluding that puritan attitudes to the same were neither unanimous nor consistent. Under specific conditions, leading figures in the puritan movement such as the clergyman George Gifford and the physician John Cotta were as likely to advocate caution rather than zealotry in prosecuting witches. There was no intrinsic connection between witch-hunting and puritan ‘fanaticism’.Less
This chapter begins with a radically new analysis of one of the most important demonological texts in English literature: Reginald Scot’s Discoverie of Witchcraft (1584). Scot is today lauded as the most thorough-going sceptic in the annals of European witchcraft. Here, I suggest that his motives in writing the Discoverie were shaped by a profound reaction against the emergence of a new and divisive force in English religion, puritanism, which Scot had briefly flirted with as a young man. In following sections, I examine further the relationship between puritanism, demonology, and witch-hunting, concluding that puritan attitudes to the same were neither unanimous nor consistent. Under specific conditions, leading figures in the puritan movement such as the clergyman George Gifford and the physician John Cotta were as likely to advocate caution rather than zealotry in prosecuting witches. There was no intrinsic connection between witch-hunting and puritan ‘fanaticism’.
Stephen Pumfrey
- Published in print:
- 2003
- Published Online:
- July 2012
- ISBN:
- 9780719062032
- eISBN:
- 9781781700150
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Manchester University Press
- DOI:
- 10.7228/manchester/9780719062032.003.0002
- Subject:
- History, British and Irish Early Modern History
This chapter re-examines the events of 1612, combining a close reading of Thomas Potts's 1613 book, “The Wonderfull Discoverie of Witches in the Countie of Lancaster,” with evidence from other areas ...
More
This chapter re-examines the events of 1612, combining a close reading of Thomas Potts's 1613 book, “The Wonderfull Discoverie of Witches in the Countie of Lancaster,” with evidence from other areas to place it in a particular context: the politics of witch-hunting and royal patronage. The chapter sheds light not only on how the trials were constructed but also on how the evidence itself came into being. Potts's allusions to King James I and his writings on witchcraft are identified. There is no evidence of James's involvement but the trial does seem to have been, in part, an attempt to seek favor with the King. The account of methods and findings of the Lancashire witch trial based on the principles set out by the King in the 1590s are documented in convincing detail. James's ideas in turn were taken from the fantasies of satanic conspiracy developed by the continental demonologists of the past, which had until then made little impact in England. Therefore, the demonic pacts and witches' sabbats, which make their first English appearance in the Lancashire trials of 1612 owe more to the desire of Potts and the judges to vindicate their actions by appealing to royal authority than to any actual activities of the Lancashire witches.Less
This chapter re-examines the events of 1612, combining a close reading of Thomas Potts's 1613 book, “The Wonderfull Discoverie of Witches in the Countie of Lancaster,” with evidence from other areas to place it in a particular context: the politics of witch-hunting and royal patronage. The chapter sheds light not only on how the trials were constructed but also on how the evidence itself came into being. Potts's allusions to King James I and his writings on witchcraft are identified. There is no evidence of James's involvement but the trial does seem to have been, in part, an attempt to seek favor with the King. The account of methods and findings of the Lancashire witch trial based on the principles set out by the King in the 1590s are documented in convincing detail. James's ideas in turn were taken from the fantasies of satanic conspiracy developed by the continental demonologists of the past, which had until then made little impact in England. Therefore, the demonic pacts and witches' sabbats, which make their first English appearance in the Lancashire trials of 1612 owe more to the desire of Potts and the judges to vindicate their actions by appealing to royal authority than to any actual activities of the Lancashire witches.
Ian Bostridge
- Published in print:
- 1997
- Published Online:
- October 2011
- ISBN:
- 9780198206538
- eISBN:
- 9780191677205
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780198206538.003.0011
- Subject:
- History, British and Irish Early Modern History, Social History
This chapter sums up the key findings of this study on the disavowal of witchcraft belief in England during the 18th century. The analysis reveals that in both England and France, witchcraft theory ...
More
This chapter sums up the key findings of this study on the disavowal of witchcraft belief in England during the 18th century. The analysis reveals that in both England and France, witchcraft theory did not have to be radically rejected in order to secure an end to the trials and that the most effective panacea was caution. This chapter also mentions witchcraft belief and witch-hunting in other European countries including Germany and Spain.Less
This chapter sums up the key findings of this study on the disavowal of witchcraft belief in England during the 18th century. The analysis reveals that in both England and France, witchcraft theory did not have to be radically rejected in order to secure an end to the trials and that the most effective panacea was caution. This chapter also mentions witchcraft belief and witch-hunting in other European countries including Germany and Spain.
Maureen Duffy and Len Sperry
- Published in print:
- 2012
- Published Online:
- May 2012
- ISBN:
- 9780195380019
- eISBN:
- 9780199932764
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195380019.003.0001
- Subject:
- Psychology, Social Psychology
This chapter presents an overview of mobbing in workplaces, schools, and other organizations, and it situates mobbing within a historical context while distinguishing it from bullying. Unlike ...
More
This chapter presents an overview of mobbing in workplaces, schools, and other organizations, and it situates mobbing within a historical context while distinguishing it from bullying. Unlike bullying, mobbing is identified as a systemic phenomenon involving the interplay of individual, group, and organizational dynamics. Detailed examples of workplace mobbing and school mobbing are provided with accompanying analysis and key points. From a historical perspective, the Salem Witch Hunt and the McMartin Preschool sexual abuse case are analyzed and identified as mobbings. It is argued that overreliance on explanatory frameworks focused on the individual lead to inadequate understandings of mobbing and represent examples of the fundamental attribution error.Less
This chapter presents an overview of mobbing in workplaces, schools, and other organizations, and it situates mobbing within a historical context while distinguishing it from bullying. Unlike bullying, mobbing is identified as a systemic phenomenon involving the interplay of individual, group, and organizational dynamics. Detailed examples of workplace mobbing and school mobbing are provided with accompanying analysis and key points. From a historical perspective, the Salem Witch Hunt and the McMartin Preschool sexual abuse case are analyzed and identified as mobbings. It is argued that overreliance on explanatory frameworks focused on the individual lead to inadequate understandings of mobbing and represent examples of the fundamental attribution error.
Ian Bostridge
- Published in print:
- 1997
- Published Online:
- October 2011
- ISBN:
- 9780198206538
- eISBN:
- 9780191677205
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780198206538.003.0008
- Subject:
- History, British and Irish Early Modern History, Social History
This chapter examines the discourse on witchcraft in England after 1712. This was the year the last witch trial involving Jane Wenham was conducted. The association between high-flying and witchcraft ...
More
This chapter examines the discourse on witchcraft in England after 1712. This was the year the last witch trial involving Jane Wenham was conducted. The association between high-flying and witchcraft belief established by the Wenham trial was used to warn against priestcraft and praise freethinking only a year later in 1713. However, by 1715 the notion of a brief renascence of witch-hunting under the influence of high-flying had become part of a Whig interpretation of recent history.Less
This chapter examines the discourse on witchcraft in England after 1712. This was the year the last witch trial involving Jane Wenham was conducted. The association between high-flying and witchcraft belief established by the Wenham trial was used to warn against priestcraft and praise freethinking only a year later in 1713. However, by 1715 the notion of a brief renascence of witch-hunting under the influence of high-flying had become part of a Whig interpretation of recent history.
Lawrence Normand and Gareth Roberts
- Published in print:
- 2000
- Published Online:
- May 2014
- ISBN:
- 9780859896801
- eISBN:
- 9781781380871
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Liverpool University Press
- DOI:
- 10.5949/liverpool/9780859896801.003.0013
- Subject:
- History, British and Irish Modern History
This chapter discusses King James' Demonology, covering when it was written; its sources; its form, nature, and purpose; its aims and genre; its dialogue form; its thought, taxonomy, and rhetoric; ...
More
This chapter discusses King James' Demonology, covering when it was written; its sources; its form, nature, and purpose; its aims and genre; its dialogue form; its thought, taxonomy, and rhetoric; and Protestant parodies. Books I, II, and III of Demonology are also described.Less
This chapter discusses King James' Demonology, covering when it was written; its sources; its form, nature, and purpose; its aims and genre; its dialogue form; its thought, taxonomy, and rhetoric; and Protestant parodies. Books I, II, and III of Demonology are also described.
Laura Kounine
- Published in print:
- 2018
- Published Online:
- December 2018
- ISBN:
- 9780198799085
- eISBN:
- 9780191839580
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/oso/9780198799085.003.0001
- Subject:
- History, European Early Modern History, Cultural History
This Introduction sets out the intentions of this book: to use the rich witch-trial records from the early modern duchy of Württemberg in south-western Germany to explore the central themes of ...
More
This Introduction sets out the intentions of this book: to use the rich witch-trial records from the early modern duchy of Württemberg in south-western Germany to explore the central themes of emotions, gender, and selfhood. It provides an overview of the key historiographical debates on witchcraft persecutions in the early modern period, and suggests new questions that need to be asked. It also provides a methodological and theoretical framework in which to address these questions, and provides an overview of the current state of the field of the history of emotions, and, by drawing on psychological approaches to listening to self-narratives, it suggests ways in which historical studies of emotions can be pushed further by incorporating the body and subjective states. It also sets out the legal, political, and religious framework of the Lutheran duchy of Württemberg, in order to put the witch-hunts in this region into context.Less
This Introduction sets out the intentions of this book: to use the rich witch-trial records from the early modern duchy of Württemberg in south-western Germany to explore the central themes of emotions, gender, and selfhood. It provides an overview of the key historiographical debates on witchcraft persecutions in the early modern period, and suggests new questions that need to be asked. It also provides a methodological and theoretical framework in which to address these questions, and provides an overview of the current state of the field of the history of emotions, and, by drawing on psychological approaches to listening to self-narratives, it suggests ways in which historical studies of emotions can be pushed further by incorporating the body and subjective states. It also sets out the legal, political, and religious framework of the Lutheran duchy of Württemberg, in order to put the witch-hunts in this region into context.
Ross E. Cheit
- Published in print:
- 2014
- Published Online:
- April 2014
- ISBN:
- 9780199931224
- eISBN:
- 9780199355853
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199931224.003.0001
- Subject:
- Law, Criminal Law and Criminology
This chapter provides an overview of a group of highly contested child sexual abuse cases from the 1980s and early 1990s. These cases have come to be defined by the McMartin Preschool case, which ...
More
This chapter provides an overview of a group of highly contested child sexual abuse cases from the 1980s and early 1990s. These cases have come to be defined by the McMartin Preschool case, which lasted from 1983 to 1990. Despite there being two criminal trials, the McMartin case did not result in any convictions. Since the case ended, the conventional wisdom about a host of cases from this era has been that they were “witch-hunts,” without any basis in fact. This chapter describes the primary works that promote this narrative.Less
This chapter provides an overview of a group of highly contested child sexual abuse cases from the 1980s and early 1990s. These cases have come to be defined by the McMartin Preschool case, which lasted from 1983 to 1990. Despite there being two criminal trials, the McMartin case did not result in any convictions. Since the case ended, the conventional wisdom about a host of cases from this era has been that they were “witch-hunts,” without any basis in fact. This chapter describes the primary works that promote this narrative.
Ross E. Cheit
- Published in print:
- 2014
- Published Online:
- April 2014
- ISBN:
- 9780199931224
- eISBN:
- 9780199355853
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199931224.003.0003
- Subject:
- Law, Criminal Law and Criminology
This chapter argues that the claims of a national “witch-hunt” over child sexual abuse are much stronger than the evidence that has been offered in support of that claim. The most specific evidence ...
More
This chapter argues that the claims of a national “witch-hunt” over child sexual abuse are much stronger than the evidence that has been offered in support of that claim. The most specific evidence consists of a few prominent lists of people who were allegedly falsely convicted. These lists do not stand up to close scrutiny. There were cases during this era that were poorly investigated and poorly charged; there were even a few false convictions. This chapter also argues that many of these cases involved substantial evidence of abuse. The chapter concludes that there were not one hundred, let alone hundreds or even thousands, of these cases.Less
This chapter argues that the claims of a national “witch-hunt” over child sexual abuse are much stronger than the evidence that has been offered in support of that claim. The most specific evidence consists of a few prominent lists of people who were allegedly falsely convicted. These lists do not stand up to close scrutiny. There were cases during this era that were poorly investigated and poorly charged; there were even a few false convictions. This chapter also argues that many of these cases involved substantial evidence of abuse. The chapter concludes that there were not one hundred, let alone hundreds or even thousands, of these cases.
Robert Poole
- Published in print:
- 2003
- Published Online:
- July 2012
- ISBN:
- 9780719062032
- eISBN:
- 9781781700150
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Manchester University Press
- DOI:
- 10.7228/manchester/9780719062032.001.0001
- Subject:
- History, British and Irish Early Modern History
This book is a major study of England's biggest and best-known witch trial, which took place in 1612, when ten witches were arraigned and hanged in the village of Pendle in Lancashire. In it, 11 ...
More
This book is a major study of England's biggest and best-known witch trial, which took place in 1612, when ten witches were arraigned and hanged in the village of Pendle in Lancashire. In it, 11 experts from a variety of fields offer surveys of these events and their meanings for contemporaries, for later generations, and for the present day. Chapters look at the politics and ideology of witch-hunting, the conduct of the trial, the social and economic contexts, the religious background, and the local and family details of the episode.Less
This book is a major study of England's biggest and best-known witch trial, which took place in 1612, when ten witches were arraigned and hanged in the village of Pendle in Lancashire. In it, 11 experts from a variety of fields offer surveys of these events and their meanings for contemporaries, for later generations, and for the present day. Chapters look at the politics and ideology of witch-hunting, the conduct of the trial, the social and economic contexts, the religious background, and the local and family details of the episode.
Lawrence Normand and Gareth Roberts
- Published in print:
- 2000
- Published Online:
- May 2014
- ISBN:
- 9780859896801
- eISBN:
- 9781781380871
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Liverpool University Press
- DOI:
- 10.5949/liverpool/9780859896801.003.0012
- Subject:
- History, British and Irish Modern History
News from Scotland was the first publication in Scotland and England that reported exclusively on Scottish witchcraft. It was also the most propagandastic of all the texts generated by the North ...
More
News from Scotland was the first publication in Scotland and England that reported exclusively on Scottish witchcraft. It was also the most propagandastic of all the texts generated by the North Berwick witch trials. This chapter discusses the authorship of News; the making of the text; News as fiction and history; the story of Geilis Duncan and David Seton; truth and falsehood in News; and the political scene in News.Less
News from Scotland was the first publication in Scotland and England that reported exclusively on Scottish witchcraft. It was also the most propagandastic of all the texts generated by the North Berwick witch trials. This chapter discusses the authorship of News; the making of the text; News as fiction and history; the story of Geilis Duncan and David Seton; truth and falsehood in News; and the political scene in News.
Alison Rowlands
- Published in print:
- 2003
- Published Online:
- July 2012
- ISBN:
- 9780719052590
- eISBN:
- 9781781700167
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Manchester University Press
- DOI:
- 10.7228/manchester/9780719052590.003.0001
- Subject:
- History, European Early Modern History
This chapter focuses on the trials involving allegations and confessions of maleficent or demonic witchcraft that took place in the German city of Rothenburg ob der Tauber between c.1561 and c.1652. ...
More
This chapter focuses on the trials involving allegations and confessions of maleficent or demonic witchcraft that took place in the German city of Rothenburg ob der Tauber between c.1561 and c.1652. Rothenburg had a restrained pattern of witch-hunting during this period, with relatively few trials (even fewer of which ended in guilty verdicts against alleged witches); no mass-panics involving large numbers of accused witches; and the execution of only one alleged witch. The reasons for this phenomenon are analyzed. Detailed readings of the exceptionally rich records from the Rothenburg witch trials are provided to explore the social and psychic tensions that lay behind the making of witchcraft accusations and confessions, the popular and elite reactions to these accusations and confessions, and the ways in which participants in witch-trials pursued strategies, expressed emotions and negotiated conflicts through what they said about witchcraft. The witch-trials are contextualized, using a range of other sources in order to establish the life histories of trial-participants, the immediate circumstances of particular trials, and the broader social and cultural context of the beliefs and conflicts expressed and negotiated within them. The different ways—desperate, measured, artful, enthusiastic, unwilling—in which accusers and witnesses shaped their stories of witchcraft and participated in trial-processes to the advantage or disadvantage of the accused witch tell a great deal about their reasons for so doing and about their pre-trial relationship with the accused witch, as well as about the narrative-telling strategies available to them and their awareness of the risks that they ran in speaking openly about witchcraft.Less
This chapter focuses on the trials involving allegations and confessions of maleficent or demonic witchcraft that took place in the German city of Rothenburg ob der Tauber between c.1561 and c.1652. Rothenburg had a restrained pattern of witch-hunting during this period, with relatively few trials (even fewer of which ended in guilty verdicts against alleged witches); no mass-panics involving large numbers of accused witches; and the execution of only one alleged witch. The reasons for this phenomenon are analyzed. Detailed readings of the exceptionally rich records from the Rothenburg witch trials are provided to explore the social and psychic tensions that lay behind the making of witchcraft accusations and confessions, the popular and elite reactions to these accusations and confessions, and the ways in which participants in witch-trials pursued strategies, expressed emotions and negotiated conflicts through what they said about witchcraft. The witch-trials are contextualized, using a range of other sources in order to establish the life histories of trial-participants, the immediate circumstances of particular trials, and the broader social and cultural context of the beliefs and conflicts expressed and negotiated within them. The different ways—desperate, measured, artful, enthusiastic, unwilling—in which accusers and witnesses shaped their stories of witchcraft and participated in trial-processes to the advantage or disadvantage of the accused witch tell a great deal about their reasons for so doing and about their pre-trial relationship with the accused witch, as well as about the narrative-telling strategies available to them and their awareness of the risks that they ran in speaking openly about witchcraft.
Mark Stoyle
- Published in print:
- 2011
- Published Online:
- January 2014
- ISBN:
- 9780859898591
- eISBN:
- 9781781384978
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Liverpool University Press
- DOI:
- 10.5949/liverpool/9780859898591.003.0009
- Subject:
- History, British and Irish Early Modern History
This chapter argues that the anxieties and apprehensions which had been aroused as a result of the propaganda storm which had raged around the figures of Rupert and Boy continued to possess a ...
More
This chapter argues that the anxieties and apprehensions which had been aroused as a result of the propaganda storm which had raged around the figures of Rupert and Boy continued to possess a powerful resonance long after ‘the four legged cavalier’ himself had been removed from the scene. It demonstrates that, after 1644, the conviction that the Royalist cause was diabolically inspired became ever more firmly entrenched in the Parliamentarian camp, and suggests that a number of significant – and hitherto overlooked – connections existed between ‘the Black Legend of Prince Rupert's Dog’ and the great English Witch Hunt of 1645-47. It also discusses the part which the ‘Boy Myth’ may have played in paving the way for the notorious massacre of the king's female camp- followers which was carried out by Parliamentarian soldiers in the wake of the Battle of Naseby in 1645. [145 words]Less
This chapter argues that the anxieties and apprehensions which had been aroused as a result of the propaganda storm which had raged around the figures of Rupert and Boy continued to possess a powerful resonance long after ‘the four legged cavalier’ himself had been removed from the scene. It demonstrates that, after 1644, the conviction that the Royalist cause was diabolically inspired became ever more firmly entrenched in the Parliamentarian camp, and suggests that a number of significant – and hitherto overlooked – connections existed between ‘the Black Legend of Prince Rupert's Dog’ and the great English Witch Hunt of 1645-47. It also discusses the part which the ‘Boy Myth’ may have played in paving the way for the notorious massacre of the king's female camp- followers which was carried out by Parliamentarian soldiers in the wake of the Battle of Naseby in 1645. [145 words]
Lawrence Normand and Gareth Roberts
- Published in print:
- 2000
- Published Online:
- May 2014
- ISBN:
- 9780859896801
- eISBN:
- 9781781380871
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Liverpool University Press
- DOI:
- 10.5949/liverpool/9780859896801.003.0005
- Subject:
- History, British and Irish Modern History
This chapter explores some features of late sixteenth-century Scottish history and society that contributed to the making of the 1590s witch hunt, and shaped its particular meaning. These include ...
More
This chapter explores some features of late sixteenth-century Scottish history and society that contributed to the making of the 1590s witch hunt, and shaped its particular meaning. These include peasant insecurity; the growth of Edinburgh; the uneasy coexistence of Catholics and Protestants; the Seton family's influence; the North Berwick nunnery; women's lives; the disciplinary powers of reformers; the reform of popular culture; and the political organization of witches.Less
This chapter explores some features of late sixteenth-century Scottish history and society that contributed to the making of the 1590s witch hunt, and shaped its particular meaning. These include peasant insecurity; the growth of Edinburgh; the uneasy coexistence of Catholics and Protestants; the Seton family's influence; the North Berwick nunnery; women's lives; the disciplinary powers of reformers; the reform of popular culture; and the political organization of witches.
Ross E. Cheit
- Published in print:
- 2014
- Published Online:
- April 2014
- ISBN:
- 9780199931224
- eISBN:
- 9780199355853
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199931224.003.0006
- Subject:
- Law, Criminal Law and Criminology
The Kelly Michaels case became a turning point in the public discourse about child sexual abuse in America. The case, which ended in a conviction by jury, appeared to be a textbook example in how to ...
More
The Kelly Michaels case became a turning point in the public discourse about child sexual abuse in America. The case, which ended in a conviction by jury, appeared to be a textbook example in how to prosecute a sexual abuse case involving young children. But everything changed in appeal, where the conviction was overturned and the court decided Michaels could not be retried with a pretrial “taint” hearing. The witch-hunt narrative about the case then became the convictional wisdom. Based on extensive analysis of original documents, this chapter takes issue with the conventional wisdom. The chapter concludes that the witch-hunt narrative is based on “disconfirmation bias.”Less
The Kelly Michaels case became a turning point in the public discourse about child sexual abuse in America. The case, which ended in a conviction by jury, appeared to be a textbook example in how to prosecute a sexual abuse case involving young children. But everything changed in appeal, where the conviction was overturned and the court decided Michaels could not be retried with a pretrial “taint” hearing. The witch-hunt narrative about the case then became the convictional wisdom. Based on extensive analysis of original documents, this chapter takes issue with the conventional wisdom. The chapter concludes that the witch-hunt narrative is based on “disconfirmation bias.”
Lawrence Normand and Gareth Roberts
- Published in print:
- 2000
- Published Online:
- May 2014
- ISBN:
- 9780859896801
- eISBN:
- 9781781380871
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Liverpool University Press
- DOI:
- 10.5949/liverpool/9780859896801.001.0001
- Subject:
- History, British and Irish Modern History
This book provides an introduction to the key concepts of witchcraft and demonology through a detailed study of one of the best-known and most notorious episodes of Scottish history — the North ...
More
This book provides an introduction to the key concepts of witchcraft and demonology through a detailed study of one of the best-known and most notorious episodes of Scottish history — the North Berwick witch hunt — in which King James was involved as alleged victim, interrogator, judge, and demonologist. It provides hitherto unpublished and inaccessible material from the legal documentation of the trials in a way that makes the material fully comprehensible, all in a readable, modernised, scholarly form. Full introductory sections and supporting notes provide information about the contexts needed to understand the texts: court politics, social history and culture, religious changes, law and the workings of the court, and the history of witchcraft prosecutions in Scotland before 1590. The book also brings to bear on this material current scholarship on the history of European witchcraft.Less
This book provides an introduction to the key concepts of witchcraft and demonology through a detailed study of one of the best-known and most notorious episodes of Scottish history — the North Berwick witch hunt — in which King James was involved as alleged victim, interrogator, judge, and demonologist. It provides hitherto unpublished and inaccessible material from the legal documentation of the trials in a way that makes the material fully comprehensible, all in a readable, modernised, scholarly form. Full introductory sections and supporting notes provide information about the contexts needed to understand the texts: court politics, social history and culture, religious changes, law and the workings of the court, and the history of witchcraft prosecutions in Scotland before 1590. The book also brings to bear on this material current scholarship on the history of European witchcraft.
Ross E. Cheit
- Published in print:
- 2014
- Published Online:
- April 2014
- ISBN:
- 9780199931224
- eISBN:
- 9780199355853
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199931224.001.0001
- Subject:
- Law, Criminal Law and Criminology
Child sexual abuse became part of the public discourse in 1984 with a series of high-profile criminal cases involving day-care centers. Epitomized by the McMartin Preschool case, this one and dozens ...
More
Child sexual abuse became part of the public discourse in 1984 with a series of high-profile criminal cases involving day-care centers. Epitomized by the McMartin Preschool case, this one and dozens of others were eventually seen as “witch-hunts.” Under this view, the charges were the result of suggestive interviewing, overzealous prosecutors, and a gullible press. This is the first scholarly book to challenge that view. Based on fifteen years of original trial court research, it argues that the evidence for the witch-hunt narrative is weak at best, in many cases ignoring significant evidence of abuse and in others ignoring complexity. The McMartin Preschool case, for example, involved a significant injustice to five defendants, but the picture is much murkier for two others. The claim that there were hundreds of these cases across the country is even more misplaced. Indeed, there is an untold history of child sexual abuse that involves minimization and denial, where the witch-hunt narrative claims there was only “hysteria” about the issue. The Kelly Michaels case became a turning point. Academic psychologists helped persuade the court that problems involving “child suggestibility” undermined the entire case. This book argues that this conventional wisdom is incorrect. The final chapter considers recent developments, including Megan’s Law and scandals connected to Penn State and the Roman Catholic Church. The book ends with concerns about expansive views of child suggestibility and the attack on frontline professions providing services to sexually abused children.Less
Child sexual abuse became part of the public discourse in 1984 with a series of high-profile criminal cases involving day-care centers. Epitomized by the McMartin Preschool case, this one and dozens of others were eventually seen as “witch-hunts.” Under this view, the charges were the result of suggestive interviewing, overzealous prosecutors, and a gullible press. This is the first scholarly book to challenge that view. Based on fifteen years of original trial court research, it argues that the evidence for the witch-hunt narrative is weak at best, in many cases ignoring significant evidence of abuse and in others ignoring complexity. The McMartin Preschool case, for example, involved a significant injustice to five defendants, but the picture is much murkier for two others. The claim that there were hundreds of these cases across the country is even more misplaced. Indeed, there is an untold history of child sexual abuse that involves minimization and denial, where the witch-hunt narrative claims there was only “hysteria” about the issue. The Kelly Michaels case became a turning point. Academic psychologists helped persuade the court that problems involving “child suggestibility” undermined the entire case. This book argues that this conventional wisdom is incorrect. The final chapter considers recent developments, including Megan’s Law and scandals connected to Penn State and the Roman Catholic Church. The book ends with concerns about expansive views of child suggestibility and the attack on frontline professions providing services to sexually abused children.
Lawrence Normand and Gareth Roberts
- Published in print:
- 2000
- Published Online:
- May 2014
- ISBN:
- 9780859896801
- eISBN:
- 9781781380871
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Liverpool University Press
- DOI:
- 10.5949/liverpool/9780859896801.003.0001
- Subject:
- History, British and Irish Modern History
This introductory chapter sets out the book's focus, namely the examinations, trials, and executions of witches in Edinburgh between late November 1590 and December 1591. The book is primarily ...
More
This introductory chapter sets out the book's focus, namely the examinations, trials, and executions of witches in Edinburgh between late November 1590 and December 1591. The book is primarily concerned with four cases, those of Agnes Sampson, John Fian, Barbara Napier, and Euphame MacCalzean. The book presents, contextualizes, and interprets the texts emerging from the interconnected series of witchcraft accusation and trials. The chapter also discusses the significance of writing and narrative in witchcraft studies.Less
This introductory chapter sets out the book's focus, namely the examinations, trials, and executions of witches in Edinburgh between late November 1590 and December 1591. The book is primarily concerned with four cases, those of Agnes Sampson, John Fian, Barbara Napier, and Euphame MacCalzean. The book presents, contextualizes, and interprets the texts emerging from the interconnected series of witchcraft accusation and trials. The chapter also discusses the significance of writing and narrative in witchcraft studies.
William Morrow
- Published in print:
- 2012
- Published Online:
- May 2012
- ISBN:
- 9780195372427
- eISBN:
- 9780199949618
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195372427.003.0004
- Subject:
- Religion, Religion and Society
This essay advocates the use of problem-based learning in teaching Christianity and violence because students will enter the course perceiving the nexus between these two categories as puzzling. ...
More
This essay advocates the use of problem-based learning in teaching Christianity and violence because students will enter the course perceiving the nexus between these two categories as puzzling. Problem-based learning can examine representative texts, rituals, and incidents and provide interpretative models for analyzing them. Framing the Christian tradition in terms of the myth of redemptive violence and economies of sacrifice equips students to employ problem-based learning to such topics in Christian history as the crucifixion, martyrdom, heroic asceticism, the Crusades, witch hunts, and colonialism, each of which this essay develops as a topic for classroom exploration.Less
This essay advocates the use of problem-based learning in teaching Christianity and violence because students will enter the course perceiving the nexus between these two categories as puzzling. Problem-based learning can examine representative texts, rituals, and incidents and provide interpretative models for analyzing them. Framing the Christian tradition in terms of the myth of redemptive violence and economies of sacrifice equips students to employ problem-based learning to such topics in Christian history as the crucifixion, martyrdom, heroic asceticism, the Crusades, witch hunts, and colonialism, each of which this essay develops as a topic for classroom exploration.
