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Druids of the World
Caitlin Laverdiere
On the summer solstice approximately
30,000 people gather at the iconic
ruins of Stonehenge – the largest
annual gathering of Druids in the world.
English honors senior, Kathleen Cooperstein,
was one of the thousands of onlookers
at Stonehenge on June 21, 2008 – the
capstone experience of a 15-day grant
sponsored trip across Northeastern Europe
to further her burgeoning research on the
Divine feminine.
Cooperstein is interested in tracing the
roles of women from prehistoric Celtic
tribes through modern day and examining
the affects of Christian influences on their
changing roles throughout history. She is
analyzing the transformation
of cultural
conceptions of women
from powerful and
wise to weak and subversive.
This transformation
can be seen
in Arthurian Legend
through the depiction
of several female
characters. The Lady
of the Lake was a powerful,
mystical woman
representative of the
old traditions. She
was perceived to be
generally good and
bestowed some of
that goodness and
power on Arthur when
she bequeathed the
sword to him. On
the other end of the
spectrum is the pious
Guinevere. She was
A statue of St. Patrick welcomes visitors to
the Hill of Tara, a pagan archaeological dig
in Ireland
15
Christianized and not affiliated with any
magical powers. It is believed that Arthur
marched into battle under the sign of the
cross because of her influence. Guinevere
was susceptible to temptation, much like
Eve, and her weakness, exemplified in her
affair with Sir Lancelot, ultimately led to Arthur’s
downfall and the destruction of the
round table. Finally, Morgana bridges the
divide between the two extreme depictions
of women, as characterized by the Lady of
the Lake and Guinevere. Morgana retains
the magical powers that were also associated
with the Lady of the Lake, but she
used her power for evil, causing Arthur to
fall into sin. Cooperstein’s research aims
to further explore this transformation in the
depiction of women and
its ensuing influence on
the representation of
women in the “old faith”
as witches rather than
mystical healers.
Cooperstein is also embarking
on a comparative
study of Appalachia
versus Europe in
modern perceptions of
women and how they’ve
evolved in the different
locations. Most of the
similarities between Appalachia
and Europe are
seen in the rural areas
where their geographic
isolation has protected
the old legends and beliefs.
It is through their
traditional storytelling
and healing practices,
such as midwifery, that
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