Witches serve a purpose in 19th century fairy tales as villains who lure and eat children. Subtle messages are conveyed about the dangers to the social order posed by women who don’t marry, don’t much like children, and possess power and ambition.
theconversation.com/why-is-it-mi...
From the middle ages on, threatening the patriarchy by displaying ambition or failing to conform to societal gender norms was taken as evidence of witchcraft.
