In Defence of Witches: Why women are still on trial

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This is not to say Chollet’s book is of no interest. It starts off well, with a look at early artistic representations of witches, and goes on to link the witch-hunts with antisemitism. Chollet suggests both persecutions were a product of society’s need to find a scapegoat for its ills, pointing out that terms such as “sabbath” and “synagogue” were also used in reference to witches, while both groups were depicted with hooked noses. This is also an aspect of homophobia, as queer or trans women do not fit into the patriarchial mold. For instance, for that for all the browbeating to become a mother for straight women, queer women are often denied access to adoption in many countries or by certain adoption agencies. I was thrilled to find Chollet quoted Jeanette Winterson, an absolute favorite, on how being queer and not tied down by children or traditional marriage was freedom that helped her career. In the book Toil and Trouble: A Women’s History of the Occult, the authors point out that witchcraft is often used in media as a queer metaphor. The show Bewitched for example, about which actress Elizabeth Montgomery says she was proud of the queer undertones, admitting it was present and alway ' about repression in general.' Montgomery would go on to be a prominent voice advocating for the queer community. Not allowing the fun of the imagery to distort history or appropriate other cultural traditions is something to keep in mind, especially since Chollet points out the large number of women of color who were persecuted and how much American witch-hunts were used to target the indigenous. This comes later with the topic of medicine and wellness. ‘ The witch becomes the ‘antimother,’’ Chollet writes, ‘ many of the accused were healers who played the role of midwife—but who also used to help women wishing to prevent or terminate a pregnancy.’ This was during a time women were denied access to medical school and Cholett discusses that part of their eradication was to silence anyone that wasn’t part of the academic cannon. As witchcraft ideas have started to be absorbed or co-opted into wellness communities or other natural health circles, the infiltration of white supremacy in the wellness industry is something that should also be kept in mind too, as well as trying to remember snake oil salesman use the same bad faith marketing as any other big industry so it can sometimes be difficult to parse out what is an effective alternative remedy and what is not.

In Defence of Witches by Mona Chollet, Sophie R Lewis In Defence of Witches by Mona Chollet, Sophie R Lewis

Mona Chollet's In Defense of Witches is a celebration by an acclaimed French feminist of the witch as a symbol of female rebellion and independence in the face of misogyny and persecution. l'indépendance des femmes, et comment notre refus de se sacrifier attire immédiatement des réprobationsElle est ensuite pigiste pour Charlie Hebdo. Mais son contrat est interrompu en 2000 après sa contestation d'un éditorial du directeur de la rédaction Philippe Val, qui qualifiait les Palestiniens de « non-civilisés ». Elle raconte : « Quelques jours après, il m’a convoquée, et il m’a annoncé qu’il arrêtait mon CDI après le mois d’essai, alors que j’étais pigiste depuis un an. Ça m’a sidérée »1. Edit : je rajoute ma grogne sur l'invisibilisation des sorcières queer que j'ai développé dans les commentaires Pese a que empecé a leer este ensayo con unas expectativas bastante altas respecto a datos históricos sobre la brujería en la Edad Moderna, me encontré con una revisión acertada y bien argumentada (aunque muy personal) de algunos de los prejuicios asociados a las brujas que siguen teniendo validez y significación hoy en día. Chollet nos coge la mano y, con ella, paseamos a través del mito de la belleza asociado a la juventud femenina, al imperativo de la maternidad si eres mujer (y el precio que pagamos aquellas que decidimos no serlo), al peso de la soltería, a las relaciones de poder en parejas con diferencia de edad y a la violencia médica y psiquiátrica que las mujeres hemos sufrido a lo largo de los siglos, entre otras problemáticas que la autora abarca no sólo desde su perspectiva y experiencia personal, sino apoyándose en multitud de fuentes que, al menos a mi parecer, me hacen tener un orgasmo con tan sólo mirar la cuidadísima y extensísima bibliografía de este libro. What remains of the witch hunts? A stubborn misogyny, which still tints the way our societies look at single women, childless women, aging women, or quite simply, free women . . . Today more than ever, witches tell us about our world and lead the way.’– Télérama Hotjar sets this cookie to identify a new user’s first session. It stores a true/false value, indicating whether it was the first time Hotjar saw this user.

In Defence of Witches by Mona Chollet - Pan Macmillan

Chollet comes out of the gate swinging with her introduction that delves into historical witch-hunts. Offering informative statistics and a general overview on how they came about, fun details like Pope Gregory IX declaring cats the "devil's servants" and executing so many cats along with witches that the rat population grew and spread disease (subsequently blamed on witches), and examining issues such as criminalization of contraception and abortions occurring during the same period as witch-hunts. ‘ Witch-hunters are revealed as both obsessed with and terrified by female sexuality,’ she observes in her discussion of historical documents such as The Malleus Maleficarum. ‘ When for ‘witches’ we read ‘women,’ we gain fuller comprehension of the cruelties inflicted by the church upon this portion of humanity,’ said women’s activist Matilda Joslyn Gage, and while Chollet examines how men, too, were accused and murdered (though in far fewer numbers with significantly higher acquittals and tended to be accused to their intimacy with accused witches), she explains how Gage’s statement is in line with the book to come. Chollet’s introduction also serves as a criticism of the already well-trodden path of witch-hunt history books, pointing out how even those that attempt sensitivity tend to do a fair amount of victim blaming, often even asking why the groups accused of witchcraft ‘ attracted to itself the scapegoating mechanism,’ while also scapegoating any reason except for misogyny and control as to why these hunts occurred. Mona Chollet's In Defense of Witches is a “brilliant, well-documented” celebration ( Le Monde) by an acclaimed French feminist of the witch as a symbol of female rebellion and independence in the face of misogyny and persecution. Being childless is also something that women become ‘othered’ for choosing. ‘ Regret is used as a threat to push women who do not wish to be mother into motherhood even when abortion is not an issue,’ says feminst activist and sociologist Orna Donarth. Chollet looks at the life of Gloria Steinem who was frequently criticized for not wanting children, or Simone de Beauvoir who wrote that ‘ I never once dreamed of rediscovering myself in the child I might bear,’ in response to people telling her she is likely filled with regret. This ties into Chollet’s next chapter on aging and how much aging women are criticized has a lot more to do with fertility than age. Allows us to understand... the witch hunts of the past influenced the representation of women today.” — Le Monde (France)Here are a few of the “villainous” things women are doing: “loving myself”, “existing unapologetically”, ”self-dates”, “drinking water and exercising”, and “treating others how they treat me”. Whilst it’s great to see women reclaim the villains of old, should we consider it radical for women to simply exist? Should we consider it radical for women to take care of their physical and mental health? Women have been so far removed from both rights and respect that to speak out and exist as individuals, they must first don the guise of a witch. This false renaissance of witches and villains may seem empowering, but it hides a deeper message - that women who put themselves first are villains in today's society, just as they were in the 1500s. The self-label of “villain” shows how deeply ingrained in society and women this notion truly is. It is not just having abortions which makes a woman a witch-like figure - simply existing can sometimes be enough to be labelled a villain. Some of the women labelled witches or villains One day, in March 1990, on CNN, Larry King is hosting Gloria Steinem, the American feminist superstar. A member of the TV audience calls from Cleveland, Ohio. Her tone is warm; we assume this is a fan. But we soon realize this is not the case. “I really believe that your movement was a total failure…” the silky voice goes on. “You are one of the primary causes of the downfall of our beautiful American family and society today. A couple of questions. I’d like to know if you’re married … If you have children.” Twice, an unruffled Steinem gallantly replies, “No.” Interrupted by the presenter, who diplomatically attempts to sum up her case, the anonymous avenger looses her final bombshell: “I have said for the last fifteen years that Gloria Steinem should rot in hell.”1