Malevolent Nurture: Witch-Hunting and Maternal Power in Early Modern England

by Deborah Willis

In Malevolent Nurture , Deborah Willis explores the dynamics of witchcraft accusation through legal documents, pamphlet literature, religious tracts, and the plays of Shakespeare.

Genres: History, Nonfiction, Witches, Witchcraft

280 pages, Hardcover

First published December 2, 1995

About the author

Dr. Willis is chair of the Department of Photography & Imaging at the Tisch School of the Arts at New York University.

Reviews

[Elj · Rating 3 out of 5]

BA exams: I didn’t know that a third of this book(!!) is about Shakespeare’s plays, my worst nightmare

[Laura Mckinney · Rating 4 out of 5]

Excellent precept! A wonderful look at the anxieties of motherhood during the Renaissance. I do wish she would have looked at playwrights other than Shakespeare because there are so many witch plays that are unexamined.

[βαβυλών · Rating 2 out of 5]

i'm not learned enough in psychoanalysis to know if it can stand up under the weight of everything this author is attempting to ascribe to it or explain with it.

[Heather · Rating 4 out of 5]

I used this book as part of an undergraduate research paper on why the witchcraft craze occured in England. This definitely focuses on why women were mainly the ones accused, as well as the accusers.