How does Elizabeth George Speare explore the idea of prejudice in the novel "The Witch of Blackbird Pond"?.
In the "Witch of Blackbird Pond", Elizabeth George Speare expresses the idea of prejudice by exploring different aspects of the plot, setting and characters. Prejudice is mainly portrayed by the characters.
This novel is based around the witch hysteria, in the late 1600's where if you could swim, had a devil's mark, were a widow or had a black cat, you were usually accused of being a witch. It is also based around prejudice. Witch hysteria and prejudice are introduced in the beginning of the novel when Kit falls a victim to this.
On this first occasion, Prudence Cruff's doll falls into the sea. Kit, acting on impulse jumps into the water after it and brings it back. As I mentioned before, swimming is a sign that you were a witch, so Prudence's mother, Goodwife Cruff is instantly suspicious of Kit. Later on in the novel, when a plague of illness spreads around she accuses Kit of casting a spell on them to make them sick. Then she gathers up some people and tells them that Kit is a witch. The villagers, smart as they were, believed her and tried throwing her out of the village or putting her to trial.
Another time is when she arrives on the doorstep of her aunt and uncle's house. Her uncle is not pleased and thinks she will be a nuisance. But little did he know that some time she will prove him wrong.
At the end of the novel, at her witch trial, one of her charges was, and I quote "For being the familiar friend and companion of the widow Hannah Tupper of Blackbird Pond, an alleged witch who has within the past week disappeared in a supicious manner. Such friendship is a lawful test of guilt." .
So you can see that from this quote they accused her of being a friend to Hannah Tupper, who was not a witch but an old woman who just needed some company.
The headmaster of the Dame School is prejudice against Kit, when he observes Kit teaching the children to play characters out of the Bible.