Yet another adventure delving into "why women are more applicable to devil worshipping". However this is not anything new and it was already said that women were frivolous and sinful, like they were beacons of evil. "For every one man burnt for witchcraft, there are ten women burnt...women are more likely than men to be witches because of their instability of spirit, because they are understood better than demons, and because of their talkativeness" (238). That is good old William of Paris' reasoning: totally invalid. How did he even come up with such a riveting and evidence supported argument! He must have staged a competition between men and women and their ability to hold a conversation with demons....? Lame, this guy was lame. Yet, I did like the hilarious "witch milking an axe-handle".
(Any way you look at it, that's weird. Also pg 254)
It was a clever concept that the witches were not actually flying, but were imagining it. It is more realistic that the confused women believed they were flying and were actually being deceived by the devil. Except those cases where the devil actually allowed them to fly? I don't know, things get weird. I also like that during this time it wasn't just "Oh witch. Okay, execute." It moved onto "Oh witch. Okay, confess and repent. Give us some names. You will live but be punished/shamed." There was that new leeway that if the accused admitted to the crime they could be spared. Whoa, humanism. Moving up in the world.
(This is a pic of Johann Geiler Von Kaysersberg at the end of his life, also he died in 1510 two years after the Die Emeis, so accurate depiction of his striking good looks and wrinkles for days, he looks rude so I needed this here.)
The horrible treatment and assumptions of women make you think: how would people like this think toward Hildegard of Bingen? I guess the visions you have determine who you are as a person - if someone travels in their mind's eye to a witch sabbath, then clearly they're a witch! But visions of God and holy men striking down the Devil? This person is a SAINT.
ReplyDeleteWith the who's flying and who isn't debacle, I think they were just trying to cover all of their bases at that point for maximum punishment-giving. "We don't know if people can really fly like this, and no one saw her leave...but it happened in the Bible, so...it could happen?" And I remember a few of our authors promising false leniency - giving them a quick death counts as "sparing" them, right?
I need some milk.
Hey guys, it's Jerry and Tom Announcerman here, and welcome too this years European Demonlympics! This year's competitions include Conversation, Being Emotionally Instable, Hallucinating, and Ax Milking!
ReplyDeleteSo Jerry, how do you think this year's Demonlympics are going to play out?
Well Tom, the girls team seems to be this year's fan favorite, especially Lucinda the midwife. Just check out that massive emotional breakdown she's got going on over there!
We-hell jee Jerry, that's quite something, ain't it? Looks like someone's been chained to the stove just a liiiittle to long, amirite? Call me a witch, but I see Gold in these ladies' futures!
Yeah, if you mean the red and gold of the flames when we burn them, right? Hahaha I'm kidding, kidding. We like to have fun around here.
This is how I'm imagining the competition you mentioned went down and I will not let anyone correct me.
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ReplyDeleteYour caption for the axe milking picture is great. Women never had a chance, and it still seems to be like that for some places, unfortunately.
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