This time two years ago I began researching and writing my dissertation, which was a study on whether or not witches within children’s books elicit terror. I knew from the beginning I wanted to write my dissertation on children’s books, however, I couldn’t figure out a specific topic. Initially, I planned on writing a piece about my favourite female heroes - Wendy Darling, Lucy Pevensie and Alice - and the alternative worlds they encounter. After mind -mapping the idea to its fullest extent I realised it would be too vast of a topic to squeeze into 12,000 words. I’ve shelved the idea for now but I plan on doing something of the sort with it one day.
I ended up Googling prompts and one that came up was a study of evil within children’s books. And the best villains, it turns out, are women. The likes of Cruella de Vil and The Trunchbull elicit terror and succeed in extensive fearmongering throughout their respective texts. There’s something unexplainably frightening about fictional women diffusing such trepidation, especially when they display a compulsive need to harm others. Women, traditionally, are obedient and devoted caregivers. Manipulating and twisting the stereotype and giving them villainous intentions and features unintentionally creates a witch, correlating precisely with how Tzvi Abusch, in Mesopotamian Witchcraft: Towards a History and Understanding of Babylonian Witchcraft Beliefs and Literature, defines the quintessential female evildoer; ‘a witch is usually depicted as a woman, normally motivated by malice and evil intent’.
I think this is why Umbridge and Bellatrix within the Harry Potter series are more interesting villains compared to the Dark Lord himself. It's safe to say we all wanted Umbridge dead more than Voldemort, didn’t we?
To mark Spooky Season, I thought it would be nice to write a piece on witches that I've grown up alongside. The ambiguity in the intentions of a witch has always fascinated me; characters like The White Witch from The Chronicles of Narnia seek to destroy whilst the likes of Sabrina Spellman are merely trying to navigate their newfound powers.
If you came here to read about me rambling on about Harry Potter...scroll to the bottom.
The Sea Witch
When I was younger, my dad (AKA my counsellor, closest confidant and best friend) would collect the children’s DVDs in the Sunday Telegraph and give them to me. Every week I’d get a DVD from Hans Christian Anderson’s Storyteller collection and on each DVD were four 10-60 minute adaptions of his tales. These films introduced me to the fairytales I grew up loving before Disney even did; I watched this version of The Little Mermaid before Ariel, Flounder and Sebastian came into my life. In the Storyteller version, the Sea Witch who we all now know as Ursula was far crueller and didn’t receive a gruesome, deserved end. She tells the Little Mermaid, who has no name, that the feet she gifts her will feel as though she is walking on broken glass. Ariel never struggles with this agony, nor is she told that if her Prince were to marry another (which in the original version, he does) she would turn into sea foam as a result of her blinding grief.
We don’t see the Sea Witch again after her exchange with the protagonist, however, we hear that the Little Mermaid's sisters pay her a visit in an attempt to buy their sister’s freedom. In exchange for their sister being given the chance to return to them safely, the Sea Witch orders them to sacrifice their long hair and orders the Little Mermaid to kill the prince. There’s no climax in which the Sea Witch attempts to take over the Sea - and the titular character turns to foam, unable to carry out the Witch’s demand.
Reportedly, Anderson found the fate of the sea princess so depressing he changed it. This is why in most versions of the original tale, the Little Mermaid becomes a ‘Daughter of the Air’, a reward for those who practice extreme kindness and patience. The Sea Witch is by every definition, evil - everyone within the story that strikes a deal with her is forced to make a painful sacrifice, sometimes at zero benefit to the witch herself. She has a pair of water snakes for pets, whom she calls her ‘chickens’ and allows a toad to eat from her mouth. In Anderson’s tale, she carries the greatest capacity for evil amongst every creature that dwells in the sea.
The idea of 'Daughters of the Air' fascinated me as a kid. I saw them as both a destination and a motivation - if you practice extreme kindness and patience, it will eventually be noticed.
The White Witch
Before I delve into the witchiness of the White Witch, can we discuss the ice crown Tilda Swinton wears in the 2005 adaption of The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe and how it is undoubtedly the finest piece of costume in the history of cinema?!
In C. S. Lewis’s first The Chronicles of Narnia novel, Jadis, also known as ‘The White Witch’, is a domineering woman who enchants the second youngest of the Pevensie children with sweets - Turkish delight, of all things. Whether those repulsive ‘treats’ are worth trading your family over for is a whole other discussion in my opinion. Anyway - as a result of the enlightenment Lewis underwent in his personal life, which he details in Mere Christianity, he uses Jadis to interpret Satan, for she too possesses the ability to impose killings and death on those who sin. I read Mere Christianity for my Philosophy A Level and within the text, Lewis writes of his suffering after losing his mother and how his grief swayed his faith. One night, he turns to look at his town and is comforted by the lights, his faith restored.
Edmund’s need to atone for doubting his faith demonstrates both Jadis’ power and her ability to leer people. Cathy McSporran writes an article entitled Daughters of Lilith: Witches and Wicked Women within The Chronicles of Narnia which can be found in Revisiting Narnia: Fantasy, Myth and Religion in C. S. Lewis’s Chronicles, where she discusses how Jadis is known as Lilith by select characters, her sinful nature thereby a result of her lack of relation to Eve. Lucy and Suan differ in that they possess the trait that the witch lacks, going by the title ‘daughters of Eve’ throughout the novel. The perpetual winter she places upon the land begins to thaw upon Aslan’s arrival, the divine presence reversing her misdeeds. Aslan offers his life in exchange for Edmund’s and Jadis accepts, unaware that an innocent sacrificing themselves in the place of a traitor leads to a timely resurrection.
I’ve always loved what The Chronicles of Narnia has to offer. I feel the same warmth when I reread them as I do with Harry Potter and I’ve never understood (sorry, world) why Twilight had a bigger fanbase.
I don't believe Turkish delight is worth trading your family for, though.
The Spellmans
I’ve grown up with every single incarnation of Sabrina the Teenage Witch. I watched and loved the original series, the animated series, the recent Netflix adaptation and I read several of the comics as a kid. In nearly every adaption, Sabrina learns via her aunts Helda and Zelda that she is a witch on her 16th birthday and has to learn how to navigate her adolescent years with her powers.
The Halloween episodes of the original series inhabit the same place in my heart as the Brooklyn 99 spooky specials do. Unsurprisingly, Halloween is a very important holiday for the inhabitants of Greendale and in the Season 1 Halloween special, Sabrina is forced to attend a family reunion at the hands of her aunts. She is frustrated at the prospect of missing the Halloween party Harvey (her husband-to-be) is throwing and to ensure she doesn’t let him down, Sabrina sends a body double in her place. Every single episode of the show featured new trials for the young witch, but it was always Halloween where the teenage tribulations were highlighted also - Sabrina throws her own Halloween party for her classmates a few years later and spends the whole night trying to hide the magical elements of her house from her friends.
The aunts, in every adaption, are brilliant. Whilst Zelda is always portrayed as the more serious of the pair, both women succeed in implementing warmth into the series. They’re a constant in Sabrina’s life and are always on hand to offer guidance.
Then there’s Salem. Salem was the star of the show. Salem was quick-witted, had a distinctive timbre and has countless funny moment ‘compilation’ videos on YouTube. Salem is most certainly going to be the name of one of the thirteen cats I plan on having someday.
To finish, I love this witchy family and the escapism they’ve offered me over the last 15 years.
Granny Weatherwax - Discworld
I immersed myself in Pratchett’s Discworld after my dissertation supervisor advised me to include Tiffany Aching in my essay. The witches of Pratchett’s fantasy world are conventional in that they wear all black, ride broomsticks to their destinations and have cauldrons in their homes. There is even a local store to sell the likes of skulls and cobwebs to the women though they all mutually agree that purchasing such decorations would mean conforming to what the world wants to see in a witch.
Granny Weatherwax bares similarities to Minerva McGonagall in that she is both shrewd and affable in her demeanour, however, unlike any character created by J. K. Rowling, Granny Weatherwax’s first course of action is never magic. Believing that ‘if people think you’re a witch, you might as well be one’, she decides to allow the idea of her abilities put people in their place. The knowledge that she could curse someone is more effective than her actually doing it.
She preaches her ideals to the likes of Tiffany Aching, telling her that hard work and reason are imperative for progression and don’t always entail someone needing or using their magic. Consequently, she disapproves of witches such as Letice Earwig who she believes is reliant on incantations and crystals and reduces the art of witchcraft to ‘shoppin’.
Hermione Granger, Luna Lovegood, Ginny Weasley and Minerva McGonagall
My favourite characters in the Harry Potter series consist of Remus Lupin (probably my number one), Arthur and Molly Weasley, the members of the Golden Trio, Neville, Fred and George, Ginny, Luna and McGonagall. I don’t think Maggie Smith gets enough credit for how well she brings McGonagall to life; having relistened to the audiobooks this year, the Downton Abbey star plays her to perfection.
McGonagall’s best moments, for me, are in Order of the Phoenix. With Hagrid gone for half the novel and Dumbledore distancing himself from Harry for reasons I still don’t comprehend, McGonagall is the only teacher left for Harry to turn to. The moment McGonagall offers Harry a biscuit after he gets into a row with Umbridge is frequently noted by Potterheads, and it is iconic, though the moment she tells Harry she will help him achieve his goal of becoming an Auror despite Umbridge dismissing his ambition has always profoundly impacted me. Teachers are a fundamental part of a student’s adolescence and I’m so grateful to the ones that were there for me to talk to and believed in me. Harry’s then horror at McGonagall’s hospitalisation emphasises how much he looks up to her and serves as a stark reminder to the character that even the strongest individuals around him are susceptible to the growing dangers in the Wizarding World.
I loved Bonnie Wright’s portrayal of Ginny, it’s such a shame the script didn’t do the character justice. Possibly a result of having six older brothers, Ginny is written from the beginning as a very strong character. She isn’t afraid to stand up to her brothers, angrily pointing out Ron’s jealousy when he expresses his vexation over her going out with Dean and later arguing that she doesn’t need his permission for her and Harry to date. Despite being possessed by the series’ main antagonist in Chamber of Secrets she seemingly takes the experience upon the chin, only bringing it up again in Order of the Phoenix to remind Harry of his self-centeredness.
I think this is why Harry is attracted to her. The titular character of the series is not an emotionally astute individual, a trait that is most likely down to his upbringing in an abusive household. In Order of the Phoenix, Harry repeatedly has to deal with Cho crying and never has any idea how to help her. Harry tells Ron in Deathly Hallows that he loves Hermione as a sister and whilst some fans argue that Harry was lying here, I’ve always completely believed him. Earlier in the book, whilst Harry acknowledges Hermione’s crying over Ron abandoning the pair of them, he doesn’t approach her or try to comfort her. I don’t believe he doesn’t want to - he just has no idea how. Like everyone else, I was charmed by the dance sequence written into the film but there’s no way book Harry would initiate something like that.
Ginny isn’t afraid to stand up to Harry during his emotional outbursts, nor does she cry when Harry tells her they could no longer be together. She isn’t afraid of the chaos that comes with associating with the Boy Who Lived - as she says, 'you sort of start thinking anything’s possible if you’ve got enough nerve’ when growing up with the likes of Fred and George.
I love Luna. I don’t know what I would have done had she been killed off. I love how she’s unapologetically herself throughout the series - she’s unafraid to wear quirky jewellery and is fiercely protective of her father. She’s so loving as well, the moment Harry sees his and Hermione, Ron, Ginny and Neville’s ‘beautifully painted faces’ on Luna’s bedroom ceiling and feels a ‘great rush of affection’ for her always warms my heart. Some would argue that it’s odd, however, Luna isn’t an ordinary character. Besides, to say expressing your adoration for your friends through art is creepy doesn’t really make the world a great place to be.
I believe Ginny was her best friend - she always stood up for her long before she was accepted into the Golden Trio’s circle. Lily Luna Potter was probably the only child Ginny had any say in naming.
And lastly, Hermione. When I read the books for the first time I related so much to her. We had similar Year 7 struggles: uncontrollably bushy hair, prominent front teeth and undying an need to succeed at the expense of being popular. I won't repeat what everyone already says about her intelligence but instead comment on her bravery; Hermione embraced rules and the discipline they enforced, though not at the expense of the safety of her friends. Whilst she disagreed with Hagrid’s teaching methods she supported him throughout Buckbeak’s trial in Prisoner of Azkaban and planned his lessons in Order of the Phoenix in the hopes Umbridge wouldn’t suspend him. She was always fiercely protective of Harry, a poignant moment between the pair being her bringing him breakfast the morning after his name was pulled from the goblet of fire so that he didn’t have to eat in the Great Hall. She convinces Harry to start up Dumbledore’s Army and coordinates his interview with Rita Skeeter, initiating the school finally beginning to believe Harry about Voldemort’s return. And she does this whilst Hogwarts is under the tyranny of Dolores Umbridge knowing full well she would be expelled if caught.
I love Ron, and whilst I firmly believe that he and Harry had the best friendship in the series, Hermione is by far the most loyal character. Not at one point does she ever doubt Harry or leave his side. She’s sincere, faithful and brutally honest, and thereby a wonderful literary role model for this generation and generations to come.
Thank you so much for reading, I hope you've had the best week! Be sure to drop me your train of thoughts. Stay relaxed and kind to yourselves,
Karisma xx