...Course February 12th 2013 17th Century European Witch craze Abstract The 17th century was the height of witch craze in Europe, where many were executed and persecuted for witchcraft. Approximately eighty five percent of those executed for witchcraft were women and this frenzy continued in Europe all the way to the early twentieth century. The loss of life was so severe that it has been referred to some researchers as a holocaust. Did this hysteria against witchcraft reduce their numbers? No. The more violently they were executed, the more in number they became. Most of those executed were women and this form of massive attack on women signifies a type of genocide; one that focuses on gender rather than on a religious or ethnic group. In Reformation Europe, women were overwhelmingly tried as witches. In France and Germany, more than eighty percent of those executed as witches and in England, ninety two percent of those executed for witchcraft were women and in Russia, approximately ninety five percent were also put to death (Trevor 214). The practice of witch hunts subsided by late seventeenth century and by early eighteenth century, witchcraft trials were rare. The causes for the decline of witch hunts are numerous and complex. This paper will attempt to analyze the witch craze phenomenon concentrating on several questions: why did women suffer the majority of the executions? Why did the witch craze end in the seventeenth century? Why was there a sudden increased...
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...KEY POINTS LEADING TO THE SPANISH EMPIRE’S DECLINE AND FALL IN THE SEVENTEETH CENTURY CHRISTINE NILSON 24 December 2011 1 KEY POINTS LEADING TO THE SPANISH EMPIRE’S DECLINE AND FALL IN THE SEVENTEETH CENTURY The Spanish Empire of the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries has a story of irresponsible, selfish and foolish policies. The major problems revolved around their failure to build their internal economy, the ever increasing unsolved debts, and dependence on colonial silver. These problems were aggravated by other world events that they could not control. The empire best period was called Spain’s Golden Age. This occurred approximately between 1516 and 16591, although historians frequently list various time spans. Spain’s monarchs in this period claimed God had chosen them to rule over all decisions. Generally they ignored the country’s constitution that could limit their power. Other governing bodies existed, but the king had the final say.2 The empire controlled lands in areas of north and south central Europe from the Netherlands to the islands at the tip of Italy. They controlled colonies in many parts of America including Peru, Central America, various islands and Mexico.3 Eventually, they took over Portugal and its African and Asian colonies along with their trade routes.2 One kings just before the decline, Charles V, had the title of Holy Roman Emperor.4 Spain had little internal means to produce income. The general population took a light view of seeking...
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...European countries like France, England and Netherlands set up various colonies in America in the 17th century. After the initial struggle against disease, malnutrition and resistance from Native tribes, most of the colonies were well established by end of 17th and start of 18th century. Though every colony developed differently from 17th to 18th century, but all were still ruled by British government. There were significant changes in commerce, religious beliefs, cultural liberty but no major changes in the social equality and political liberty of the colonies during this time. All colonies developed different economic systems based upon the weather and local resources. The major part of economy was based on export to England and other European countries. The northern colonies had fishing and shipping industries with small manufacturing. The Southern colonies exported crops like tobacco, rice, indigo and corn to England. In return all colonies imported manufactured goods from England for common use at home. The business and farming depended on apprentices and slave labors. The demand of low cost labor increased in African American slave population in agricultural Southern states and more immigrants settled in other colonies. The colonies looked more like British cities and British made goods were in good demand thus increasing the commerce between two countries. The gap between rich and poor widened as the rich farmers continued to acquire more land and became richer. The...
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...Paombong, Bulacan In the 16th century, the Spanish conquistadores expand their pacification drive in Luzon moving from one place to another. In 1578, they reached a large tract of land consisting of two sister towns. The newly discovered pueblo was then named Malolos. However, the Spanish friars also attended to the spiritual needs of the people living west of Malolos, which is later to be known as Paombong. This relationship continued until the early 17th century when the natives of Paombong manifested their desire to be liberated from the parochial leadership of Malolos. The Spaniards then established Paombong as a pueblo in 1619, becoming the seventh town in Bulacan founded by the Augustinian Order. From 1619 to 1650, a Spanish friar ruled Paombong, just like any other Augustinian-controlled place. Not long after, civilian rulers took over, but their reigns were dictated upon and was under the mercy of the prailles. In the middle of the 17th century, Paombong grew into a modest community from what was once a cogon land inhabited by a handful of Tagalogs. Paombong was created a municipal organization on November 28, 1650 with Agustin Mananghaya[4] as its first civilian ruler. During the Spanish regime, Paombong’s coastal area, more specifically, Barangays Masukol and Binakod, played a significant role in Philippine History being known encounter sites between Spanish soldiers and Katipuneros. General Isidoro Torres[5] used to retreat with his troops to Barangay...
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...Name: Professor Course Date Analytical Book Review: ‘Damned Women’ by Elizabeth Reis In the book, “Damned Women”, Elizabeth Reis gives an insight on the experiences of women in New England in the 17th century. She discusses the views of women who claimed that their souls had been affected by evil. Reis argues that these perceptions made the women of Salem in Massachusetts and the regions that surrounded it to be targeted by the law as being practitioners of witchcraft. The law therefore, targeted women more than men, and women viewed themselves as evil. The evil they committed made them sin more than men who considered themselves stronger, thus, easy for them to resist any temptation brought by Satan. The magistrates on the other hand agreed with those sentiments and, thus convicted women for being evil and agents of Satan (Reis 12). Witches were considered as agents of Satan. Reis also observes the changing perception that people had of the devil. She gives the account of the 17th and 18th century where the clergy and the congregation had changed their opinion of evil. The author’s observation gives the importance of the Salem trials. It became the turning point for Christian’s views. The Salem trials as presented by Reis, however, raise the question on the reasons why women were convicted of witchcraft. Another question that arises is the reason why many women made the most confessions. However, one cannot overlook the significance of the book because it gives the accounts...
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... Stronger than ever In Octavia E. Butler’s novel Kindred Dana and Kevin have an interracial marriage. Throughout the novel they have their ups and downs. It was not easy form them to be together because they were looked down upon for being in an interracial marriage. In the midst of opposing relationships such as, slave and master, black and white, there is a merge, a union known as Dana and Kevin’s marriage. Dana and Kevin meet at the temp agency where she and he worked at As Kevin and Dana grow closer and spend more time together in the twentieth century. Butler’s creative approach of concealing the couple’s individual racial identities in the beginning of the navel allowed us to truly understand the authentic nature of their marriage and emphasized the humanity in Dana and Kevin’s relationship while constructing the groundwork that would eventually be tested in the twentieth century as well as the seventeenth century. Dana and Kevin had to face a lot of opposition form their family and society it was not easy for them but they managed to stick by each other. Dana and Kevin have had to face many obstacles that where put in their way. Some of the obstacles that are in their way are family, time travel, and Rufus. Dana and Kevin had a lot of obstacles that many would say would harm a marriage. One of the many obstacles that they had was their family disapproval of their marriage. Dana and Kevin where so happy that they where going to get married even though Dana...
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...means to challenge the supremacy of God. Adam and Eve are presented as “innocent” at the start of Book Nine, yet to eat from the Tree of Knowledge and to fall from grace. Milton conveys the pair’s purity through the use of natural imagery: “the humid flowers” and the “sweetest scent and airs”. However, Milton also foreshadows the Fall by contrasting the natural innocence of the pre-lapsarian couple with ideas of modern religion – “sacred light”, “incense”, “earth’s great alter”. Suggesting that Adam and Eve were predestined to lose their “innocent” nature, Milton asserts his own ideas of religion: contrary to 17th century Christian orthodoxy, Milton believed that the Fall of man was God’s intention – as expressed in his work ‘De Doctrina Christianna’. The innocence of man, therefore, could be argued to be intentionally fragile, presenting as interesting argument to 17th century audiences. Jonson also challenges audiences’ views of justice and legal innocence in ‘Volpone’. Throughout the play...
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...Today the Caribbean is known as a melting pot of cultures and societies, this is mainly due to preexisting historical factors of colonialism that were done in the early 16th and 17th century in the Caribbean. The exploitation of the Caribbean landscape dates back to the Spanish conquistadors around 1600 who mined the islands for gold which they brought back to Spain. The more significant development came when Christopher Columbus wrote back to Spain that the islands were made for sugar development. The history of Caribbean agricultural dependency is closely linked with European colonialism which altered the financial potential of the region by introducing a plantation system. Much like the Spanish who enslaved indigenous Indians to work in gold mines, the seventeenth century brought a new series of oppressors in the form of the Dutch, the English, and the French. By the middle of the eighteenth century sugar was Britain's largest import which made the Caribbean that much more important as a colony. Colonialism has been regarded as a significant and common experience that has been reflected on Caribbean people of today’s culture and values, based on the events and circumstances that occurred during the 16th ,17th and 18th century . A great example of colonial influence that has been made part of the Caribbean culture is food. Everything in Caribbean culture displays this forced adaptation and the influence of several cultures mingling, from the time of slavery and the days of...
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...definition of world literature is literature that touches the world, not just one country. World literature is literature that everyone can relate to in some way. On the other hand, national literature is literature written about what goes on in other countries but has no effect on the world rest of the world as a whole. Humanism is one of most important concepts found in the history of world literature. Humanism is an attitude that emphasizes the dignity and worth of the individual. A basic assumption is that people are rational beings who possess within themselves the capacity for truth and goodness. The term humanism is most often used to describe a literary and cultural movement that spread through Western Europe in the 14th and 15th centuries. This Renaissance revival of Greek and Roman studies emphasized the value of the classics for their own sake, rather than for their relevance to Christianity. Humanism is an attitude of the mind that accompanied the progression of the Renaissance. This aspect of humanism, sometimes called the Revival of Antiquity, includes the study of the classics; editorial and philological work on ancient texts. In the beginning, the church controlled literature. Writers could only center their literature on God. Writers couldn’t write about flesh, each other and objects outside the church. People of this time were very uneducated because the church did not value education. They believed that God does the thinking for you. At some point, people started...
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...have always wanted to visit this particular museum and I hope that I will. On September 4th 2012 I visited the Online Museum of the Philadelphia Museum of Art After navigating through the site looking at different works of art and sculptures, I felt so lost in all that I saw it was as if I was transported back in time, I could visualize the painters at work, and it was as if I could feel their passion radiating from these canvases, the vibrant colors, the elaborate brush strokes and attention to minute details all brought across the message of these paintings I spent close to two hours looking at paintings dating from the Baroque period all the way into the modern age but the paintings that really caught my eyes were those from the 17th century. Of these the ones that made an impression on me were: 1. “Virgin and child with Angel” painted in 1642 by Simon Vouet in France. This portrays a virgin half sitting, half crouching with a cherubic infant on her hips while her focus was on the basket of fruits that she was eating from, oblivious of the angel to her right that was playing with the infant in her arms. The scenery is painted overshadowed by a large tree, possibly an Oak; in the distance a lake can be seen. The simplicity of the painting and its bright colors is pleasing to the eyes and one feels a sense of serenity and peace while viewing this piece. The characters are in accord with each other and there is almost a reverent feel to this setting. The sight...
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...“The World Turned Upside Down” by Christopher Hill reveals the unsung heroes during the English Revolution and their radical thinking that did not seem so radical after all. These ideas that Hill mentions throughout his book are radical ideas of the lower class groups such as; The Ranters, Levellers, Quakers, and Diggers. This Marxist Historian presents the “lunacy” of these groups during the 17th century. During this time those groups were referred to as lunatics, but may have well been saner than the society which rejected them, as Hill says, “If we dismiss such ideas because they seem irrational to us, we may be depriving ourselves of valuable insights into society.” (pg ___) Hill is interested in such radical thinking not only because they influence societies, but because they reveal the societies which gave rise to them. He tries to acknowledge to the reader not to be ignorant of what the common people thought. Hill discovers religious movements in England abundant with the ideas and themes that would eventually give birth to secular radical ideologies like materialism, secularism, and communism. He also is far more empathetic and understanding to those revolutionaries who introduced economic ideas of national communism. If you do not have the slightest interest in history this book is not for you. This book is not something a beginner reader would read, your average reader would struggle with his extensive vocabulary and lack of prior knowledge of the English Civil wars...
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...could be more; however, one of them will be YOUR claim/position.) Religion is the key for war, it’s the faith that people have to fight for. 3. What is your position regarding the topic? I believe that religion is causing war but not at all cases, For example Iraq war wasn’t one of the religion causing war, therefore I would like to replace the word religion to oil is the cause of war. 4. What “evidence” have you offered to support your claim/position? Have you included your survey results? • The Crusades: A series of campaigns from the 11th to the 13th centuries with the stated goal of reconquering the Holy Land from Muslim invaders and coming to the aid of the Byzantine Empire • The French Wars of Religion: A succession of wars in France during the 16th century between Catholics and the Protestant Hugenots • The Thirty Years' War — Another war between Catholics and Protestants during the 17th century in what is now Germany In addition to this, one could add the Taiping Rebellion and the never ending Catholic/Protestant struggles in Northern Ireland. Christianity has certainly been a factor in many conflicts throughout its 2000 year history. 5. Put your claim/position and “evidence” through the “Scientific Method” and “Proving a theory” steps. Are there any steps on which your claim/position and evidence do not measure up to the examination? If so, what can you do to make them more acceptable? * Observe some aspect of the universe. * Invent...
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...drove down to Williams to visit Jamestown Settlement- a museum of 17th century Virginia. I went there with my friend and she helped me a lot in collecting information and documents. The reason I arrived to Jamestown Settlement because it was very interesting to see with my own eyes art works of 17th century that I have learned a lot in Humanities class and the textbook. Jamestown Settlement is a new museum that is located in Williamsburg, Virginia, and it took me about two hours and half to drive there. The staffs are very nice and helpful. There are four galleries with one is upstairs, that called Special Exhibition Gallery, and three others are along the hallway that “chronicle the nation’s 17th century beginning in Virginia in the context of its Powhatan Indian, English, and west central African culture, and examine the impact of the Jamestown settlement.” Moreover, there are ten pieces of wall that are also along the hallway, and on each piece, every ten years of 17th century is described. The end of the hallway is an entrance that leads to Powhatan India Village and James Fort. Also, there is “A Time of Revolution” film that is shown every thirty minutes in the museum. It would be really great if I could tell everything about the museum, but if I had to choose to save two pieces of art or exhibition, I would choose one of the three galleries along the hallway that is about “the people of 17th century Virginia” and the Powhatan India Village- James Fort. The gallery...
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...on Vermeer’s Hat Name: Ding Yiran (Elba) UID: 2010801799 Curriculum: LLB Final Word Count: 1,781 words Seven Paintings, One World Introduction: an interesting historical book Thrilled and wistful, I closed the book of Vermeer’s Hat, wondering how Timothy Brook, the author, can depict the 17th-century 1 world trade history in such an unexpected manner! Seven artworks are carefully selected, including five paintings from Johannes Vermeer2. Details in each of them open up a door for us to seek the path of widely transported commodities, furthermore, to generate a complete view of the globalized trade during that period of time. In this article, I will start with identifying two major arguments the author raises, with explanation from book contents: globalization takes form early in 17th century and China plays a major role in such trend. What follows is an analysis on the writing method. Then I will focus on the evaluation of the two arguments, talking about the favorable related theories as well as objections or complements. Central arguments: emergence of globalization in 17th century & China’s role in it The first argument conveyed in the book is, early as 17th century, the world was already closely connected together and the effect of connection penetrated into daily life. Using the metaphor of Indra’s net3, Timothy introduces multiple pearls, which weave and string the entire world together. One shining pearl is the objects he finds in the paintings. In officer...
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...Norton Simon Museum "Still Life with Lemons, Oranges and a Rose", 1633 My Introduction to Art summer class requires a few visits to local museums. The first museum we visited as a class was Norton Simon Museum, which is located in the city of Pasadena, CA. We visited the Norton Simon Museum on Saturday July 13, 2013. It was a hot summer day; this was a perfect day to visit a museum. Most of the class took the same shuttle bus to the museum. When we arrived at the museum we were allowed to explore / admire the cool art pieces on our own. It was a really beautiful museum and they had a big collection. I think you can’t really have enough with one visit. I plan on making future trips to this museum to explore all the art pieces and learn more about the pieces. The piece that got my attention was “Still Life with Lemons, Oranges and a Rose” by Francisco de Zurbaran. This piece was painted on an oil canvas and measures 24 ½ X 43 1/8 In. This is the only still life Zurbaran signed in his life, at the lower right corner. In the painting, we can see a plate with citrons (not lemons), a basket of oranges and another plate with a cup, next to a rose. The artist used many elements of form in this painting. The elements of form that I noticed were Color, Texture, and Light. The Artist portraits these objects in a realistic way, these can be noticed in the reflection of the citrons on the silver plate, in the details of the basket, in the soft reflection of this basket...
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