The Witch's Journey: Breaking the Curse of the Knights

"The Witch, the Sword, and the Cursed Knights" is a thrilling fantasy novel that takes readers on an epic adventure filled with magic, mystery, and danger. Set in a medieval world, the story revolves around three main characters: a powerful witch, a legendary sword, and a group of cursed knights. The protagonist of the story is the witch, who possesses extraordinary magical abilities. She is feared and misunderstood by the people in her village, but her powers are crucial in protecting the realm from dark forces. As she embarks on an important quest, she must confront her own inner demons and put her skills to the test. The legendary sword is a powerful artefact that was forged centuries ago by a master blacksmith.

Another example of this is when Caleb goes missing in the woods. While walking through the woods, Caleb sees a rabbit and follows it through the woods. He then goes missing, only to appear late that night, naked and delirious, seemingly bewitched. One particular scene is right before he dies, where he coughs up blood and spits out an entire apple. Earlier in the movie he says that he thought he saw an apple tree. What at first sight was a paranormal event could just as easily be a case of hypothermia. You'll have to remember that winter is coming and it's been raining. It's very easy to get hypothermia when you're already wet, and it's possible that he got hypothermia, got scratched up from the brambles and the apple was accidentally swallowed whole, coming up later when he coughed it up.

The hallucination could have been a psychological break from grief and hunger, or it could have been ergotism from the bread which, historically, is what fueled the Salem witch trials. The idea that goats are related to Satan is something that s familiar enough from Goya which is of course a later period but in the early modern period and the late Middle Ages, in the works of German artists Hans Baldung Grien and Hans Holbein, we see all this stuff with witches and goats.

The legendary sword is a powerful artefact that was forged centuries ago by a master blacksmith. It is said to contain immense power and can only be wielded by the worthy. The sword plays a key role in the journey of the protagonists, as it is their only hope against the growing darkness that threatens the land.

All The Witch’s Most WTF Moments, Explained: A Spoiler-Filled Interview With the Director

Among the many odd moments in the very odd (and great) new horror movie The Witch is the closing title card, which notes that many of the preceding moments in the movie came “directly from period journals, diaries, and court records.” If that postscript came at the end of your average horror movie, you might suspect it of being just a fake-out designed to trick viewers into thinking that everything you just saw was real. But The Witch is not your average horror movie. Instead it’s designed to be, as the subtitle suggests, “A New England Folk Tale.” As writer-director Robert Eggers has said, he wanted the movie to feel like “a Puritan’s nightmare,” like what would happen “if I could upload a Puritan’s nightmare into the audience’s mind’s eye.”

Eggers has spoken often about how much research he put into achieving this effect, but what exactly did he find? We called him up to ask about some of the movie’s most shocking moments—demonic goats, baths of baby’s blood, and certain somethings suckling certain other somethings—and their real historical and literary inspirations. (Note: This interview is designed to be read after you’ve seen the movie.)

In England, goat farmers were really considered very backward. You did not want to be a goat farmer. It was not cool. But when the settlers came over here, they brought goats with them, and there was a lot of people with goats, because goats could clear the land very efficiently and they were small, to travel with. So, from early on, it made sense for the family to have goats.

The idea that goats are related to Satan is something that’s familiar enough from Goya—which is of course a later period—but in the early modern period and the late Middle Ages, in [the works of German artists] Hans Baldung Grien and Hans Holbein, we see all this stuff with witches and goats. I think that having the goat as a Satanic image in English witch narratives is more rare; it’s definitely more of a continental thing, and I think that hardcore witch historians would say that I might be pushing it a little bit. But considering that this family had goats, it seemed to work well.

Hans Baldung’s The Witches Sabbath, from the 16th century. Note the witch flying atop a goat.
Public domain/Wikimedia Commons

The Witches’ Sabbath (The Great He-Goat) by Francisco Goya.
Public domain/Wikimedia Commons
How about the scene with the apple? Is that something you were borrowing from the Bible and the Garden of Eden, or was there a more specific point of reference there? I think a lot of us know Snow White.

Certainly Puritans would all be aware of the apple being synonymous with sin. But I read a book full of Elizabethan witch pamphlets, and there was an Elizabethan witch who was accused of giving children poison apples. This was earlier than any written accounts of Snow White that I’m aware of, and it’s really interesting to me how, in the folk tales and the fairy tales and the historical accounts of real witchcraft, the same themes and motifs come up. In all these stories, there’s no difference between the “real witch” and the “fairy tale witch.”

The big early reveal in the movie has a witch churning up a baby and then bathing in its blood—is that correct?

The Witches’ Flight, by Goya. Public domain/Wikimedia Commons
What’s going on there is another thing that you see in some English texts, but which is more common on the continent: the idea that a witch couldn’t just hop on her stick and fly, but instead she needed an unguent, an ointment, to help her fly. I think even some modern witches today make flying ointments, and they have potentially hallucinogenic properties, which induce a state that makes it seem like you’re flying.

But the lore in the day was basically that the active ingredient of this unguent was the entrails of an unbaptized babe. And the baby, Samuel—given that his family was far from the settlement, and also given that the Puritans had weird ideas about baptism, he was susceptible to that.

We’re getting into increasingly grisly territory here, but there are scenes of people sucking blood from goat udders, and of animals lactating blood. Was that your image, or something that you drew specifically from somewhere else?

Yeah, witches very often would steal milk from farm animals, dry up the animals’ milk, turn their milk to blood, curdle their milk, and drink it. Sometimes they would take the forms of other animals to do that.

Also, witches had familiars, which were sometimes in demonic shapes and more often in the forms of everyday animals. The black cat that we associate with witches is a witch’s familiar. The witch, being an anti-mother, would feed these animals with her blood that came out of her nipples. [Note: This explains a certain scene with a raven that comes later.] Or sometimes the blood would come out of extra teats that she would have—potentially in her labia or in her anus. I’m not joking about this! This has been talked about a lot, but it didn’t quite make its way into the film.

I’m curious whether you have set ideas about what’s real in the movie and what isn’t—in other words, who’s possessed, and who might just be going mad?

I have very clear ideas about this. But I have intentionally tried to keep some mystery and enigma around that stuff, so I won’t share my opinions on it. It was designed with intentions, but also designed to be read in multiple different ways.

So you won’t tell us whether Thomasin was evil all along, or only becomes desperate at the end?

No offense, if that was anyone’s reading, but for people who think Thomasin was evil all along: “Once upon a time there was a story of a witch”—that’s the movie, and that’s not a very interesting story. So I will say that much.

But there are clues about different interpretations. So, for example, the rot on the corn is ergot, which is a hallucinogenic fungus, so if you wanted to take that route, you could. It’s not necessarily my route, but there are multiple ways in.

Hans Baldung’s The Witches Sabbath, from the 16th century. Note the witch flying atop a goat.
Public domain/Wikimedia Commons

The cursed knights are a group of warriors who were betrayed and turned into monstrous creatures by an ancient curse. They desperately seek redemption and hope to break free from their curse. Through their encounters with the witch and the sword, they find a renewed sense of purpose and join forces to fight against the evil forces that threaten the realm. Throughout the story, the witch, the sword, and the cursed knights face numerous challenges and obstacles. They must navigate treacherous landscapes, battle dangerous creatures, and confront their own fears and doubts. Along the way, they discover the true power of friendship, bravery, and selflessness. "The Witch, the Sword, and the Cursed Knights" is a fast-paced and action-packed novel that seamlessly weaves together elements of fantasy, adventure, and magic. It explores themes of identity, redemption, and the timeless struggle between good and evil. With its vivid world-building and intriguing characters, this book is sure to captivate readers and leave them eagerly awaiting the next installment in the series..

Reviews for "The Witch's Trial: Testing the Cursed Knights' True Nature"

1. Mary - 2 stars - I was really disappointed with "The Witch, the Sword and the Cursed Knights." The plot was confusing and felt disjointed throughout the entire book. The characters were poorly developed, and I found it hard to connect with any of them. The writing style was also lacking in depth, with shallow descriptions and uninteresting dialogue. Overall, I felt that the story lacked originality and failed to engage me as a reader.

2. John - 1 star - I struggled to finish "The Witch, the Sword and the Cursed Knights." The pacing was incredibly slow, and I found myself bored and uninterested. The world-building was also lacking, with very little explanation of the magic system or the history of the world. The dialogue was forced and unrealistic, and I couldn't connect with any of the characters. Overall, this book was a miss for me, and I wouldn't recommend it to others.

3. Emily - 2 stars - Unfortunately, "The Witch, the Sword and the Cursed Knights" fell flat for me. The plot was predictable and lacked originality, making it hard to stay engaged. The characters were one-dimensional and lacked depth, making it difficult to feel invested in their journey. The writing style was also repetitive and uninspiring, with too much telling rather than showing. Overall, this book didn't live up to my expectations, and I wouldn't recommend it to fellow fantasy readers.

The Witch's Coven: Allies in the Battle Against the Cursed Knights