The European witch-hunt / Julian Goodare.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Goodare, Julian, author.

Contributor:

Horace Howard Furness Memorial Fund.

Horace Howard Furness Memorial Library (University of Pennsylvania)

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Witchcraft--Europe--History.

Witchcraft.

Trials (Witchcraft).

History.

Witch hunting.

Europe.

Witch hunting--Europe--History.

Trials (Witchcraft)--Europe--History.

Genre:

History.

Physical Description:

xxii, 430 pages ; 24 cm

Place of Publication:

London ; New York : Routledge, 2016.

Summary:

The European Witch-Hunt seeks to explain why thousands of people, mostly lower-class women, were deliberately tortured and killed in the name of religion and morality during three centuries of intermittent witch-hunting throughout Europe and North America. Combining perspectives from history, sociology, psychology and other disciplines, this book provides a comprehensive account of witch-hunting in early modern Europe. Julian Goodare sets out an original interpretation of witch-hunting as an episode of ideologically-driven persecution by the 'godly state' in the era of the Reformation and Counter-Reformation. Full weight is also given to the context of village social relationships, and there is a detailed analysis of gender issues. Witch-hunting was a legal operation, and the courts' rationale for interrogation under torture is explained. Panicking local elites, rather than central governments, were at the forefront of witch-hunting. Further chapters explore folk beliefs about legendary witches, and intellectuals' beliefs about a secret conspiracy of witches in league with the Devil. Witch-hunting eventually re folk beliefs about legendary witches, and intellectuals' beliefs about a secret conspiracy of witches in league with the Devil. Witch-hunting eventually declined when the ideological pressure to combat the Devil's allies slackened. A final chapter sets witch-hunting in the context of other episodes of modern persecution. This book is the ideal resource for students exploring the history of witch-hunting. Its level of detail and use of social theory also make it important for scholars and researchers.

Contents:

1 Witchcraft! 9

Introduction 9

The fourfold concept of witchcraft 9

Identifying witches 14

A world of religion and magic 19

Witchcraft and 'superstitious magic' 22

Elite and popular beliefs 24

Understanding 'witch-hunting' 26

The scale of the European witch-hunt 27

Conclusion: Causes of witch-hunting 30

2 Towards witch-hunting 31

Introduction 31

The growth of the idea of persecution 32

Prosecutions before the witch-hunt 35

Political magic in the fourteenth century 36

Towards a new crime of 'witchcraft', c. 1400-1435 39

The 'new sect' of witches, c.1435-1485 42

The Malleus Maleficarum (I486) and village witchcraft 48

Conclusion: Witchcraft beliefs come together, 1486-1500 50

3 Witchcraft and the intellectuals 55

Introduction 55

The cosmos and the cosmic story 55

Sources of elite witch-beliefs 58

Natural, supernatural and preternatural 60

Natural and demonic magic 63

Distorted echoes of popular belief 64

Witchcraft as a 'cumulative concept' 65

Medieval foundations: The Devil 67

Early developments: The debate on witches' flight, 1440-1580 71

Later developments: The revival of the sabbat, 1580-1612 73

The elaborated concept of witchcraft 76

Varieties of scepticism 79

Genres of demonology 83

Conclusion: From demonology to witch-hunting 85

4 Witches in the community 88

Introduction 88

Trust and distrust 88

Identifying a witch 91

Forming a witchcraft reputation: A five-stage model 92

Quarrels and grievances 94

Linking a misfortune to witchcraft 96

Spells and curses 99

Heightening suspicion 103

Instant reputation 104

The search for reconciliation 106

Living with a witch 110

Denouncing a witch to the authorities 113

Conclusion: Neighbourhood quarrels in context 117

5 Witchcraft and folk belief 121

Introduction 121

The peasant world-view 121

Popular Christianity 126

How folktales structured witchcraft stories 128

Non-human inhabitants of the popular universe 130

Witches in legends and folktales 133

Flying and shape-shifting 136

Shamanistic visionaries and cults 140

Hallucinogenic drugs? 145

Psychological conditions and the 'nightmare experience' 145

Conclusion: Popular beliefs about 'witchcraft' 150

6 Witches and the godly state 155

Introduction 155

The rise of the early modern state 156

The Reformation and Counter-Reformation 157

The divine ruler and the Devil 159

Demonology and the Reformation: Consensus and controversy 162

The godly state and godly discipline 163

The withdrawal of magical services 165

The 'huge mass' of ungodliness revealed 166

The programme of godly discipline unfolds 167

Witch-hunting and other persecutions 170

Religious wars 171

Witch-hunting, colonies and ethnicity 173

Types of state and intensity of witch-hunting 176

Critics and limitations of the godly state 182

Conclusion: Witch-hunting and slate formation 183

7 Witches in court 189

Introduction 189

Laws on witchcraft 190

Courts that tried witches 191

State formation and legal developments 192

Initiating prosecutions 193

Deciding on guilt or innocence 194

What happened in court 196

Evidence of guilt 197

Torture 202

Constructing and negotiating confessions 208

Explaining confessions 209

Credibility of confessions 213

Costs and profits 216

Executions 217

Conclusion: A miscarriage of justice? 220

8 The dynamics of witch-hunting 225

Introduction 225

A political model of witchcraft prosecutions 226

Witchcraft panics 229

The scale of panics 233

What did people do when they panicked? 235

Chain-reaction witch-hunts 236

Panics and high politics 238

Neighbourhood panics 240

Economic stresses and witch-hunting 241

Dynamics of panics 244

Witch-hunters 246

Witch-hunting from above or below? 249

Witch-hunting and negotiations of power 253

Ending a panic 259

The witch-hunting experience 260

Conclusion: Social attitudes towards witch-hunting 262

9 Women, men and witchcraft 267

Introduction 267

A female majority and a male minority 267

Patriarchy 269

Misogyny and stereotyping 270

Stereotypes of female witches 273

Stereotypes of male witches 277

Scapegoating and deviance 281

The godly state and gendered offences 283

Women, men and magical practice 285

Gendered patterns of accusation 288

Men as secondary targets 291

Children: Victims and victim-witches 292

Gendered images of witchcraft 295

Sex with the Devil 298

Malefices related to sex 304

Demonic possession 306

Witchcraft and gender-related trauma 307

Conclusion: Connecting witches and women 309

10 The end of witch-hunting 317

Introduction 317

Patterns of decline 318

Judicial caution 322

The decline of torture and the death penalty 328

The decline of the godly state 329

The Scientific Revolution 335

Demonology in a sceptical age 339

Open attacks on demonology 343

Witchcraft as fiction 345

Shifting views of witches' malefice 347

Continuing prosecutions for superstitious magic 349

Village witchcraft after witch-hunting 350

Conclusion: How witch-hunting became unnecessary 352

11 Perspectives on the witch-hunt 360

Introduction 360

The witch-hunt as 'European' 361

Perspectives from the liberal tradition 363

Perspectives from the romantic tradition 366

Perspectives from anthropology 370

Perspectives from psychology 372

Global perspectives 375

Modern Western images of witches 382.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Local Notes:

Acquired for the Penn Libraries with assistance from the Horace Howard Furness Memorial Fund.

ISBN:

9780415254526

0415254523

9780415254533

0415254531

OCLC:

933507522