“Witchcraft involved power, and one way of understanding it at the level of the local community is to see it as a way in which the relatively powerless were thought to be able to gain access to power.” (Sharpe, Page 70)
This idea that witchcraft has to do with power relations is an interesting as Sharpe suggests that there is power for both women performing witchcraft and also for the usually higher class people accusing them. I think it is important to address the role of agency specifically within a socioeconomic lens when discussing the history of witchcraft. As mentioned by Sharpe, many historians have trouble discussing witchcraft without bringing in their own biases. However, when you think of poor old women with few options, it becomes more understandable why someone would be willing to try Witchcraft to gain more power over their lives.
I think there are absolutely a great deal of ways in which witchcraft was used to express power, and as well work within different power dynamics that were extant during the time period. Although one wouldn’t have expected something like a witchcraft accusation to propel them upwards in the social ranks, what makes these accusations so unique is that they work within the boundaries of those hierarchies. A person could certainly ruin another, lower class person’s life, but there’s also the chance of the reverse happening. My favorite part of the book is Anne and her father making it all the way to the King. In this simple example, we see the strange, not necessarily reordering, but rather far-stretching implications of witchcraft and its relation to the power dynamics in place in this time period.
That does sound like quite an interesting proposal. In a period of time where women were deemed as subservient to men, it wouldn’t be out of the question for them to try to find ways of empowering themselves. With witchcraft potentially giving them influence within a community that otherwise be deaf to their opinions, the allure is there. So, that concept of honing witchcraft for women to have power amongst their peers is fascinating indeed.
I agree that this dynamic between witchcraft and power is an interesting one. After all, before the mass hysteria of constant witch accusations, there had to have been a reason for this concept of witchcraft to even arise. While the idea of using it to get rid of someone you don’t like has been tossed around, I think the idea of power and being able to have it over a community you live in is a lot more interesting and shows a deeper dynamic within the community itself.