Power Struggle: Accusations in the Past and Present


 If you were to attempt to find a common theme for all accused witches (in North America and even extended into Europe), the simple answer would be that it is an exertion of power. The accuser uses the opportunity of deeming someone a witch to either maintain status over them or further destroy the accused’s standing in society. There are countless examples of this, both from the witch trial era themselves and from the modern era. 


Let’s begin with a case from the past, involving the “bewitched” Goodwin children who allegedly could not control their actions, and the blame placed on lowly Goody Glover. If you look at her role in the community, she was not of high standing. She was the mother of a washwoman (accused of stealing clothing) and was somebody who did not clearly have the resources to stand up for herself. Upon coming to her daughter’s defense when accused of stealing, she put herself at risk by challenging the well-off Goodwins. When the Goodwin children started acting up, Reverend Mather and the rest of the town decided that Goody Glover’s reputation of being ignorant/scandalous was enough to deem her a witch. It was the perfect opportunity to knock her down another peg, while maintain the status of the “elite” in this Northeastern community. It ended with her eventual death, all because the label of witch was used as a means to eliminate her presence and opinions.


It can be hard to imagine that labeling someone as a witch for your own gain would be a successful strategy in today's world. However, it might shock you to find out, there was a legitimate political candidate in 2010 that had to deal with accusations of being a witch. Never would I have thought that witchcraft could come up in a political science class, but there I was on Monday morning as shocked as I could be to learn this. In her 2010 campaign to be the new senator from Delaware, Christine O'Donnell was forced to respond to allegations of being a witch. In response, she released a commercial that attempted to eliminate these rumors, but I am not sure they did a great job of that. Here is a link to the video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uxJyPsmEask. While clearly, she was not a witch, the black clothes, dark hair, dark background, and ominous music did her no favors. The accusations can be seen in the same light as the one’s against Goody Glover and all witches. If people believed them, it would knock down her credibility and allow others to have power over here. Whether it was the witch accusation or a bad campaign, she ended up getting destroyed on election night. In summary, if you thought accusing someone of being a witch has lost its power, think again.


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