Line #53 Literature/AWitchsBurden


1	[[quoteright:193:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/a_witchs_burden_dot_com_cover_small_7.jpg]]
2	[[caption-width-right:193: "Only when mankind understands his place will he have arrived—not progressed, but arrived at where he has yet been all along."]]
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5	''A Witch’s Burden'' is a 2019 novel by D. W. Goates.
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9	Set in Germany in 1830, the story follows Elke Schreiber, a young woman who travels to the small town of Waldheim for a chance to finally teach in her own classroom. She arrives to find the job was given to the schoolmaster’s niece, despite the letter Elke received offering her the position. Since she has come all this way, she is allowed to assist, but Elke finds little reason to want to stay in the remote valley.
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13	Waldheim is a picturesque village in Bavaria, but the idyllic setting is all it has going for it. Elke hears rumors of the Margrave living in the castle above—his evil deeds are known to all, though when Elke asks for specifics, they are hard to come by. She refuses to believe tales of witchcraft or to succumb to the mindless fear and hatred the others have of a man most have never even seen.
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17	''A Witch’s Burden'' is classified as [[LitFic literary fiction]], [[RomanticismVersusEnlightenment a work of Romanticism]] combining existential philosophy with social criticism, dressed in [[GothicHorror Gothic trappings]]. The novel is ultimately about Elke's journey to find peace with herself and her place in--or away from--society.
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25	!! ''A Witch's Burden'' contains examples of:
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29	* AbominationAccusationAttack: The Margrave is accused of everything from witchcraft to kidnapping to child molestation.
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31	* AsTheGoodBookSays: Elke reminds Sascha that revenge belongs to God.
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33	* BilingualBonus: There are German words and phrases scattered throughout the text, as well as some Latin.
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35	* BlindObedience: The people of Waldheim are convinced of the Margrave's evil because, as Loritz tells Elke, he was "raised on it."
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37	* {{Bookends}}: In the first chapter, Elke is justifiably outraged to be peeped at in the inn; in the final chapter, she skinny-dips on the beach and waves to onlookers.
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39	* BrainyBrunette: Elke Schreiber. As expected for a teacher, she loves books, history, languages, philosophy, and a good debate.
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41	* BurnTheWitch: Elke reads "The Horrible Fate of Ernst Sachs". [[spoiler: Also the fate of the Margrave.]]
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43	* CaptainObvious: Loritz walks a fine line between this and DeadpanSnarker.
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45	* CultureJustifiesAnything: A major theme of the work, shown in particular with the people of Waldheim.
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47	* DancesAndBalls: Elke comes across a Fasching ball in Munich.
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49	* DontGoInTheWoods: When Milla doesn't return from the forest, her mother fears the Margrave's familiars have gotten to her.
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51	* DrowningMySorrows: Elke, particularly after her experience at the boys' school.
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53	* EatingLunchAlone: Elke often reads while she eats alone.
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55	* EveryoneCallsHimBarkeep: The Margave is only referred to by his title.
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57	* FamilyOfChoice: Elke and Sascha.
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59	* {{Foreshadowing}}: A woman at church tells Elke that the Margrave will [[spoiler: burn "at the stake for the witch that he is"]].
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61	* FourthDateMarriage: Loritz makes a half-hearted proposal to get Elke to stay in Waldheim.
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63	* {{Gasp}}: Elke's reaction to seeing the Margrave's castle.
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65	* HeldGaze: Elke and Loritz share one.
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67	* KindlyHousekeeper: Bogdana, who nurses Elke back to health after wolves attack her coach.
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69	* LettingHerHairDown: Elke literally and figuratively does this at the end of the book.
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71	* LockedRoomMystery: How [[spoiler: Milla died]].
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73	* MaybeEverAfter: Elke and Loritz.
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75	* MaybeMagicMaybeMundane: The reasons for Milla's disappearance.
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77	* MoodWhiplash: Elke and Sascha's picnic in the park takes a turn when Sascha tells her [[spoiler: about the attack on the castle]].
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79	* MyGodWhatHaveIDone: Loritz, learning that Elke never was harmed by the Margrave.
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81	* ThePlague: The story takes place during the great cholera pandemic, though it has little impact on the characters.
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83	* PortraitPaintingPeephole: Elke is spied on through the knotty planks of the inn's lavatory. She even notes how the knotholes look like hundreds of eyes.
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85	* SavageWolves: A very real danger and recurring element in Elke's dreams.
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87	* SecretUndergroundPassage: How Sascha escapes.
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89	* ShamingTheMob: Elke finally tells the people of Waldheim what she thinks of them after [[spoiler: the Margrave and his household are murdered]].
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91	-->'''Elke:''' And your only justification for it amounts to an agreement among fools. Zero plus zero equals zero. The full number of you times zero equals zero. You people are in need of a most fundamental teacher… But I see now what the Count meant: one cannot teach a fool at gunpoint.
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93	* SpiritedYoungLady: While educated and proper, Elke also has a very low tolerance for bullshit and is not afraid to say so.
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95	* SweetTooth: Sascha. Elke to a lesser extent.
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97	* TakeThat: Elke's joke about Georg Hegel's death.
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99	* TravelMontage: Most of the places Elke and Sascha visit are given this treatment.
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101	* UnfulfilledPurposeMisery: Elke eventually abandons her dream of teaching.
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103	* WiseBeyondTheirYears: Sascha, a resourceful orphan and self-described good judge of character, makes an immediate impression on Elke.
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105	* WouldHurtAChild: Bernhard, the school "disciplinarian" in Waldheim, beats Rudolph for being a bit loud.
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107	* YouMonster: Helma turns on her husband when Milla is found.
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Context Literature / AWitchsBurden