In Defence of Witches is a powerful book that takes the archetypes of witches and shifts the narrative — Author Mona Chollet takes these images of the independent woman, the childless woman, and the old hag and shows how these categories not only inflicted pain and death on our ancestors but are still used to categories, demonise and ostracize women even today.
Set in four sections, the first three dealing with one stereotype and our final one that paints a horrifying picture showing the wider implications of witch hunts in the modern world from the demands to never age, the vilification of childless women, the deep offence people take at a woman who is independent and outspoken and the dangerous dismissal of women's healthcare. Each section is clearly laid out into headings that is easily accessible and readable with references from literature to history to pop culture that is clearly not only well-researched but deeply passionate.
This searingly sharp novel explores the connections between the historical and present depictions of witches and deeply rooted societal misogyny. But then this moves beyond that historical analysis into how this attitude has morphed and shifted over time and how we still hold women who don’t fit the socially acceptable moulds are mistreated and abused worldwide — delving into bodily autonomy, motherhood, healthcare inequality and body standards. Chollet also makes a point of bringing an intersectional lens into her feminism, reminding the reader that feminism for different people has been different and changes between people of different races and sexualities as the oppression they’ve faced isn’t always comparable.
The parallels that Chollet draws are haunting, she comprehensively and compellingly shows the very real comparison between the witch trials and modern misogyny in startling clarity. This book is a powerful message of solidarity and sisterhood — both richly informative and full of feminine fury all at once.
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