Witchcraft in Colonial New England: A Women's History

Karlsen explores the history of witchcraft in colonial New England as a history of women because she argues that it is only through this kind of study that we can “confront the deeply embedded feelings about women (of colonial New England) and the intricate patterns of interest underlying those feelings (81 of 6500).” She does this by dividing her text into chapters and allowing each chapter to serve as an exploration of an aspect of life for witchcraft during this era: “New England Witchcraft Beliefs,” “Economic Basis of Witchcraft,” and “The Demographic Basis of Witchcraft,” for example. Through this type of exploration, she analyzes and presents women as the victim of this era because women, especially those such as single women and widows

Karlsen ends the text with an afterward because it had been ten years since the paperback edition was originally published. She states in her afterward that were she to redo the book, “more substantial changes are called for (260).” This is quite commendable for an author to admit, rather than to just sit back and rest of the laurels of the original positive praise for the book. She admits the need for more study on the connections of 17th century religious beliefs, the relationship between the English and Native Americans, and the links between witchcraft, race formation, and colonialism (260). What Karlsen’s text does add to the scholarship of women and witchcraft in colonial America is a deeper understanding of the idea of “women-as-witches,” and the interpersonal relationships, feelings, and ideas of the era that helped to put women in such a dangerous and vulnerable position. Karlsen, a Professor Emerita, retired from her teaching position at University of Michigan in 2011, where she taught History and Women’s Studies from 1985 to 2011. She contributed to several journals as a co-editor and held several distinguished