WARNING: The following article contains spoilers for Chilling Adventures of Sabrina Season 1, streaming now on Netflix.

Words have power, whether you’re a witch or mortal. That's evident on Chilling Adventures of Sabrina, which is clearly woke with abundant feminist commentary, as Sabrina fights back against the patriarchy.

Played by Kiernan Shipka, Sabrina Spellman co-founds WICCA (Women’s Intersectional Cultural and Creative Association) at Baxter High with the intention of supporting and protecting young women. She also questions the vows she's expected to take in her Dark Baptism, embracing her witch side and devoting her life to the service of Satan. Father Blackwood (Richard Coyle), the high priest of the coven the Church of Night, assures Sabrina that the Dark Lord is the “embodiment” of free will, yet, at her Dark Baptism, the language he uses is problematic. In essence, those who sign the Book of the Beast are placing the Dark Lord above all others, including themselves. That leads to Sabrina’s great line, “My name is Sabrina Spellman, and I will not sign it away.”

RELATED: Chilling Adventures of Sabrina Was Made to Piss Off the #HimToo Movement

When Sabrina refuses to sign her name in the Book of the Beast, the Court of Witches puts her on trial for “breach of promise.” The scenes where Sabrina is on trial are uncomfortable to watch for many of us, because it’s a little too reminiscent of arguments we’ve heard in sexual assault cases.

Guilty Until Proven Innocent

Chilling Adventures of Sabrina dark baptism

Leading up to her trial, Father Blackwood says, “The Dark Lord is not without mercy. But he’ll require total submission from the girl.” Sabrina is not to fight back, despite being lied to, and her Aunt Zelda (Miranda Otto) doesn’t give her a choice in the matter. Up until the intervention of Daniel Webster, a mortal lawyer, it seemed as if Sabrina was doomed to be guilty, as, in witch law, the accused is guilty until proven innocent. Total submission, and not having a choice with what to do with one’s own body, seems archaic, but it’s still a problem women face  today.

RELATED: Chilling Adventures of Sabrina Doesn't Commit to the Horrors of the Comics

Father Blackwood serves as prosecutor for the Dark Lord, and in court says, “When the accused is confirmed guilty, not only will she abandon her mortal life immediately, but upon her death, she shall burn for 333 years in the Pit, as his pleasure demands.” The word choice here is purposeful. By using “when” and not “if,” the prosecution has assumed Sabrina is at fault when she is, in fact, the one who’s been wronged.

Assuming that Sabrina is at fault for “breaking a promise” to the Dark Lord is essentially "you led him on and didn’t follow through.” The Dark Lord felt entitled to Sabrina, the way that incels feel entitled to access to women’s bodies. Above all else, the Dark Lord’s “pleasure” takes precedence. Similarly, society has conditioned men that their pleasures are a priority and the woman’s satisfaction isn’t as important (there have been many studies on this phenomenon).

Breach of Promise

Father Blackwood Chilling Adventures of Sabrina

During the trial, Blackwood informs Sabrina that a breach of promise is “most commonly invoked when a groom runs out on a bride he’s promised to wed.” He says Sabrina and the Dark Lord were “courting,” an older term for dating. According to Blackwood, that means Sabrina was supposed to do what the Dark Lord wanted because they were involved already. That's reminiscent of those cases where a sexual assault victim is told they’re not a victim because the perpetrator was their boyfriend or husband.

RELATED: Why Cousin Ambrose Is On House Arrest On Chilling Adventures of Sabrina

Blackwood then transitions into an argument that everyone has heard before, shifting the blame to Sabrina’s outfit. He asks her, “Did you not willingly go into the woods that night, wearing, of all things, a wedding dress? Fact is, you gave every indication that it was your intention to fulfill a promise made.”

That's the classic “your skirt was too short” argument. Blackwood suggests that Sabrina’s dress made a promise on her behalf, and the Dark Lord was merely responding to it; Sabrina led on Satan with her outfit. Father Blackwood and the Church of Night clearly do not understand consent.

The Moment of Consummation and Shame

Chilling Adventures of Sabrina Father Blackwood

We have to discuss consent here because of Blackwood’s word choice as he continued his questioning: “You showed up for a ceremony you’d committed to and then, at the moment of consummation, you fled. You broke your promise. That’s all.” The word “consummation” is sexually coded, and he’s saying that Sabrina is not allowed to change her mind.

As Blackwood finishes that statement, the witches in the crowd yell, “Guilty!” and “Tramp!” Perhaps they view her life as a mortal as a way of cheating on the Dark Lord. Sabrina’s mortal life is also put on trial, as Blackwood wants to invoke human laws to test whether she’s a mortal or witch. Unfortunately, those laws haven’t been updated since the 17th century, so, Sabrina can be drowned, or else "submit to being stripped and examined, in full view of the coven, for a witch’s mark upon her body.”

RELATED: When Does Chilling Adventures of Sabrina Actually Take Place?

Ultimately, because of a Christian baptismal certificate, Sabrina’s control over her body is returned to her, with the caveat that she attends the Academy of Unseen Arts part-time. Sabrina agrees, because she can better fight back against the Dark Lord if she were to learn what the school has to teach. The trial scene is one of many on the series that fights back against the patriarchy. However, it's uncomfortable to watch because it's a little too real.

Available now on Netflix, Chilling Adventures of Sabrina stars Kiernan Shipka as Sabrina Spellman, Ross Lynch as Harvey Kinkle, Michelle Gomez as Mary Wardwell/Madam Satan, Jaz Sinclair as Rosalind Walker, Chance Perdomo as Ambrose Spellman, Lucy Davis as Hilda Spellman, Miranda Otto as Zelda Spellman and Richard Coyle as Father Blackwood.