The portrayal of witches in Western culture is often a dark matter. The idea of conjuring souls and casting spells has terrified and intrigued people for centuries. This use of feminine sorcery stereotypically involves a black robe or dress, a pointy hat, broomstick and a black cat. It comes as a sigh of relief when a witch in literature breaks away from these standard characteristics. Such is the case with Aunt Maria, though in possibly a darker and more disturbing way.
Aunt Maria is a old woman with a habit of perpetually getting her own way. The measures in which Aunt Maria takes to obtain her goals is severe manipulation and strategic distribution of power. She guilts family members and friends into doing her will and utilizes her skill in mind games. Though she doesn’t cast spells (like the way J. K. Rowling describes) or create potions like a conventional witch, Aunt Maria’s usage of people and the power she posses over them classifies her as just that. Aunt Maria is comparable to a spider with it’s web woven in every aspect of the town. One flick of the finger sends a title wave across the borders, thus Aunt Maria only knows unlimited power. Aunt Maria is the ring leader in a gang of similar women, all in control and exerting their power ruthlessly over the village. Men play no role in the government of the town; women are sole power holders. The whole system is a disaster. The women are manipulative and build up children as clones of themselves. The whole concept is disturbing.
In this particular book, women with complete power are evil. Their motives are cynical and the outcome is catastrophic. The town runs within a severely divided gender line. Under the women’s control, men have become “zombies.” They must live within the women’s pre-set parameters. Though there is stereotypically a negative idea of women with power, this book stretches that idea to the maximum.
In general, women who hold high positions are always under scrutiny, whether it is because their tactics, ideas or just simply because they are a woman. While not all women are as severe in their holding of power as Aunt Maria, I do think that there needs to be a balance between the genders when it comes to power. Both men and women have important contributions that only they can bring to society. The key is stability and balance.
