Designed for teachers of European history at the high school level, the course is nonetheless open to any teacher with an interest in the subject. Some materials may appeal particularly to teachers of early American history.
We begin the coverage of the topic with three related questions:
We explore these questions in a variety
of ways, noting recent changes in the study
of European history, in general, and addressing
recent scholarly approaches to witchcraft
and witch-hunting, in particular. In addition,
a very important aspect of the course is the
analysis of extensive documentary evidence
from the period, illustrating how source materials
may be used to develop students’ research
skills — to get them “doing history,” rather
than just reading it.
The course seeks to undermine the notion
that witchcraft-trials largely took place in the
Middle Ages. To the contrary, witch-hunting
was a modern phenomenon, and one that
is central to the study of European history
between 1450 and 1750. Witchcraft-trials,
as distinct from witchcraft-beliefs, were the
product of important changes taking place
in early modern Europe. Rather than being
the result of widespread lunacy, chaos, and
political breakdown, trials of accused witches
were most often methodical administrative
procedures reflecting intellectual consensus of
theorists in the fields of theology, politics, law,
and medicine.
Instructor: Edmund Kern, associate professor of history, Lawrence University