Gender, Gossip, and Religious Revival: Crafting Witches in Early Spain
Join us for the 2025 Edward Moritz Lecture in History with Dr. Rochelle Rojas, Associate Professor of History at Kalamazoo College.
Wednesday, October 29
5-6 p.m. Eastern
Room 103, Dewing Hall
Reception in Dewing Commons, 6-7 p.m.
About the Book
Rochelle Rojas draws from witch trial records to illuminate the issues of shifting gender roles, religious reforms that sought to criminalize sexual behaviors, and the battles for social control that consumed an early Spanish community. By examining the voices of villagers, in addition to judges and Inquisitors, this talk will explore the inner logic of early modern witch beliefs and reveal how gender, categories of the Other, culture wars, and overzealous lawmakers connect to our present moment.
About the Speaker
Rochelle Rojas is an Associate Professor of History at Kalamazoo College. She received her PhD in History from Duke University in 2017. She came to Kalamazoo College in 2018 and has taught classes on early modern Europe, Latin America, and the Atlantic World, and is especially interested in themes of knowledge production and the history of science. She published her first book, Bad Christians and Hanging Toads: Witch Crafting in Northern Spain, 1525-1675, with Cornell University Press this year. Her next book project explores gender, race, and daily life in early modern Costa Rica.
Contact Information
To learn more about this event, please contact the History Department Chair, Christina Carroll, at Christina.Carroll@kzoo.edu.
The History Department’s annual Edward Moritz Lecture honors the late professor Edward Moritz, who taught British and European history at Kalamazoo College from 1955–1988 and served for many years as the department chair. This lecture is supported by the Moritz Lecture Fund. For more information, contact the Office of Alumni Engagement at alumni@kzoo.edu or 269.337.7300.