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Witchcraft In The Comedy Of Errors By William Shakespeare

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When Witches and Devils Had Arisen...
Black magic, sorcery, witches, and witchcraft were all part of one of the Elizabethans’ strongest superstitions. Illnesses like the Black Plague, also known as the Black Death was known as the work of witches who prevented the cure for these problems! Imagine seeing innocent women being tortured and hung to death just because she may possibly be a witch. The people of this period always wondered why bad things were happening to good people, which explains why they simply assumed it was the “witches” fault, according to their beliefs. This brings us to William Shakespeare’s first play: The Comedy of Errors, where characters believe strongly that witchcraft is occurring in Ephesus because of the strange …show more content…

Witchcraft is first mentioned when Antipholus of Syracuse meets Dromio of Ephesus who asks his master to come home to dinner, something that Antipholus of Syracuse knows nothing about. Antipholus of Syracuse also yells at Dromio of Ephesus for running away with his money that was supposed to be deposited, and their argument escalates when Antipholus beats Dromio of Ephesus, who runs away. When Dromio of Syracuse returns, he has no idea what Antipholus of Syracuse is speaking about, leading both men to believe that the city is under a spell of witches. At the beginning of the play Antipholus of Syracuse …show more content…

( IV.IV.ii.58-61)

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