About She Above The Waves

She Above The Waves is an independent publication about witches as cultural symbols and feminist icons.

Here, the witch is a symbol for women who were powerful, independent, ageing, inconvenient or simply difficult to control.

This site explores how that figure came to be, and why she's still important. It was launched in January 2026 by Darcie Hewitt-Dudding.

What do we mean by "witch"?

When people hear the word witch, they often imagine spells, potions, and pointy hats.

Historically, that’s not what most accused witches were doing.

They were women (and men) who got on the wrong side of someone, or didn't live the way that society wanted them to.

She Above the Waves looks at the witch both as a historical reality and how she's been represented thereafter.

A feminist lens

This site is feminist.

The vast majority of people accused of witchcraft were women, and the stories we still tell about witches are tangled up with ideas about gender, beauty, age, sexuality, obedience, and power.

Rather than reclaiming the witch as an identity, this blog examines how the witch has been constructed, and what that construction reveals about the societies that created her.

What you’ll find here

Cultural and historical essays on witch trials and persecution
Folklore analysis, from Baba Yaga to British fairy tales
Literary and media criticism (including Shakespeare, film, and television)
Explorations of witch aesthetics, symbolism, and visual tropes
Clear, accessible writing — no academic gatekeeping, no mystical instruction

What you won’t find here

Spellwork or how-to guides
Modern witchcraft practice
Manifestation rituals
Claims of supernatural authority

This is a space for people who love witches, but don't necessarily believe in magic.

Who Am I?

I'm Darcie. I'm not a practicing witch. More like a cultural one. I dress like one. I love watching them on TV and film. And I am dedicated to learning about the real women accused of witchcraft throughout history and across the world.

I'm not an expert in witches, by any means. But I am passionate about the witch as a symbol of repression and of feminine power.

I'm in my mid-thirties, I live in Yorkshire in the UK with my partner and my daughter.

If you subscribe today, you'll get access to one exclusive in-depth essay a month, as well as all of the free content on this website. Your subscription makes this site possible, and allows She Above The Waves to continue to exist. Thank you!

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