Wench, Witch, Wife, Widow: The Power of Address Terms in The Witch of Edmonton

Authors

Laura KolbFollow

Document Type

Book Chapter or Section

Publication Date

Winter 2-2023

Abstract

This chapter explores address terms and their power to shape social reality, especially for women and the socially precarious. The opening of The Witch of Edmonton—“Come, wench!”—is the first of many moments in which one character classifies another in terms of gender, class, or social position. Tracking characters’ reactions to being named (and thereby “placed”) reveals divergent perspectives on the fit between assigned social identity and self-evaluation.

Comments

This is an Author Accepted Manuscript version of the following chapter: Laura Kolb, “Wench, Witch, Wife, Widow: The Power of Address Terms in The Witch of Edmonton,” published Intersectionalities of Class in Early Modern English Drama, edited by Ronda Arab and Laurie Ellinghausen, 2023, Palgrave Macmillan, reproduced with permission of Palgrave Macmillan. The final authenticated version is available online at https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-35564-6_10.