& ?

A. Witch hunt
1. Read the Culture Tip and comment on the picture.

Culture Tip The Pendle Witch Trials took place in Pendle, England in 1612.
Nine women and two men were accused of murder by the use of
witchcraft. 9-year-old Jennet Device was the key witness whose
testimony resulted in the execution of 3 members of her family and 7
other people found guilty of witchcraft. The court clerk, Thomas Potts,
recorded much of what we know about this event in The Wonderfull
Discoverie of Witches in the Countie of Lancaster (1613).

2. Listen to the recording and find information about the period and
witches. 
Group1: focus on the period Group2: focus on the witches

A statue by David Palmer to commemorate

the Pendle Witches in Roughlee, England

3. List the events which could lead to being accused of witchcraft.

4. Explain what the portrayal of the witch in this document says about society’s view of women at the time.
accused - blamed - devil - disasters - diseased - evil - famines - fringes - grudge – hurt - old - poor - scapegoats - spells
- suspicious - witchcraft - women

In the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, it was mostly ……………………..who were either very
…………………..or ………………………or living on the …………………….of society who were regarded as
………………………….and ………………………..for various problems or ……………………that occurred in the
community such as……………………., dead cows……………………… children or men becoming impotent. They
were ………………….of making a pact with the Word bank
A hag: an ugly old woman especially evil
…………………….and summoning A scapegoat: a person blamed for sb’s mistakes
………………..spirits, which enabled them to get A prophecy /ˈprɒfɪsi/ :a prediction
A trial: the examination of a case in a law court
the power to…………………….. or cast punishable offence
……………………….on people. possessed by sth /pəˈzɛst/: controlled by sth
charge sb (with sth): accuse sb (of sth)
Likewise, if people bore a …………..……against point an accusing finger at: put the blame on
use magical powers
somebody, they could accuse them and have them
summon: call
charged with the crime of ………………………….. do harm (to sb): hurt (sb)
cast a spell : use words thought to be magic
These women were ………………………… bear a grudge: resentment or anger against sb for a past offense