Magrat is somewhere between the fluffiest of New Age Wiccans and an occultist. They are the Three-in-One trinity of Maiden, Mother and Crone.įurthermore, they each represent a stereotype of witches found in stories and real world society too. It's formed around them! Magrat, Nanny Ogg and Granny Weatherwax form the triple aspect of the Goddess. This isn't to say that Wyrd Sisters totally avoids archetypes. Her cunning and obstinacy no longer merely appears stereotypical of fairy-tale witches, but part of her character. Her temperament bounces off the other two with delightful contrast. Granny Weatherwax was the most highly-regarded of the leaders they didn't have.' (p8) Seeing her with other witches is like watching her fade into view.Īs the narrative itself tells us: ' Witches are not by nature gregarious, at least with other witches, and they certainly don't have leaders. It had done so before we'd actually fixed her on her own turf. The trouble with Equal Rites is that it had created a fish out of water in Granny Weatherwax. That really begins with her next appearance. It's difficult at this stage to realize how distinctive and remarkable the character will become. No suggestion that wizardry is better than witchcraft, nor vice versa. When Granny Weatherwax takes on the most powerful living wizard, there's nothing to choose between them. But this embryonic first outing is like looking at an extremely good outline drawing in a sketchbook, rather than a fully developed oil painting framed in the National Gallery. It's only retrospect which has lessened Equal Rites and Granny Weatherwax's characterization in particular. But it pales in comparison to his later output. If this was all that he had done, we would be agreeing that it's a very good story and that's that. It's only the third in the Discworld series, and so he's only just finding his groove. She exists solely to prove that Eskarina Smith is not a witch, but then her usefulness expands as the narrative goes on.Įqual Rites is one of Terry Pratchett's earliest novels.
She is a witch, because the plot demanded one. In many ways, this was her only reason to be here. She's both feared and respected by all in the vicinity. She lives alone in a cottage, in the heart of the forest. In the Discworld universe, the latter is the most appropriate.Įnter Granny Weatherwax. Traditionally female mystics in literature have become priestesses or witches. If you're going to have a magical girl denied access to wizardry, then you need somewhere else to direct her. (The capital R is deliberate there.) She is the Crone Goddess personified, though she'd Look At You if you ever said that in her presence. Granny Weatherwax does what needs to be done, because it's Right to do so. She's the one who makes heart-breaking decisions, that others couldn't live with themselves if they had to make. She will take on Death itself (and win), if things don't go according to plan. She attends to people on their death beds, making them comfortable and ensuring that they cross to the other side without trouble. She does all of those jobs which other people wish would just go away.
However, such terms should not be interpreted to mean that Granny Weatherwax is an evil witch. Similarly, the trolls call her Aaoograha hoa ('She Who Must Be Avoided'). It's K'ez'rek d'b'duz, which translates as 'Go Around the Other Side of the Mountain'. Hidden deep beneath the ground, in warrens of mines, the dwarves still know her enough to have a name for her. Though her reputation precedes her across the Disc, and throughout other races. Very much a local witch, Granny Weatherwax is never comfortable on the few occasions when she's forced outside the borders of Lancre. She's the coven leader that we wish that we had, but are extremely grateful that we don't.
What would Granny Weatherwax do is an unspoken, unacknowledged rule of thumb for all Wiccan etiquette. I've known real world witches half mindful of what she would think of their actions.
She strides from the pages with such force that you almost expect her to step out of them. No Discworld fan will need telling who Granny Weatherwax is.
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