Witches & Wiccans
Reinterpreted
In Dead to the World, Harris introduces a group of witches. Their presence in the novel is to gain control of the Vampire sheriff, Eric Northman, who is relatively powerful and wealthy. The witches wipe Eric's memory, which forces Sookie to take on the responsibility of caring for him, when he shows up at her door. These witches are powerful and know spells that are strong enough to wipe away the memory of a vampire. The character of Amelia also appears in the novel, who is Sookie's cousin's landlord. Amelia is a witch, who can cast spells which turn humans into animals (albeit by accident), and can recreate scenes such as a murder, after they have happened. It can be expected that there are some obvious fictional elements regarding witches in a series about vampires, which explains the types of spells they can cast. But when it comes to Harris' representation of them there are some people who have been offended by the light that witches have been cast in. "A witch who gets good training usually learns to balance that with discipline, strength, and focus. I would have liked to see a witch who was more competent and had a clearer sense of will and purpose," said the president of the Temple of Witchcraft in Reuter's Real Witches Cry Foul at Portrayal on True Blood. It is therefore safe to assume that Harris' witch isn't precisely true to the modern day witch. The reasoning for the false portrayal is likely due to the nature of the series, with the roles of witches falling into the same supernatural category as vampires and werewolves. But alas, there remains still a glimmer of hope for Harris, as Wiccans also come into play in the series.
The witches who have sought to steal away Eric's wealth in Dead to the World are eventually fought by Sookie, werewolves, vampires, and also a group of local Bon Temps wiccans. The only character from this group who plays any substantial role in the series is Holly Cleary, who claims to be a Wiccan, not a witch. She has some magical abilities but is mostly interested in the wiccan lifestyle. Terra from terraontheshelf.blogspot.com gives a detailed review of Harris' Dead to the World, focusing on the portrayal of Wiccans. She writes, "The way Charlaine Harris chose to represent Wiccans was also extremely disappointing. I read the acknowledgements at the beginning of the book before I began to read the actual story. She goes on about thanking the Wiccans who helped her to do her research and names a few so my interest was definitely piqued and I hoped for a well informed portrayal. What I got instead was a character who suddenly became anorexic, decided to spike her hair and dye it black, and get multiple piercings in her ears to fit a supposed Wiccan image who goes on to give an awkward and ill informed definition of the religion of Wicca." Terra also quotes Harris directly from the novel when Sookie says, "Our little town of Bon Temps had stretched its gates open wide enough to tolerate vampires, and gay people didn't have a very hard time of it anymore (kind of depending on how they expressed their sexual preference). However, I thought the gates might snap shut on the wiccans." Terra makes an accurate point when she states that the statement "makes you worry for the Wiccans seeing that the only thing that she seems to directly imply as being wrong with them is that they aren't practicing a Christian denomination." Terra brings to light a potential bias that allows for the acceptance of homosexuality and vampires, but when it comes to people worshiping anyone besides the Christian God or Jesus, it will not be tolerated.
It is accurate to conclude that Harris has strayed from the modern day concept of a witch in her representation, as well as deviating from the real roles that Wiccans play in our society. Does her statement imply that anything is acceptable besides the worshiping of a non-Christian God? I highly doubt it. Perhaps, it is just a statement which is meant to provide some insight into the town of Bon Temps. It is more likely that Harris is just stating that the real issues of bigotry and prejudice lie in religion, and that when it comes to Bon Temps, they will be less accepting of people who challenge their concept of God. Perhaps Harris is just trying to peal back the covers from religion in Bon Temps and provide some deeper insight into the workings of the minds of its people.