Witchcraft for Wayward Girls

Rose is one of Fern’s friends and roommates. She is a hippie whose direct, confrontational attitude and focus on social justice cause Fern considerable irritation. As Fern complains, Rose “only talks about American imperialism and police brutality” (47). However, Rose’s interest in both racial and social justice is a key aspect of her characterization. She boldly objects to the mistreatment of women and people of color in the United States, and she is willing to speak her mind to Miss Wellwood and the other adults at Wellwood Home. Rose is the first character to openly discuss Solidarity Among Women, and in doing so, she sets the tone for the friendships that will save herself, Fern, Zinnia, and Holly from much of the emotional harm that Wellwood Home seeks to cause.

Rose carries her interest in social justice through to adulthood, making good on her word to retreat from society and live in a commune with like-minded individuals. Like Fern, Rose devotes her life to women’s empowerment. Although she is unable to keep her daughter, she does reconnect with her later in life. Like Zinnia, Holly, and Fern, Rose reclaims her bodily autonomy by forging a belated relationship with her child, thereby defying the societal conventions surrounding teen pregnancy and adoption.

Zinnia is one of Fern’s friends and her roommate. Because she is a young, Black girl growing up in 1970s America, she has experienced prejudice, but the rest of the girls at Wellwood Home treat her with kindness and respect. She is an accomplished pianist and an avid reader, and she bonds with Fern first because the two share a passion for literature. Zinnia is both emotionally intelligent and highly intellectual. Her baby’s father is her boyfriend, who is also a musician, and the two plan to marry. Because Zinnia is in a stable relationship and is competent and mature, the narrative suggests that she would be an excellent mother. Her presence in the novel is therefore designed to depict the multiple injustices inherent in the practice of forced adoption. Hendrix implies that if Zinnia had been given access to the support and education that is available to teenage mothers today, she could have successfully parented her child. 

Additionally, because Zinnia opposes the girls’ use of witchcraft from the very beginning, she becomes one of the novel’s voices of reason. Miss Parcae does turn out to have malign intentions, and Zinnia is astute enough to understand this before the other girls do. However, although Zinnia disagrees with Fern, Rose, and Holly on the topic of witchcraft, they remain bonded. Zinnia therefore represents the theme of Solidarity Among Women, and the strength of her bond with Fern is evident even at the end of the novel. As the two reconnect as adults, they demonstrate the strength of a friendship that malignant figures like Miss Wellwood sought to destroy.

Holly is the youngest girl at Wellwood and one of Fern’s roommates. Fern initially describes Holly as a “tiny blonde mouse who does not speak” (50). Holly’s initial refusal to speak stems from the trauma and sexual abuse that she endured at the hands of a serial rapist: a man named Reverend Jerry, who is also her family’s pastor. He has been sexually abusing her since she was eight years old, with his wife’s full knowledge, He and his wife plan to adopt Holly’s baby. 

Holly’s presence in the novel is designed to reflect the very real history of young women who became pregnant by their abusers and were then blamed for their pregnancies. Holly has told multiple adults that she was raped, and rather than receiving support and protection, she was met with either disbelief or a lack of interest in her plight. Because of this, Holly now feels a strong sense of hopelessness. She knows that after she gives birth, both she and her child will be subject to Reverend Jerry’s control, and she is sure that he will begin abusing her daughter as soon as the girl turns eight. Holly does eventually regain some degree of strength and autonomy when she decides to leave Wellwood with Miss Parcae’s coven. She knows that this is the only way to avoid further abuse, and she therefore sacrifices a “normal” life for one in which she can live in peace.

Miss Wellwood is the director of the Wellwood Home for Unwed Mothers, and she acts as one of the novel’s primary antagonists. She is highly judgmental and treats the girls with marked disrespect because they have gotten pregnant outside of marriage. She is sharp-tongued and is always ready with criticism, never missing an opportunity to blame moments of inactivity or disobedience on the girls’ supposed lack of morals. As such, she actively promotes The Social Stigma of Teen Pregnancy, and her character should be read as an embodiment of mid-century prejudices in this regard. Because she condemns the girls for their sexual activity and labels their pregnancy a “sin,” she does not respect or recognize their individual identities, and she also discourages them from sharing their stories or forming bonds with one another. This dynamic is demonstrated when she scorns the girls’ interest in their horoscopes, declaring, “There will be no talk of astrology at my table. You’d be better served by learning mathematics or home economics” (41). 

Although Miss Wellwood is not a member of the home’s medical or psychiatric staff, she is part of the cadre of officials who severely limit the girls’ bodily autonomy, and she therefore becomes a living embodiment of the patriarchal social norms that severely limited the kinds of decisions that women could make about their own bodies in the 1970s. Although Miss Wellwood was herself a young, unwed mother and understands what her charges are going through, she has internalized the patriarchal standards of her society so intensely that she embraces these oppressive gender roles and refuses to show the girls any understanding or empathy.

Although these three characters are not as fully developed as Miss Wellwood or the girls, they collectively embody the oppressive patriarchal standards to which the girls are subjected. Dr. Vincent and Nurse Kent provide the home’s dubious medical care, and Dr. Vincent in particular is unpopular among the girls because of the invasive nature of his exams. In addition to his heavy-handed examination methods, Dr. Vincent demonstrates arrogant and self-aggrandizing traits throughout the novel, never missing an opportunity to lord his knowledge over his patients. He also makes crude jokes about the girls’ sexual activity and habitually disparages his patients. 

Although Nurse Kent and Diane Keller initially seem more empathetic, their goal is to make sure that the girls do not keep their children. Diane is particularly manipulative, managing to convince the girls that they must actively decide to give up their children for adoption. Although Fern, Rose, and several of the other girls wish to keep their children, Diane insists that they are not equipped to be parents, and she maintains that their babies will have better lives in an adopted family. It is deeply significant that these two women actively aid a man in enforcing patriarchal norms. Hendrix uses this fictional scenario to draw attention to the toxic dynamics of real-world patriarchies, illustrating the fact that some women have internalized the notion that men are inherently stronger, more important, and better equipped to make decisions. These women, like Nurse Kent, Diane Keller, and Miss Wellwood, “aid and abet” male avatars of patriarchal standards and thereby become tools of patriarchal control themselves.

Initially introduced as the librarian who operates the bookmobile, Miss Parcae is an ambiguous figure who embodies both positive and negative qualities. She is initially supportive of the girls and refrains from judging them for their pregnancy. Along with Hagar, she is the only adult in the book who treats Fern and the other pregnant girls with a modicum of respect. She also nurtures their desire to learn, helping them to select books that are both mentally engaging and “appropriate” for teen readers in the eyes of Wellwood staff. When her identity as a witch is revealed, she becomes strongly associated with the idea of female empowerment. She and her fellow witches note that witchcraft has always been seen as dangerous in part because of witches’ willingness to reclaim power in the midst of patriarchal societies. 

During the early portions of the novel, Miss Parcae is portrayed as a benevolent character, but she ultimately reveals more malign intentions toward Fern and the girls. She is dying, and because she holds the consciousnesses of many witches in her ancestral “line,” she must pass on this aspect of herself in order to preserve it. She wants to pass the essence of her lineage on to Fern and cites this as the “price” for agreeing to help Fern to save Holly. At this point, Miss Parcae begins to function as an antagonist, causing harm to the girls in her efforts to abduct Fern. At the novel’s end, however, she once again comes to the girls’ aid, agreeing to keep Holly and her baby safe from Reverend Jerry. Her ambiguous roles throughout the novel highlight the author’s somewhat muddled treatment of witchcraft itself, for although Hendrix initially champions the practice as a source of feminine power, his depictions of Miss Parcae’s more violent acts undermine this effect, suggesting—whether intentionally or not—that this form of feminine power is indeed “evil.” While this fundamental flaw is never fully reconciled, the presence of witchcraft does provide a test for the girls, forcing them to clarify their understanding of right and wrong.