The Bewitchment Of Christian Shaw: An Analysis

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Recommended: Mental illness in 1752

During the time period in question it was common belief that witches existed and were to blame for the misfortune of others. There have been a plethora of other explanations for the apparently supernatural incidences. The one that I am going to focus on in this post is that of undiagnosed hallucinations and mental illnesses in 17th century Scotland. In the reading by McLachlan and Swales titled ‘The Bewitchment of Christian Shaw: A Reassessment of the Famous Paisley Witchcraft Case of 1697’, as stated in the title the authors chose to focus on the specific case of an eleven year old girl by the name of Christian Shaw. The author’s describe the man facts of the case and some possible explanations for why the events played out the

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