Witch DBQ-European History
...he has to confess to witchery and that nothing can save him, not even his nobility (A7). The fact that he is a noblemen and innocent according to his letter supports the idea that he could have been tried simply because of his wealth. Also, the fact that a Pope could make the decision to proceed with the persecution of witchcraft supports the reason that people were persecuted because they lacked the kind of power that people like the Pope had (B2). In addition, Macfarlane’s chart of occupations shows that most people who were persecuted were wealthy people who lacked influence in power (D2). The chart again supports that wealthy people were persecuted as witches because of their lack of power. The second major reason for the persecution of certain individuals as witches is the lack of knowledge people had. Mr. North claims that the judge (his brother) could not declare himself against public opinion because that would tell the people that the Devil is powerful (A6). His claim supports the fact that people were persecuted because of the fact that the majority of the people had a lack of knowledge with respect to reason and prudence. Also, a young Protestant boy claims that he suffered from his images of Devils, whom he thought he saw everywhere (B5). This boys’ claim supports the idea that people were persecuted again because the average person lacked the knowledge to discredit such beliefs. Also, Even though the scientists were seen and were more knowledgeable than the people of that time period, they still were unqualified and were not as knowledgeable and rational as people are today. The third major reason for the persecution of certain individuals as witches is the stereotyping people had. The poem that is about a witch in Edmonton, claims that she is being accused of witchery simply because of her bad language (A5). Her claim supports the fact that since she used bad language, that went against the stereotype of people being modest. The two Dominican monks make several stereotypes of women for being reasons why they’re influenced easier by the evil spirit than men (B1). His bias can be explained by the fact that they’re two males in the church who at that time saw women as more vulnerable than men because they themselves are men. However, their claim supports that individuals were persecuted for witchcraft because of stereotyping. In Martin Luther’s preaching, he notes that witches are the Devil’s whores (B3). His bias can be explained by the fact that again, he is a male and at the time most males thought men were superior to women. His claim however supports the idea again of individuals being persecuted because of the stereotypes of people....