Full Description
A translation of Eveline Hasler's novel, Die Vogelmacherin— literally "The Bird-Maker Girl"—this book tells the story of three children who were prosecuted for witchcraft in seventeenth-century Europe. Challenging strict boundaries between fiction and history, Hasler's novel draws on trial records and other archival sources that document the legal cases against these children. While the original work offers a detailed portrait of political and religious violence, Maierhofer goes a step further by providing essential context for the novel. Her wide-ranging introduction and meticulous annotations illuminate the relevance and wider significance of Hasler's writing. For the first time in English, this book brings Hasler's traumatic history of witchcraft trials to life, exposing the violence of a culture shaped by fear, authoritarian power, and ideals of conformity.
Contents
Introduction: Children and Witchcraft Trials and Eveline Hasler's Outsiders By Waltraud MaierhoferThe Child Witches of Lucerne and Buchau: A Novel by Eveline HaslerPreface by Eveline HaslerPart One: Lucerne 1652Part Two: Buchau, Upper Swabia 1658Editor's Notes to the Text of Eveline Hasler's Child Witches
