“She’s a witch!”  From the fifteenth to the eighteenth the centuries, many Europeans might have heard this cry as they developed a heightened fear of witchcraft, seeing a new sect hostile to humanity. Students will learn how early modern Westerners experienced this “Witch Craze,” within the context of other economic, social, and cultural relationships.  Included in this study will be the examination of changing theologies, new technologies and methods of rule in the rise of the modern state, and the roles of class and gender in focusing hostility on certain people, especially women.

Objectives for the student: 

      To identify the major events, persons and ideas of the history of 16th-, 17th-, and 18th-century Europe and the West.

      To develop concepts and methods which give an understanding of what influenced the attitudes and behavior of major participants in political situations.

      To read modern editions of primary sources and recent scholarship on witches in order to explain their significance to relevant historical problems.

      To practice critical and analytical skills on historical problems, in particular on the popular understanding of witches and witchcraft. 

      To identify and analyze significant problems and situations as they relate to the current issues and the investigation of history.

Participation and attendance in every scheduled class are necessary because lecture and discussion provide the essentials for achieving class goals and objectives.

Absences excused according to the Attendance Policy in the college catalog will not affect a student’s grade, although an Absentee Assignment must be completed.  Unexcused absences will reduce the class participation portion of a student’s grade, with more weight given to more absences. 

The instructor will regularly take attendance.  If you arrive at class late, after attendance is taken, you must personally request that the absence be turned into a tardy mark; otherwise an Absentee Assignment may be required (see below).  Students who need to leave a class early, except for an emergency, should notify the instructor before class begins. 

If you are absent from a class, whether excused or not, you must complete an Absentee Assignment.  You are to write a one-to-one-and-a-half page essay covering that day's reading. The assignment will also count for any missed projects or quizzes.  Deadlines: The assignment(s) should be turned in to the professor at the beginning of the next class after you return.  Students who miss a major exam may only take a replacement according to the Attendance Policy in the college catalog.

Week 1

Mon             May 20            Orientation and Definitions           

Tue             May 21            Antiquity, Christianity, and Magic

Wed             May 22            Heresy in the Middle Ages

Thu             May 23            The transition to Modernity

Week 2

Mon             May 27            Early Modern Revolutions

Tue             May 28            The Triumph of Reason

Wed             May 29            Begin of the Hunts

Thu             May 30            Malleus Maleficarum

Week 3

Mon             Jun 3            Midterm Exam

Tue             Jun 4            Germany

Wed             Jun 5            Switzerland and Low Countries

Thu             Jun 6            France

Week 4

Mon             Jun 10            Britain

Tue             Jun 11            American Colonies

Wed             Jun 12            Southern Europe

Thu             Jun 13            Northern and Eastern Europe

Week 5

Mon             Jun 17            Begin of the End of the Hunts

Tue             Jun 18            The End of the Hunts

Wed             Jun 19            Modern Witch Hunts

Thu             Jun 20              Review

Fri             Jun 21            Final Exam