https://padlet.com/susu3760/k2mvm19t17led0z2 en-us 2021-07-21 15:31:24 UTC 2021-07-21 17:34:57 UTC hello@padlet.com susu3760 https://padlet.com/susu3760/k2mvm19t17led0z2/wish/1657240396 It is most likely that Shakespeare included witches in Macbeth to appease King James I of England since the King had a great interest in witchcraft. 

This being said, most people of Shakespeare's time believed in witches, evil spirits, the devil, and magic. Witches were perceived as evil and would be killed a certain way should they be found. However, Shakespeare's perspective on witches is unknown and scholars question whether Shakespeare's addition of witches in Macbeth is because he wanted them to represent real witches or if he wanted them to be a symbol of evil. ]]> 2021-07-21 15:36:00 UTC https://padlet.com/susu3760/k2mvm19t17led0z2/wish/1657240396 susu3760 https://padlet.com/susu3760/k2mvm19t17led0z2/wish/1657255921 As previously mentioned, witches in Scotland and England were despised and therefore killed a certain way should they be suspected of being a witch. These witch hunts were a result of the ruling king, King James IV's fear of witchcraft, causing the citizens to follow suit in the fear of witches.

Witch hunts are a darker side to Europe's history and are considered one of the bloodiest events in European history since the fear of witches affected countries past Scotland as well such as Scandinavia, England, and Italy have indulged in with fear of witches and witch hunts as well.  ]]> 2021-07-21 15:54:48 UTC https://padlet.com/susu3760/k2mvm19t17led0z2/wish/1657255921 susu3760 https://padlet.com/susu3760/k2mvm19t17led0z2/wish/1657264037 Religion in Scotland at the time was a very big notion. The Catholic religion was predominant in 16th century Scotland. To that end, religious rulers wished to prove their godliness by cleansing the land of sin, unholiness and evil, ergo, conducting witch hunts to eliminate witches. ]]> 2021-07-21 16:04:22 UTC https://padlet.com/susu3760/k2mvm19t17led0z2/wish/1657264037 susu3760 https://padlet.com/susu3760/k2mvm19t17led0z2/wish/1657268480 The existence of the devil was a big topic in Scotland of the time. Locals would speak of how the Devil possessed powers to kill livestock, create storms, and spread deadly illnesses. They believed that Satan wanted to destroy human civilization from within using secret agents. Those agents were witches, hence the fear of witches was born. ]]> 2021-07-21 16:09:40 UTC https://padlet.com/susu3760/k2mvm19t17led0z2/wish/1657268480 susu3760 https://padlet.com/susu3760/k2mvm19t17led0z2/wish/1657277832 Although rules and regulations have been created to prevent the creation of witches in Scotland in 1563, the widespread panic of witches was, as aforementioned, caused by King James IV. ]]> 2021-07-21 16:20:33 UTC https://padlet.com/susu3760/k2mvm19t17led0z2/wish/1657277832 susu3760 https://padlet.com/susu3760/k2mvm19t17led0z2/wish/1657281791 King James IV of Scotland brought the old fear of witches back to Scotland when King James was on a ship with his bride, Anne, and experienced large, violent storms while he was on his voyage across the North Sea. Since witches and the devil are associated with storms and such, the King believed that the violent storms that they had endured were a result of witches trying to kill the royals. ]]> 2021-07-21 16:25:05 UTC https://padlet.com/susu3760/k2mvm19t17led0z2/wish/1657281791 susu3760 https://padlet.com/susu3760/k2mvm19t17led0z2/wish/1657285193 Amongst the panic of the storm and belief of witches, the first accused was a woman named Geillis Duncan. She was tortured by her employer, David Seton, to bring out confession in which she brought names of a few accomplices. This being said, her confession of being a witch was deemed false since, after that event, she revoked her confession, however, at this point, the panic of witches and witchcraft had already rooted itself in the minds of the people. ]]> 2021-07-21 16:29:02 UTC https://padlet.com/susu3760/k2mvm19t17led0z2/wish/1657285193 susu3760 https://padlet.com/susu3760/k2mvm19t17led0z2/wish/1657289686 After hearing Duncan's confession, upon returning to Scotland, King James IV conducted witch trials in 1591 in which 200 people were convicted of being witches and siding with the devil. All of these people were tortured into 'confessing' which is most likely the reason why they'd confessed in the first place. The reason why 200 people were able to be 'caught' was that a convicted named Agnes Sampson confessed and gave many names. As a result, all of these people were later executed for conspiring against the King by siding with the devil. 

Sleep deprivation was a common method of torture, and around the third day of no sleep, hallucinations of the terrified women were often accounted for in official records of witches. This lead to the arrest of many women since the women taken into question would not know what they are saying or doing. ]]> 2021-07-21 16:33:40 UTC https://padlet.com/susu3760/k2mvm19t17led0z2/wish/1657289686 susu3760 https://padlet.com/susu3760/k2mvm19t17led0z2/wish/1657308767 The accused often fell under a certain stereotype. Women who are elderly and quarrelsome often are the ones to be accused- especially if their neighbours complain of the person's harmful magic, the woman is going to be killed. To that end, most accusations were caused by quarrels between neighbours since neighbours would also cast curses on each other if they are in a rivalling. Most witches are women since women could establish a sexual relationship with the devil and therefore, appeal to the devil. On the other hand, men would have to go through a long, tiresome process to be deemed a witch for the devil. As a result, 85% of convicted witches were women. ]]> 2021-07-21 16:56:14 UTC https://padlet.com/susu3760/k2mvm19t17led0z2/wish/1657308767 susu3760 https://padlet.com/susu3760/k2mvm19t17led0z2/wish/1657318023 Although the end of witchcraft exceeds Shakespeare's time, it is still something worth mentioning. In the 17th century, new scientific evidence cancelled the theories regarding witchcraft and as a result, courts refused to accept the confessions of the tortured. Witch-hunting became less vital and the last witch hunt in Scotland was recorded to be in 1662. This being said, the last witch panic (and killing of a witch) was conducted in 1727. Since then, Scotland recognized the innocent witches who were tortured and killed and erected monuments throughout Scotland in their memory. ]]> 2021-07-21 17:08:19 UTC https://padlet.com/susu3760/k2mvm19t17led0z2/wish/1657318023 susu3760 https://padlet.com/susu3760/k2mvm19t17led0z2/wish/1657323878 The killing of 'witches' in Scotland included strangling the witch then burning the body. There were an estimated 4,000 to 6,000 witches killed in Scotland throughout the 16th century and 17th centuries. All of this violence reflects the human greed and desire for power (in King James IV and the religious leaders) as well as the paranoia that could be associated with those feelings. ]]> 2021-07-21 17:15:24 UTC https://padlet.com/susu3760/k2mvm19t17led0z2/wish/1657323878 susu3760 https://padlet.com/susu3760/k2mvm19t17led0z2/wish/1657333287 2021-07-21 17:28:24 UTC https://padlet.com/susu3760/k2mvm19t17led0z2/wish/1657333287 susu3760 https://padlet.com/susu3760/k2mvm19t17led0z2/wish/1657334023 2021-07-21 17:29:27 UTC https://padlet.com/susu3760/k2mvm19t17led0z2/wish/1657334023 susu3760 https://padlet.com/susu3760/k2mvm19t17led0z2/wish/1657334980 2021-07-21 17:30:51 UTC https://padlet.com/susu3760/k2mvm19t17led0z2/wish/1657334980