Witchcraft in the Early Modern World
COL 126
Fall 2016
| Section:
01
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| Crosslisting:
HIST 110 |
Between the years 1400 and 1800, approximately 100,000 people were prosecuted on the charge of witchcraft in both Europe and colonial America. Of this number, roughly half were executed. While these estimates are much lower than popularly believed--Dan Brown's THE DA VINCI CODE told its legions of readers that "an astounding five million women" had been burned at the stake--they are nonetheless startling numbers for a modern audience. In this seminar, we will examine the phenomenon of witchcraft and witch-hunts in early modern Europe and Europe's colonies in the Americas. What confluence of beliefs--religious, legal, cultural--made such prosecutions possible in the first place? Of those tried, why were the vast majority women? And how is the witch of history different than the witch of myth, literature, and popular culture? To explore these questions, we will consider historical sources (e.g., case studies, trial records), literary depictions (e.g., plays, fairy tales), as well as representations in film (e.g., Häxan, The Craft, The VVitch). |
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| Credit: 1 |
Gen Ed Area Dept:
HA COL |
| Course Format: Seminar | Grading Mode: Credit/Unsatisfactory |
| Level: UGRD |
Prerequisites: None |
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Fulfills a Requirement for: None |
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Past Enrollment Probability: Not Available |
| SECTION 01 | | Special Attributes: FYS |
Major Readings: Wesleyan RJ Julia Bookstore
Behringer, Wolfgang. THE SHAMAN OF OBERSTDORF. CHONRAD STOECKHLIN AND THE PHANTOMS OF THE NIGHT. Translated by H.C. Erik Midelfort. Charlottesville: University of Virginia Press, 2000. ISBN-10: 0813918537
Gaskill, Malcolm. WITCHFINDERS: A SEVENTEENTH-CENTURY ENGLISH TRAGEDY. ISBN-10: 0674025423
Gaiman, Neil & Lorenzo Mattotti. HANSEL & GRETEL. Toon, 2014. ISBN-10: 1935179624
Ginzburg, Carlo. THE NIGHT BATTLES. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins, 2013. ISBN-10: 1421409925
Miller, Arthur. THE CRUCIBLE: A PLAY IN FOUR ACTS. New York: Penguin, 2003. ISBN-10: 0142437336
Rublack, Ulinka. THE ASTRONOMER AND THE WITCH: JOHANNES KEPLER'S FIGHT FOR HIS MOTHER. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2015. ISBN-10: 0198736770
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| Instructor(s): Garcia,Samuel J Times: ..T.R.. 01:20PM-02:40PM; Location: BOGH114; |
| Total Enrollment Limit: 15 | | SR major: X | JR major: X | | |
| Seats Available: 2 | GRAD: X | SR non-major: X | JR non-major: X | SO: X | FR: 15 |
| Drop/Add Enrollment Requests | | | | | |
| Total Submitted Requests: 2 | 1st Ranked: 0 | 2nd Ranked: 1 | 3rd Ranked: 0 | 4th Ranked: 1 | Unranked: 0 |
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