Seminar in Reading and Interpretation (300-0-20)

Topic

Witches

Instructors

Kasey Evans

Meeting Info

Parkes Hall 213: Mon, Wed 12:30PM - 1:50PM

Overview of class

In modern usage, we use the term "witch hunt" to describe politically motivated persecution. As in McCarthyism, when the term spiked in popularity, a "witch hunt" targets a rival or enemy by cynically manufacturing wild accusations, appealing to irrational fears of the credulous mob. In medieval and Renaissance Europe and in colonial America, on the contrary, we think of witch hunts as tragic symptoms of ignorance: a desperate attempt to assign blame for unexplained misfortune. In both cases, the term conveys more about the persecutors than about the targets. In this course, we will explore anglophone literature of witchcraft from the Middle Ages to the twenty-first century, inquiring into what "witches" reveal about those who fear them. Who are the witch hunters? Who are the witches? What can these narratives reveal about gender, power, and community? We will consider drama, from William Shakespeare's Macbeth to Arthur Miller's The Crucible; modern fiction from Maryse Condé's I, Tituba to Jeanette Winterson's The Daylight Gate; and films from Robert Eggers (The Witch, 2005) and Luca Guadagnino (Suspiria, 2018) to achieve a broad view of the beliefs, ideologies, and politics of witchcraft accusations. As we consider arguments and evidence invoked to scapegoat witches, we will also build our understanding of how arguments and evidence work in literary studies—distinguishing fact from opinion, interrogating assumptions, and improving writerly clarity and precision.

Class Materials (Required)

William Shakespeare, Macbeth 1904271413
Thomas Dekker et al., The Witch of Edmonton 1554814162
Arthur Miller, The Crucible 0142437339
Maryse Condé, I, Tituba 0813927676
Jeanette Winterson, The Daylight Gate 0802122833
Rivka Galchen, Everyone Knows Your Mother Is a Witch 1250849314

Class Attributes

Advanced Expression
Literature and Arts Foundational Discipline
Literature & Fine Arts Distro Area
Attendance at 1st class mandatory