The Witches in Aunt Maria and Women with Power
A stereotype is defined as "a widely held but fixed and oversimplified image or idea of a particular type of person or thing" versus an archetype which is defined as "a very typical example of a certain person or thing." By these definitions, I find that the witches featured in Aunt Maria by Diana Wynne Jones are archetypes of witches. Aunt Maria fits the nasty old woman witch, Zoe Greene fits the archetype of a crazy woman with magical powers, Elaine is the harsh, cold, and always-wearing-black witch, and Naomi (the daughter of Aunt Maria, not main character Mig) is the young girl rebelling against her mother witch.
Interestingly enough, all these archetypes could also describe female characters in power. Even "young girl rebelling against mother", as that is typically the background of a female character in power. I think that this similar archetype-ing came about as a way to demonize women with power, whether it be magical or business. But recently, I think there has been a flip. Witches and women in power are no longer seen as something negative (except by conservative old white men oops sorry), but as a goal in life for many young women. I wanted to back up this idea and found interesting excerpts from Wikipedia and an article interviewing a coven from New Jersey.
"The Western mainstream Christian view is far from the only societal perspective about witchcraft. Many cultures worldwide continue to have widespread practices and cultural beliefs that are loosely translated into English as "witchcraft", although the English translation masks a very great diversity in their forms, magical beliefs, practices, and place in their societies. During the Age of Colonialism, many cultures across the globe were exposed to the modern Western world via colonialism, usually accompanied and often preceded by intensive Christian missionary activity (see "Christianization"). Beliefs related to witchcraft and magic in these cultures were at times influenced by the prevailing Western concepts. Witch hunts, scapegoating, and killing or shunning of suspected witches still occurs in the modern era,[7] with killings both of victims for their supposedly magical body parts, and of suspected witchcraft practitioners." from Wikipedia's article on Witchcraft
The reason I found this excerpt interesting and relevant to my own ideas of witches/women in power is that it explained a switch in the view of witches in history.
I also found the excerpt from this interview very interesting because it talked about the relation between witchcraft and feminism in the more contemporary age.
"Take that iconic ’90s witch flick, The Craft. There, the girls professed mixed feelings. “I love The Craft as the epitome as the ’90s witch, because the ’90s witch is so iconic,” said Haleigh. “It’s interesting, every time feminism makes a turn for a new era, there’s also a resurgence in witchcraft. You saw it in the ’70s, when a lot of it had to do with holistic herbal medicine, then you see it again in the ’90s, and that’s when you see a lot of the most iconic witches, especially for our age group: The Craft, Hocus Pocus …”
Interestingly enough, all these archetypes could also describe female characters in power. Even "young girl rebelling against mother", as that is typically the background of a female character in power. I think that this similar archetype-ing came about as a way to demonize women with power, whether it be magical or business. But recently, I think there has been a flip. Witches and women in power are no longer seen as something negative (except by conservative old white men oops sorry), but as a goal in life for many young women. I wanted to back up this idea and found interesting excerpts from Wikipedia and an article interviewing a coven from New Jersey.
"The Western mainstream Christian view is far from the only societal perspective about witchcraft. Many cultures worldwide continue to have widespread practices and cultural beliefs that are loosely translated into English as "witchcraft", although the English translation masks a very great diversity in their forms, magical beliefs, practices, and place in their societies. During the Age of Colonialism, many cultures across the globe were exposed to the modern Western world via colonialism, usually accompanied and often preceded by intensive Christian missionary activity (see "Christianization"). Beliefs related to witchcraft and magic in these cultures were at times influenced by the prevailing Western concepts. Witch hunts, scapegoating, and killing or shunning of suspected witches still occurs in the modern era,[7] with killings both of victims for their supposedly magical body parts, and of suspected witchcraft practitioners." from Wikipedia's article on Witchcraft
The reason I found this excerpt interesting and relevant to my own ideas of witches/women in power is that it explained a switch in the view of witches in history.
I also found the excerpt from this interview very interesting because it talked about the relation between witchcraft and feminism in the more contemporary age.
"Take that iconic ’90s witch flick, The Craft. There, the girls professed mixed feelings. “I love The Craft as the epitome as the ’90s witch, because the ’90s witch is so iconic,” said Haleigh. “It’s interesting, every time feminism makes a turn for a new era, there’s also a resurgence in witchcraft. You saw it in the ’70s, when a lot of it had to do with holistic herbal medicine, then you see it again in the ’90s, and that’s when you see a lot of the most iconic witches, especially for our age group: The Craft, Hocus Pocus …”
“Sabrina,” added Yema Rose. “Buffy.”" from Vulture's "What Pop Culture Gets Right and Wrong About Witches, According to a Real Coven"
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