HIST 3013 - Witch Hunts 1400-1800

3 hours

From the fifteenth to the eighteenth centuries, many Europeans developed a heightened concern with the phenomenon of witchcraft, seeing a new sect hostile to humanity. The end of the Middle Ages and the religious Reformation increased the intensity of the ‘Witch Craze.” Finally, the Scientific Revolution and the Enlightenment brought an end to the hunt for powers that did not empirically exist. Through reading and discussion of primary and secondary sources, you will learn how these Europeans defined and treated their alleged witches, within the context of other economic, social, and cultural relationships. Included in this study will be the examination of the roles of class and gender in focusing hostility on certain people, especially women.