how the witch became a feminist icon (and how it failed)
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- čas přidán 11. 11. 2023
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today i have a new video essay for you guys ! this one is a deep dive into witchy characters: evil witches, empowered witches, cozy witches - all of them!
my deep dive playlist: • Deep Dives & Video Essays
00:00: intro
3:46: witch hunts & woman hate
14:58 the empowered witch
19:53: the witch as a victim
30:12 the "witch paradox"
38:27 conclusion
sources:
Witch, BBC Radio 4
Mary E. Corey. Matilda Joslyn Gage: A Nineteenth Century Women’s Rights Historian Looks at Witchcraft. OAH Magazine of History, 2003.
Sempruch, Justyna. Fantasies of Gender and the Witch in Feminist Theory and Literature. Purdue University Press, 2008.
Matilda Joslyn Gage. Woman, Church and State, The Original Exposé of Male Collaboration Against the Female Sex. 1893
www.theguardian.com/society/2...
www.faculty.umb.edu/gary_zabe...
scrippsnews.com/stories/how-w...
www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2...
www.huffpost.com/entry/witche...
theclassicjournal.uga.edu/ind...
www.english-heritage.org.uk/l...
The Podcast Episode on Midwives: digpodcast.org/2020/09/06/doc...
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Hi! My name is Leonie and I am a 25 year old girl from the Netherlands who loves talking about books! From YA to non-fiction to classics, I read it all (although fantasy will always be my fave).
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I remember in grad school teaching a Halloween-time lesson on real life pirates and the witch trials because pirates and witches are two of the most popular costumes. But the real pirates were actually awful human beings, and the real witches were innocent victims....
Are you talking about the witch trials no if you're talking about the Witch Trials of Salem then someone told you wrong because the witch trials is Salem but innocent people that were accused of witchcraft with that information come from
@mygaaraofthedesert not sure exactly what your saying there, but I think you agreed with pendragon... the witches were just innocent people.
Well, pirates (especially those who weren't privateers) were also often victims of society - outcasts, underpaid sailors, former slaves, etc. But they did murder and pillage while the so-called witches just lived their lives, so I get what you mean.
Also witches were men as well, but for some reason the term later became associated with women
It was originally just a pejorative term for heretics
Witches were not innocent victims. Witchcraft was a severe crime, which is why they were forced to hide.
So Malleus Maleficarum is basically a 15th century incel manifesto that caused a shit tone of cruelty on women
Can't say I'm surprised.
First recorded copypasta
Very little difference between it and that screed that started gamer gate lol
@@bpblitz
Man I keep forgetting you hoes are still getting ass-blasted about that.
GG, stay mad.
maleficarum... maleficent
As a little girl, it was always the witch characters that captivated me. I'd sashay around, pretending to cast spells and ordering around the simpering princesses lol. I was subconsciously seizing upon the fact that witches were the female characters with power and mystery - quite alluring to a child (and still as an adult haha). Long live the witch archetype!
hehehe i loved the pointy hats and potion brewing stuff + the fact that they caused fear
hahaha. Absolutely. Witches were always so cool. I think I had 6 or 7 different witch costumes throught the years when I was little. I always loved the pretty flowy gown and the hats. Include some kind of "mystic" or "magic" necklace and done I'm sold.
@berenicemendivil7217 oh yesss, always had to be a magical necklace haha!!
I love Terry Pratchett's interpretation of witches. They seem more real and subsequently, more terrifying because I would not want Granny Wetherwax angry at me. 😂
Yes! Granny is the best!
The Wyrd Sisters was my introduction to Discworld.
Yes! love them so much! just started re-reading 'wyrd sisters' and can't wait to get to the Tiffany Aching stories 🧙♀️😊
Everyone I've ever known from the Salem area has really hated being asked about the witch trials, even if they worked in the museums. It's telling that there wasn't a memorial until 1992- as I have had it recounted, the people in charge of the town didn't even want to publicly acknowledge that the Trials happened for a long time. Despite this, the town now really seems to lean into the witch imagery for the tourists which gives the impression that the town is celebrating that time they successfully killed everyone of a fictional group.
As another aside, a large number of Wiccans I've known are survivors of SA and other violent crimes and turned to Wicca as a way to feel like they could take control back in their lives. I think there is something poetic in that- that the label used by the state to murder woman is now used by woman to provide a sense of control over the world.
Whyy would you have a memorial for witches? Do you have memorials for nazis as well? What kind of world, do you people live in..? Curious.
I suddenly realized that many other types of magic practices were not considered nearly as bad.
For example, occultism in Edwardian Britain. For whatever reason, it is perfectly fine when distinguished gentlemen do basically the same thing.
No? Absolutely not? Not least of which because by the 20th century nobody in the _civilized_ world was burning witches at the stake.
Not only that but some of the most notorious (and consequently influential in those circles) occultists of the day were women! There are several brands of occultism still popular today that were founded by women - Theosophy _and the entire field of Aryan mysticism/Nazi occultism_ are example.
Where did you get this deeply stupid take and do they offer refunds?
I'd say it was a class thing because that movement was mostly practiced by the wives of these wealthy men. They didn't have much else to do at the time, so why not?
@@williamerickson520
I mean, occultism in general was typically only practiced by the wealthy - and then usually by spoiled wives and children.
Look at Wicca, it was invented by the mid-20th century equivalent of a fuck-boy, dude literally just made that shit up so he could get laid and upper-class white women are _still_ eating it up.
@@williamerickson520also, in the nineteenth century, with the advancement of science, things have changed considerably since the witch trials. And these guys were considered eccentric rather than dangerous
There always have been and always will be different rules for the rich than for the rest of us.
Oh, thank you so much for mentioning Baba Yaga! She is not completely evil though - in some fairytales she eventually helps the hero on their journey. Like in the Russian folk version of Cinderella she gives Vasilisa (Cinderella) a human scull with burning eyes on a stick, so it can help her to light her way through the woods (and to burn down her house, killing her evil stepmother and stepsisters, hooray!)
That either has to be the coolest or the creepiest version I've ever heard of cinderella, and I'm immediately going to look it up because I need to know more.
@@berenicemendivil7217 I guess it's both cool and creepy at the same time :)
Baba Yaga is completely misunderstood. I've always liked her, and that crazy house she lives in. If I could live in a house which walked around, I'd be thrilled.
This was really interesting! I've been writing a collection of short horror stories for years now and one of them focuses on a witch. I tried my hardest to make her character relatable, as she's not the monster of some other character's story, she's the focus of the story, and her "witchness" or wickedness only develops as cruel deeds are done to her throughout the story. This video really gave me a new perspective on this, and may force me to rethink some things!
Hey, idk if this is something you would care for, but if you want to make your witch even more realistic, then I thought I would offer. I am a practicing witch and an aspiring author, so I would be happy to help you with making her witchcraft practice realistic if that is something your story entails. 🤍
So cool finding you here, love both channels.
omg!!! keep writing!!! i want to read them by next halloween!🖤💛🖤
I would love to read this!
I love villain origin stories (the novel I'm currently writing is one in-fact). I'd be happy to beta-read/edit your witch story if you'd like.
This video essay was an educational slay!
She did thorough research and I'm glad she acknowledged for the idea that this happened. Continues to occur in Asia and Africa as well as Western world.
The amount of research she does for these videos is great!
“When I was a child, the witch was a-“
Me: Hag? Ugly nasty jealous Hag? Extremely evil envious gossiping female hunchback of notredame?
“-n evil villain”
Me: Oh yeah, that works too I guess
omg I don't know if she's read the hunchback, but if she has I don't know if she's mentioned it yet, otherwise I'd love her to do a review on it!
As a catalan person i'm so happy to hear you mention Catalunya and our history with witches!!!
I took a course at university called "The History of European and American Witchcraft" for my gender/sexualities studies minor and it was incredible - a lot of what you discussed I learned about in that course. Well done, super interesting stuff!!
As a writer I'm so glad I found your channel, I've learned so much about what readers like and don't like. As a woman, I love this video even more. Thank you for your videos 🥰🥰
OMG. How does everytime I'm interested about something The book leo makes a video about that? I'm so happy 💛
Same 😊
She a mmmm
Leonie is the most well-researched BookTuber.
Exactly what I came here to say!
@@rachelherway7379 Isn’t she amazing
For anyone interested, I highly reccomend "The Mercies" by Kiran Millwood Hargrave, based on the real events of 1621 witch trials in Finnmark, Norway. After a storm claims all the men of the village, the women of Vardø are left to face not only the harsh Arctic elements but also the looming threat of witch trials. Slowly, the island becomes a battleground of survival and superstition. Evocative and beautifully written - I adored it!
Btw, loved this one Leonie! 🔮💜
I loved Hargrave's 'The Deathless Girls' so I'll have to give that one a try, thanks for the recommendation!
Oh I have to read that one as well then! Thank you😊
This was a great video. To me, it’s especially interesting how incredible widespread the demand for these “female empowerment fantasies” is among readers. It’s pretty telling of the underlying cultural feeling.
Stories like "The Lord of The Rings" are literally about how desire for power is the most corrupting and evil force there is. When you have this as an "underlying cultural feeling", then that society will become corrupt and die. It's less "interesting" than it is "insidious".
Your deep dives are the best. They're like little cozy classes and you're just this amazing teacher. I love these videos.
I'm glad you addressed the "small city problem", I live on a pretty big city (6.7M habitants) and tbh I think it's great because it grants us some degree of freedom and privacy because no one knows us, whenever I visit my extended family on a smaller city (11K habitants) if I sneeze during the sunday mass, "can you believe the big city girl, you know, ____'s granddaughter, sneezed during mass?" will become the talk of the city, I love my grandma but it's a hellish experience
My mom once wrote a paper in school on the topic of witch hunts, which I then used for my own high school history presentation
15:34 I’ve read some of Cotton Mather’s writings on witchcraft. (What can I say? I’m a history nerd who loves The Legend of Sleepy Hollow-which mentions Mather several times-and I enjoy deep dives into the minutia of stories. 😂) The witches were NEVER considered to have their own inherent power. It always came from having some kind of relationship with the Devil, making a deal with evil spirits, being given a familiar, etc. There’s also a surprising amount of “we thought the accusation was crazy and impossible, but after exhausting every other option it seemed the only explanation.” The description of the witch’s victims, usually children, seemed like possession to me, but that might be because the recent Exorcist movie is fresh in my mind… 😅
So I remember reading a book in school called “The witch of blackbird lake” which is about a Quaker woman accused of witchcraft. That happened a lot in real life.
OMG I've read that book three times! I've always been bothered by it, because I think she was botanist. I remember my mom planting a lot of herbs I always thought we were cool witches. Maybe we still are : )
Mona Chollet’s “In Defense of Witches” dives deep into this subject of you want to read more! It’s a great read ☺️ love your videos!
I really liked that book too!
A book I really enjoyed this year that hits so many of the story beats you mentioned is Weyward by Emilia Hart. It tells the stories of three ladies across time that share a bloodline and their witchiness. One is straight up in the witch trials, one is a teen during the 1940s dealing with a controlling father, and one is modern day trying to escape an abusive partner. Each story is in part about their victimhood but also how they overcame their hardships. Would definitely recommend!!
Oh no, I was supposed to go to sleep! And I can't now 😅
Edited after watching: Each one of your deep dives is soo well made, wow. I love the witchy stories, regardless of the social comentary, or lack thereof.
Have you read the Discworld? Granny Weatherwax and Nanny Ogg are two of the coolest witches in all of literature :)
Pleaser never stop making these types of video's!! I love them sm!
I love the video essay format, especially diving into aspects of stories like this
oh I love Leonie's video essays, they're always so interesting and well researched!
These deep dives are so wonderful and my favourite. Hope you keep doing them. 🧹🪄🧙♀️🧙
I really love watching these deep dive videos you make. It makes me want to research tropes and characters that peaks my interest. So yeah THANK YOU for teaching us and inspiring us to learn more.
You never fail to impress me and bring me confort!
- From a fellow booklover in the Netherlands that found peace and enjoyment in your videos in rainy days, learning to embrace this otherwise awful weather. Love and thanks ❤❤❤
every video you make is somehow better than the last - always so much thought and research, a great vibe, stellar production
I really love how well researched, aesthetically pleasing and actually interesting Leonie's video esssays are
This thumbnail was very different from other recent ones, I got confused and thought it was an old video popping up lol I've been binge watching all from 3 years ago ❤ keep doing all this great content ❤❤
I love these video essays you do! Hope they keep coming. You're incredibly good at them, and I thoroughly enjoy watching 😊
As an Indian, let me tell you, witch (daayan) hunting was prevalent long before it began in Europe, it was nearly a common occurrence in tribal areas and villages where a pandit (priest) would be called to check the suspected people or household and give judgement. However the difference between this and what the English brought here is that fact before them, actual identified evil practitioners, who made humans and animals sacrifice or consumed them, dabbled in dark curses or soul magic were put to death. Just as you mentioned, what they brought was more centred towards oppression of religion, beliefs, acquisition of land, money and also conversion. Their identifiers were more concerned about pleasing the governing officers and they did try to place a ban on hunting when people began catching on and started targeting their identifiers.
There were never people that " dabbled in dark curses or soul magic were" , magic isn't real my friend.
Attempting to offload the superstition and bigotry of your people onto another is just plain racist, especially when the timelines for your claims are completely wrong.
The British banned witch-hunting in India, Indians are _still to this day_ murdering women for "being witches".
You can't become better by scapegoating all of your problems, you can only keep un-personing people because they've been "touched by bad juju".
@@The_Crimson_Fucker you made me laugh so hard 😂😂 I don't think you understand what I am talking about and are just throwing opinion around. Of course magic isn't real, but that doesn't stop fanatics from practicing these things, killing and sacrificing. That's what I am talking about, villages and tribes hunting these kinds of people who killed children and animals in the name of magic. That was happening long before the British came. And I did say, that they banned witch hunting but after they also had their fill of hunting and looting people in the name of witch hunting.
@@muskanc6521
That's not at all what you said, mate, trying to back-paddle when we can all see the exact words you used is a deeply stupid move.
@@The_Crimson_Fucker Firstly, do not call me mate. Secondly, nowhere anything I have talked about in my first comment a lie and my second comment that is to you, is simply paraphrased, not back-paddling, it was an attempt to get you to understand what I am saying but it doesn't seem to have worked. Thirdly, I do not like your attempts at picking a fight. I have nowhere talked about the current witch huntings in India. I reiterate, you don't know what I am talking about and are just throwing opinions around.
@@muskanc6521
I'm not picking a fight, mate, you can't say flagrantly ridiculous shit like that and expect no-one to call you out on it.
Repeatedly pretending you didn't when we can obviously see exactly what you said is, at this point, just plain sad.
I know exactly what you're talking about, mate, and it's complete bunk. Please become a better person.
leo!! i love your videos always, and i have to mention how much i love your editing lately !! it rlly transmits the care you put into this and its also very aesthetically pleasing
Thank you for this! I love witches, literary archetypes and especially I LOVE deep dives and video essays, so this checks out all of my fav elements 🧙🏻♀️🖤
What an excellent deep dive! Thanks for the great quality content Leonie
I always love when you do a deep dive or analysis video!! ❤ You have such an interesting and academic way of presenting the subject. I hope the algorithm is kinder to you in any next video you make 😢
I love your trope deep dives. These reviews are so well educated and helpful in expanding our knowledge when we read. Thank you!!
I love your videos talking about the history of some modern tropes or archetypes, it's always interesting to see where the idea came from and how it changed
Such an interesting topic Leonie, I love how history and fictional interpretations and tropes get intertwined. Thanks for making this video, really awesome!
I love when you do videos like these. It is super interesting. Thanks for the commitment and the research!
The amount of research that went into this really shows, absolutely love these types of videos!
The research and the editing that went into this video was so impressive! And I love how the lighting slowly dimmed as the video went on, def added to the witchy vibe!
It's fascinating...the study that went behind...Thank you for putting so much effort and presenting your ideas beautifully ❤
i loved this video so much!
i think it was wonderfully edited and so aesthetically pleasing!
It is also so fascinating to think about the power structures behind these witchy books (which I also love) but had never thought about critically in the ways that you brought up!
I really love your deep dive videos. I learn a lot and am thoroughly entertained. So far I’ve read quite a few books on your recommendation, my favorite being Bunny. And the broken earth trilogy, but I’m only finishing the second book at the moment. So thank you, you’re great at what you do!
I love how much research and thought you put into this video! This is a proper video essay and the depiction of witches in media is such a wide topic! Thank you for working so hard on making an informative/interesting video that's also fun to watch! I also love your vibes and your make up a lot :)
Love all the witch art you were able to find and add
The editing in this vid is lovely, it’s giving all the dark autumn (but still cozy!) vibes ✨
I cannot get enough of these deep divesssss. Always impressed by the amount of research into these videos
I have to say, I really appreciate the effort and time you must put into these deep dive videos. The history and research you present is always so fascinating! Thank you Professor Leonie!
I want to do my master's dissertation on the Witch Hunts and this only makes me want to do it even more. I love your videos so much!
This was was so interesting and well-researched, as always! I'm currently reading many witchy books and you gave an important perspective that gets too easily forgotten. Thanks
As a history major, I have focused years of my studies on this topic, even reading most of the Malleus Maleficarum (to my great chagrin). Even still, I can say I learnt more from you. For this, thanks a lot, Leonie! ❤
LOVED this Leonie! You put so much thought and effort into these video essays, and I enjoy them so much.
i always look forward to your video essays about (book) tropes & themes, this was amazing as always 💜
Thanks for putting so much time into this video!! Incredibly interesting
love ur video essays leonie, so insightful and thought provoking
Your deep dive videos are fantastic! It’s obvious that you put so much work into them ❤
Love everything you post Leonie! So cozy and informative
I honestly love this kind of explanation videos. It's super interesting to hear you go in depth about any topic✨
Loved this video! The editing is perfect and I gained lot of new perspectives on the topic!🥰
beautiful video! love the editing & it's very well researched
You look majestic as hell in the dark lighting👏🏻 it matches the vibe of the video!
I love your video essays about the history of mythical creatures and beings and how they came to be as we know them today🌸
Found your channel just a few days ago and cant stop watching! ✨🌱
I love your videos so much, I clicked on it as soon as I saw it in your story!
This is such a beautiful and informative video essay! I love the deep dive and I can tell how much passion you have behind this subject. This is great and please keep up the great work Leonie!
I'm reading Juniper and Thorn right now so this video came at the right time! Excellent video as always ❤
Love how you approached this deep dive! A really interesting video as always 💜
Can i just say absolutely loved this video like im down for any type of analyse video but u just made this one 100% better
Thank you for this deep dive and analysis, I loved it so much! The witch as an archetype has always fascinated me and some of the themes associated with it are so personal to me. Like, I literally cannot watch a scene in a movie where a witch is being burned at the stake for example, I start crying uncontrollably and cannot stop for minutes on end. And all the history just breaks my heart everytime.
Love these little documentaries you make! hope you make more of them!
I am from Catalunya and I feel very excited to see that you mentioned my beautiful country in your video. I hadn't heard of the campaign "No eren bruixes" before, but I'll definitely do some research because it is true that here where I live it's "usual" to hear about witchcraft and witch-hunting as it happened quite frequently in the past. I find it very cool that we actually have programs that talk about it!
Your videos are so relaxing and informative!
Thank you for this video! I always enjoy your deep dives and also your bookish content but this is a topic I've also been thinking about a lot lateley and it was really nice to gather more information that I might not have stumbled upon otherwise. Plus as a history student I love that you questioned the connection between actual historical facts and the myths based on them (+ the other way round) and how those myths have changed over time while also maintaining a lot of themes, not necessarily only good ones I'd say. Probably gonna start my own deep dive into witchy topics now haha :)
LOVE YOU LEO AAAAAA YOUR VIDEOS ARE ALWAYS SO INSIGHTFULL AND WELL-RESEARCHED
Love this! You go so in depth into the history and folklore. This was so interesting!
This was splendid! Thank you, Leonie! Your videos are the best and I always get SO excited when there's a new one 💖
I adore when you make this type of videos. They are both educational and engaging!
Omg I loved this video so much!!! The research, the different perspectives, the aesthetic, the sleeves, the candles, the whole deal! U slayyyyy!!!
This was such a fun video, I really love these deeper dives into a specific topic!
Already watched and liked when it first came out but came back for the comment! Im sorry that the algorithm is treating this video poorly, the quality of the content makes it obvious you invested time studying and working on it!
So happy you included good omens because I was thinking about it the whole time
I love your essays Leonie !!!
This is soo well made and so well researched. I love it! 🖤
Love the fact that all sources are given in the caption ❤
This video was a great and interesting analysis. Always appreciate the vibes you bring to your videos too ❤
You did great job, Leo!❤
I loved everything about this video!! The amount of research is incredible and the atmosphere is just right
The change in lighting throughout the video is just ✨ethereal✨
I can tell a lot of work had been put in this particular video. I really appreciated it and I hope it gets the appreciation it deserves ❤
I love your video essays ❤
The editing is so cool in this! Love it
As always love the research you do for your videos!
You put so much research into these videos 😳😍 I love this!
We appreciate all the hard work you put into these videos