The Perseverance of Folklore

“The Witch’s Garden” draws heavily from European folklore, particularly that of “witch’s” plants used to curse and harm. The poet assumes that their general readership will have some prior context of this imagery; if not the specifics, at least an awareness of this archetypal image of an elderly woman gathering malefic herbs from the undergrowth. In particular, the image of the witch sticking pins (in this case, thorns from the blackthorn tree) into a wax effigy is one that has persevered throughout the ages with varying degrees of stigma. Other folkloric influences include the use of hazel wood “to give magic power” (Line 21). In British and Irish folklore in particular, hazel was associated with the acquisition of wisdom and magical powers. Within the context of the poem, the central character is carrying this ancient knowledge in a world that has largely...