e. It is clear that a multi causal theory must be applied, incorporating all these theories and more, to understand the society of the time. (Cavett 2004: 1)
             Witches and witchcraft threatened Christianity, and in a time of such religious prescription, this was alarming to even the most open-minded of people. The Church had such a widespread influence, that it was able to convince everyone that not only did witches exist, but that they were evil and would infect the population with malaise and sin in the form of maleficent magic, thus relying on the predictability of the gullible peasants. This shed a new light on events in communities such as bad crops, sicknesses, miscarriages and other everyday misfortunes. These could now be blamed on witches, the women who previously had been looked to for help in times of stress and need for herb remedies, midwifery, and other simple tasks. What had previously been a cornerstone of society was now branded an evil hindrance. (Shan 2002)
             It can be seen that the witch craze was a product of those in power. On a grand scale, the individuals who were a burden to society or a threat to the established order needed to be removed. This is seen in the choice of victims for persecution, the old women who no longer served a child bearing purpose to society, troublemakers, and of course the ever present individuals who chose non-conformity. The powerful had invented a "justifiable" reason for these people to be removed without backlash, and indeed, with full support, from the community. It can be seen from contemporary documents, namely the "Malleus Maleficarum" (Hammer of Witches) that the description of witches was a humourless but wildly exaggerated caricature and one main crime and believed practice of a witch was the stealing of a mans penis or the ingestion of his semen for maleficent purposes ("seminal vampirism"), relieving him of his manhood, pride and dignity. (Kra...