The Craft : Witchcraft and Women
by Emily Costello
The Craft, 1996, Columbia Pictures.
Witchcraft is one of the most inherently female arts. Those practicing it have experienced misogynistic and religious persecution throughout the ages. Whilst sorcery and the idea of witchcraft can be found as early as Circe in Homer's Odyssey, the real ‘witch hunt’ began in the late sixteenth century. King James the first was especially vigilant in hunting those he believed to be witches, which almost always were innocent elderly women with black cats. His passion for the extinction of witches even inspired Shakespeare to write the play Macbeth. The Salem witch trials were another example of how women (and a few men) were targeted for their supposed power. More often than not, those who really practiced Witchcraft were able to disguise themselves, resulting in widespread misogynistic murder of women who exemplified even the smallest traits of practicing the dark art in order to comtrol and manipulate the public and fearmonger. Witches were burnt at the stake, or suffered even worse fates and their ‘trials’ were nonsensical and tragically biased.
It’s hard to reconcile these ancient medieval witches and the terrifying stigma that surrounded them with those that are seen in The Craft (Fleming, 1996) . The film surrounds Sarah (Robin Tunney), a troubled girl who moves to Los Angeles and meets a coven of teenage witches who welcome her into their group. Sarah has a strong natural power and together they summon the fictional entity ‘Manon’. The overall grunge and intensity of the decade hangs over the film and the witches we meet throughout it, casting a contemporary shadow on the art of the occult.
The soundtrack of The Craft is punky covers of The Smiths and The Beatles, filled to the brim with notes of goth icons like Siousie Soux. The protagonists dress in all black or witchy florals, with dark lipstick and makeup. Modern witchcraft, satanic worship and all things devilish are associated with goth and metal subcultures and the Craft definitely utilises this to its full extent. Nancy’s styling is a masterpiece. Her outfit during one of the final scenes of the film is a signifier of her truly giving herself to Manon, and embracing the dark magic of witchcraft. She is dressed in a traditional goth style, with a fully black outfit and many silver accessories with dark black and purple makeup. Sarah’s styling certainly reflects her kinder and penchant for light magic. She is more often seen in the lighter colours, white or lilac and her makeup is softer, more scaled back. The two different women certainly represent the two different sides to witchcraft, light and dark, whilst also at many points in the film show how most witches incorporate both into their own personal practice.
Biblical imagery is heavy right from the start, with the protagonist Sarah’s dad killing a snake, before the credits roll, foreshadowing the evil experiences she will go through during the events of the film. The school the girls attend is Catholic and a crucified Christ watches Sarah as she enters Eastwick. Crosses loom over all the school settings. Witchcraft comes from pagan origins, which has a lot of similarities to traditional Christianity and the film definitely covers this aspect in its set.
Female adolescence is hard enough without being unusual, or different. All the girls who form the coven in the craft are suffering. This is what drives them to witchcraft. For example Bonnie (Neve Campbell) has horrific burns across her back and shoulders that cause her embarrassment and anxiety, covering herself up in a coat at all times. When the girls summon ‘Manon’ the fictional being created for the film Bonnie wishes her scars will be taken away and is gifted that through their power. In fact, at first all the girls get revenge on deserving parties or ask for things for themselves to improve their quality of life. Rochelle takes revenge on her racist bully and Sarah places a spell on Chris (Skeet Ulrich) to make him fall in love with her. But Nancy, the ringleader who becomes the film's antagonist, takes it too far. Her anger and negative emotions feed her power, causing her stepdad to drop dead of a heart attack. In this way The Craft demonstrates the beauty of witchcraft, but also its very real and very dangerous power. The fact that the creators made a ‘god’ that was unique to the film so as not to mess with any real and potentially dangerous entities shows the seriousness of the craft.
Men are noticeably absent in the film and the few that are in it are vile and deceitful, as well as purposely cruel to the main characters. The primary example is Chris, who dates Sarah and then lies about her sleeping with him, resulting in the whole school gossiping and slut shaming her. This is a large part of why Sarah joins the girls coven in the first place as Nancy reveals Chris did a similar thing to her. In this aspect the film shows how witchcraft and women are connected, as often it is used to cope with pain or trauma caused by men and reclaim power and control for themselves. However The Craft’s moral message holds true that whatever you give out into the universe, will be given back to you in three. Nancy gets her punishment in the end for taking her dark magic too far and the ending of the film shows Sarah keeping her power whilst those who hurt her lost it.
Sisterhood and covens are an essential part of both traditional witchcraft and the practices seen in The Craft. The art of witchcraft has been passed down through the generations by its practitioners sharing their tips and personal experiences to those close to them or even family members. Those with a natural affinity or a strong pull to the Occult often had practicing witches as relatives. This is shown in The Craft, as Sarah, the strongest witch of the group, is told by a psychic woman that her mother was a powerful witch before she died. The way the film beautifully displays how witchcraft creates a safe and loving space for the girls conveys the amazing benefits witchcraft provides for women (and anyone else) who may choose to practice it.
by Emily Costello, September 2022.
