The Witches and Eastwick(1987)和Bell, Book, and Candle(1958)都描寫了女性在一個社會中的斗爭，在這個社會中，規范的女性氣質和巫術是 "社會構建的女性特征 "的兩端。雖然兩部電影最初都是描寫職業女性（女巫），但社會塑造的欲望迫使她們做出不同的反應，即要么順應所謂的 "常態女性氣質"，要么反抗所謂的 "常態女性氣質"，最終導致吉爾為了家庭化的愛情生活而犧牲了巫術，而三個女巫則歡迎她們內心的女巫組成了一個 "非傳統 "的家庭。 在她們的掙扎過程中，正是每個時代的美國文化焦慮引入了 "理想規范的女性氣質"，對女巫和女性起到了壓迫的作用。 兩部電影的女性角色都是以職業女性的身份開始，并且將自己的權力控制在手中。吉莉安是一個成功的女商人，經營著自己的商店；亞歷山德拉-斯波福、簡-斯瑪特和蘇琪-羅格蒙特是一個雕塑藝術家、音樂教師和記者。在這個階段，她們都是和男人分開的。吉爾是單身，亞歷克斯、簡和蘇琪的丈夫不是死了，就是離了婚，或者拋棄了她們。然而她們所有的自我依賴狀態都無法持續太久。社會的壓力和焦慮襲來，通過插入與 "規范的、傳統的女性氣質 "的距離的恐懼，擾亂了她們的時代。對于吉爾來說，她對謝潑德產生了生理上的吸引，渴望愛情親情，渴望和他一起過著家常的生活。東域的三個女孩渴望感受到達里爾的力量，為她們提供自尊和關懷。從這里開始，所有的女巫都會把自己改造成一個有點性的女巫，"都是華麗的，做著邪惡的事情"(吉布森99)，比如吉爾迷倒了謝普，三個女巫讓自己被達里爾勾引，對基督教女子費利西亞施咒。即便如此，這兩部電影的結局也是截然不同的。對于吉爾來說，女巫是毫無顧忌的，也是由缺乏典型的女性屬性來定義的。"不能臉紅，哭泣或戀愛"（吉布森92）。吉爾墜入愛河，放棄了自己的巫術能力，成為 "唯一的人類"，以一個 "被安全馴化的性感女巫"(92)結束影片。相反，亞歷克斯、簡和蘇琪則與魔鬼達里爾反目成仇，他們重新獲得了巫術的能力，并將他趕走，故事的結尾是 "和他們（和他）的新寶寶一起生活在一個幸福的公共家庭"(99)，這是一種非傳統的生活。 《鐘、書、燭》的時代背景是50年代，這個時代的勞動婦女剛剛通過埃莉諾-羅斯福對婦女事業的推動獲得了社會地位的提高。然而，這個后珍珠港時代又充滿了來自父權社會的期望，希望 "女性會很高興回到廚房和育嬰室"(Gibson 92)。女性想要獲得權力，但她們還是害怕成為 "激進分子 "的后果。在影片中，當吉莉安試圖向謝普坦白她的巫術時，他開玩笑說 "你是不是一直在從事非美國的活動？"，她回答說："沒有，我想說的是，我的巫術很厲害。"（吉布森92）。"不，我會說很美國"(93)。這可以理解為女巫吉爾害怕被冠以共產主義者的稱號，是出于恐懼的反應。女巫與伊斯維克》的背景是80年代，一個在里根主義下保守主義加劇的時代。開頭包括學校的發言人指責離婚率暴漲和拉客的孩子的現象。對于像伊斯威克這樣的保守小鎮，一個靠近塞勒姆的小鎮，曾經舉行過女巫審判，任何輕微的異常都會受到鄰居的監視。三個女人的情況最初符合巫術的理由：（守寡、多子、不孕）。她們在潛意識中意識到自己作為女性的 "不正常"，并受到性壓抑，導致后來她們參與了達里爾的勾引。因此，我認為，是美國的社會文化焦慮，將 "理想的常態女性氣質 "寓于其中，對女巫和女性起到了壓迫的作用。 Both The Witches and Eastwick(1987) and Bell, Book, and Candle(1958) depicted women's struggles within a society where normative femininity and witchcraft are on the two ends of the spectrum of "socially constructed female traits". While both of the films initially depicts working woman(witches), their socially shaped desires force them to react differently, that is either conform to or rebel against so-called "normative femininity", eventually leading Gil sacrificing witchcraft for domesticated love life, and the three witches welcoming their inner witch forming an "untraditional" family. During their struggles, it is the American cultural anxieties in each era that introduced "ideal normative femininity", acted as oppression on witches and females. Both films begin with female characters as working women and have their own power controlled in hand. Gillian being a successful businesswoman, running her own shop; Alexandra Spofford, Jane Smart, and Sukie Rougemont being a sculpture artist, a music teacher, and a reporter. At this stage, all of them are separate from men. Gil being single, Alex, Jane, and Sukie's husbands either died, divorced, or discarded them. Yet all of their self-dependent states couldn't last long. The social pressure and anxieties come in, disturbed them through inserting fear of distancing from "normative, traditional femininity" during their eras. For Gil, she becomes physically attracted to Shepherd, desires love affection and a domesticated life with him. Three girls from Eastwick yearn to feel empowered by Daryl, providing them self-esteem and care. Starting from here, all witches transform themselves into a somewhat sexualized witch, "all gorgeous and doing evil"(Gibson 99), like Gil enchanting Shep and three witches allowing themselves to be seduced by Daryl and casting a spell against Christian woman Felicia. Even so, these two films have drastically different endings. For Gil, witches were without scruple, and also defined by a lack of typically feminine attributes: "could not blush, cry or fall in love"(Gibson 92). Gil fall in love, abandoned her witchcraft abilities to be the "only human", closing the film with a "sexy witch safely domesticated"(92). Contrarily, Alex, Jane, and Sukie turn against the Devil Daryl, they re-acquired their power to bewitch and drive him away, and end the story living in a "happy communal family with their (and his) new babies"(99), a non-traditional life. Bell, Book, and Candle is set in the '50s, an era in which the working women who just gained a raise of social status through Eleanor Roosevelt's promotion of women’s cause. However, this post-Pearl Harbor era was filled again with expectations from a patriarchal society, hoping that" women would be glad to get back to the kitchen and the nursery"(Gibson 92). Women wanted to gain power, still, they were afraid of the consequence of being "radicals". In the film, when Gillian tried to confess her witchcraft to Shep he joked ‘Have you been engaging in un-American activities?’, to which she replied: "no, I’d say very American"(93). This could be read as Gil the witch terrified of being titled with communist, a reaction out of fear. The Witches and Eastwick is set in the '80s, an era with Increased conservatism under Reaganism. The opening includes a spokesperson of the school accusing the phenomenon of divorce rates skyrocket and latchkey kids. For a conservative town like Eastwick, a town near Salem where the Witch Trials were once held, any slightest abnormality would be under neighbours' surveillance. The three women's conditions initially fitted into the justification for witchcraft: being widowed, having many children, and being infertility). They were aware of their "abnormality" as females subconsciously and were sexually repressed, causing their engagement with Daryl's seduction later on. Therefore, I argue that it is American social and cultural anxieties that fabled "ideal normative femininity", and acted as oppression on witches and females.