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    The Devil in the Shape of a Woman: Witchcraft in Colonial New England
    The Devil in the Shape of a Woman: Witchcraft in Colonial New England
    The Devil in the Shape of a Woman: Witchcraft in Colonial New England
    Audiobook9 hours

    The Devil in the Shape of a Woman: Witchcraft in Colonial New England

    Written by Carol F. Karlsen

    Narrated by Jo Anna Perrin

    4/5

    ()

    About this audiobook

    Confessing to "familiarity with the devils," Mary Johnson, a servant, was executed by Connecticut officials in 1648. A wealthy Boston widow, Ann Hibbens was hanged in 1656 for casting spells on her neighbors. The case of Ann Cole, who was "taken with very strange Fits," fueled an outbreak of witchcraft accusations in Hartford a generation before the notorious events at Salem.

    More than three hundred years later, the question "Why?" still haunts us. Why were these and other women likely witches-vulnerable to accusations of witchcraft and possession? Carol F. Karlsen reveals the social construction of witchcraft in seventeenth-century New England and illuminates the larger contours of gender relations in that society.
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherTantor Media, Inc
    Release dateMay 8, 2018
    ISBN9781977373366
    The Devil in the Shape of a Woman: Witchcraft in Colonial New England

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    Reviews for The Devil in the Shape of a Woman

    4/5

    76 ratings2 reviews

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    • 4/5
      I read this book while in graduate school as I was researching the whole witchcraft trials both in the colonies and abroad. I liked this book because Carol put a lot of research behind this. She did a careful analysis of the witch trials without sensationalizing it, which is easy to do with a topic such as this. Karlsen's main focus was on the motivations behind these allegations and found that it was really economic motivations as opposed to religious or social motivations as others have believed. She brings new insight into the struggle between gender and power in colonial America.Anyone who is studying the witchcraft trials during this time, or jsut want to learn more about it (without all the drama) shoudl definitely pick up this book. It was written in 1987 but is still relevant and worth the read.
    • 4/5
      Karlsen investigates the demographic background of the women caught up in the witchcraft trials in Colonial New England. Her findings on the relative economic and other power indicators provide insight into possible motives for the hysteria, other than religious zeal.