...A Representation of the Accused Witches of Salem The Salem Witch Trials were a series of executions that took place in Salem, Massachusetts during the years 1692-1693. These executions took place due to a large number of people in Salem being accused of witchcraft. The amount of tried witches primarily consisted of women, although men were also accused. This paper argues that a specific pattern can be found with regards to how the women accused of witchcraft were viewed in their society. In particular, women who stood out in a negative manner were often the victims of public accusations, especially those represented as religious heretics, deviant members in society, and social outcasts. In order to interpret the Salem Witch Trials, one must...
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...The Salem Witch Trials were an example of the strict Puritan religion in the 17th century. Even though there was no actual evidence of witchcraft, the religious beliefs of the Puritans caused many men, women and children to be wrongfully accused. The Puritan’s life revolved around the church. They attended sermons twice a week, dancing was not allowed, listening of non-religious music was prohibited, holidays were not celebrated and children were not allowed to play with toys or dolls and their education revolved around the Bible. Some Puritan’s believed Satan needed permission to take over a living human body while others believed Satan could afflict anyone. The Puritan values and religious beliefs during this time led to a mass hysteria which started the accusations of witchcraft. In the Seventeenth Century it was believed that witches were a product of Satan. During this time it was unheard of to speak of a good witch in colonial Massachusetts. “A witch is a person believed to have received special powers.” (1) As life became more difficult for the Puritans they began to blame witches for the problems they faced within their community. Puritan’s believed that anyone crippled, aged, poor, deformed or sickly were possible offspring of Satan. Anyone that did not follow the Puritan religion faithfully would risk the possibility of being accused of witchcraft. People being accused of witchcraft were typically women in their middle age possibly living on their own. The woman...
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...Salem Witch Trials Salem Witch Trials has always been an intriguing topic to me in our part of American History. This story depicts the Puritan Community and their beliefs that lead them into thinking that several women of the community were witches. I. Accusations of the three young girls and the Indian Slave unravel and this is where the break out of the Salem Witch Trials begins. ← Suspicion started to brew when a young girl became ill with convulsions associated with what seemed to the Puritan Community as someone who was possessed by the devil. ← John Putnam started the Puritan Community he was the local preacher in community in addition, he invited the Parris Family to live in Salem at preach at their church. ← Parris Family brought with them their daughter, niece and there Indian Slave. ← These girls started to have frantic fits, complaints of pinching and other acts of super natural origin. ← Tituba the Indian Slave taught the young girls how to forecast fortunes by using magic that closely relates to voodoo today. II. Salem Witch Trials began in February 1692 in Salem, Massachusetts, during a time when people were extremely closed- minded and uneducated and religion was the spoken gospel of truth! ← Tituba the Indian Slave tries to cure the young girl by baking a so-called witch cake. ← Several articles speculate that the rye that was used to make bread and other...
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...The Salem Witch Trials took place in Salem, Massachusetts during the 1690s. Mass hysteria broke out as young girls accused people of dealing in witchcraft. The accused were punished and killed for these false accusations. Eventually, the town shamefully realized what they had done. The playwright, Arthur Miller, wrote The Crucible as a display of a corrupt Puritan society as well as an allegory of modern American history. Miller demonstrates the government issues and religious conflicts of colonial and modern-day America in his play, The Crucible. Miller’s play reflects the corruption of humanity that is seen throughout American history. Puritan hypocrisy is a major focus of this work which is portrayed at the end of act one when Abigail Williams...
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...Witch-Hunts, Then and Now Witch-Hunts, Then and Now, is the topic I have chosen for my research paper, which will define similarities and differences between the “Salem Witch Trials” and “The Second Red Scare”. The actions that took place during both events played on the fears of citizens to further the personal, political and social agendas of those individuals that conducted the trials. These two events are just two examples of how history repeated itself, where hysteria of the masses has been used as justification to trample on the basic rights that we, as humans, have come to believe as essential to our lives. I chose this research project because the effect of the McCarthy era tactics that infringed on the Constitutional rights of many Americans can be seen today in the policies and actions implemented since September 11, 2001. As an American, I am disturbed to see that we as a people and our government appear not to have learned from our past. During the eras of the Salem Witch Trials and that of McCarthyism, there existed a fear that the values of each society were being threatened from both internal and external entities. During the Court of Oyer and Terminer, influential members of the Salem community used the trials to punish ministers with in the colony who were seen as tolerant to other religions. There was a movement within the colony to relax the strict customs of the Puritans, but the community leaders wanted to maintain a tight control on their spiritual beliefs...
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...Three Sovereigns for Sarah A notorious event in U.S history was the witchcraft hysteria that had mesmerized Salem, Massachusetts, had a few contributing factors. The village Salem, Massachusetts, had many trials for people who were believed to practice witchcraft. The accused people were sentenced to cruel deaths and the awaiting people were jailed and waited for trail. Some ways people were killed were by hanging, laying bricks upon them, and the rest died in prison. In total, 20 people were killed. Prison in those days were held in terrible condition which caused a mother and her son to die. The Salem witch trials would take place between February 1962 and May 1963. A possible contributing factor to the witch hysteria that took place in Salem, is the town was already a troublesome community. The town would...
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...versions of the Salem Witch Trials that took place in Salem Massachusetts during 1692. Miller magnified the films historical events by showing how quickly paranoia, dishonesty and fear can escalate amongst the characters in the town of Salem. During the17th century time period, Salem was a puritan based community that lived in an extremely restrictive society. The system of the government was a theocracy. They believed they were chosen by God for a special purpose in this world. The puritans viewed the world in terms of good vs evil. They were required to faithfully attend church and study the word of God. If they failed to comply with those terms, they were accused of practicing the devil’s magic. In the film, several of the village girls were caught dancing in the forest outside of Salem in the middle of the night. One of the characters in the film, Betty had lost consciousness during the ritual and remained in a trance ever since. The town’s physician examined Betty and could not determine why she was unconscious. He suggested she was bewitched. In the puritans eyes, dancing and singing chants were frowned upon and viewed as unholy. Many believed if an induvial danced and chanted in the forest they were practicing witch crafts. The people of Salem in the witch trials were swayed by momentary feelings and were falsely accusing innocent people of “witchery”. In a time of greed, lust, jealousy and fear; it would be easy to accuse someone you did not like of being a “witch” in the sense...
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...Salem, Massachusetts known as Danvers, Massachusetts today was founded in 1626 by Roger Conant and a group of immigrants from Cape Ann (United States History). Naumkeag was Salem’s name before it was renamed by the settlers. The settlers found it better to rename the village Salem because it is derived from the Hebrew word for peace (United States History). Well known for the witch craft hysteria that has taken place in the town of Salem. The community went through what we have been taught is The Salem Witch Trials, what were these trials about and how were they solved? The Salem Witch Trials took place in the spring of 1692. However, the 1692 trials were not the start, witch hunts started around the 1300 and 1330s and ended in the late 18th century in Europe (The Salem Witch Trials). Three-fourths of the European witch hunts took place in western Germany, France, northern Italy, and Switzerland. A witch hunt is the process of trying to identify witches rather than the ones that were already thought out to be witches. During these witch hunts 110,000 people were tried for witchcraft and between 40,000 to 60,00 were...
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...Douglas Honors College 261 Geraldine O'Mahony October 19, 2015 In this paper I will discuss the religious acts, both violent and peaceful, of the Puritans from the 1600s. Religion as referred to in this paper can be defined as a community of members worshipping or practicing common goals based off of common beliefs. Violence will be discussed as a term of destruction of order and conflict that can lead to intentional damage and/or harm of people and their environments. Readers will understand the Puritans motives in their acts as well as how they thought violent acts would bring them peace. Peace is defined as harmonious with the absence of violence/pain, however universally impossible, peace is equality and satisfaction with all people and all environments. This paper will also focus on the justifications that the Puritans had for their doings. Puritanism began in England in the 17th century and had the intentions of splitting from the Catholic Church and introduce reforms in a new protestant religion. Small colonies were able to form on the east coast of Massachusetts and eventually grow their population. (Hughes) Generally the Puritans were very disliked. This could have been because people didn't understand their justification for separating or people didn't agree with their beliefs and rules. Puritans were very devoted and faithful to God and any acts against God should not go unpunished. They had no tolerance or acceptance of any other religions and greatly...
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...accused of performing witchcraft and were jailed, nineteen people were executed . The accusations that led to the Salem Witch Trials were brought on by a combination of preconceived knowledge on the topic, religious beliefs, and precocious imaginations. These accusations shed light on the natural human need to find explanations for misfortunes occurring during the time period and to justify themselves in a Puritan dominated society. In 1689, only three years before the events that occurred in Salem, a similar case of possession happened to the four children of John Goodwin of Boston. The children, the oldest aged thirteen and the youngest five, began displaying symptoms of a diabolical illness and caused the adults in the community to gather together to not only pray for the health of the children but to determine the cause of their illness. It was soon discovered that the eldest Goodwin child had an argument with the elderly women who did the family’s laundry and received harsh words and insults from the laundress . The accused was Mary Glover, a single woman who had emigrated from Ireland to New England. During her trial, Glover spoke in her native tongue, Gaelic and often whispered words. This was seen as characteristics of a witch in the eyes of the court. Soon after her execution Puritan minister Cotton Mather, who questioned Glover before and during the trial, wrote a report that depicted the symptoms of the Goodwin children and his views on witchcraft, called Wonder of...
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...Between February 1962 and May 1693, a series of executions, known as the Salem Witch Trials, occurred in Salem, Massachusetts. One of the most infamous cases of mass hysteria, the trials resulted in accusations being brought against around 200 people, 19 of whom were found guilty and executed. The motivations behind these hearings serve as a subject of debate among historians. Puritan beliefs held by the residents of Salem resulted in an extreme fear of witchcraft for nearly every member of the village. However, many of the executed, accused witches had individuals who stood to gain from their deaths. This essay investigates the extent of which the trials were affected by religion compared to politics. By analyzing both primary and secondary...
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...very popular. In this play, Miller talks about a witch-hunt that took place in 1962 which compares to the “Red Scare” that went on in Washington, D.C. in the 1950s. Miller writes about a Puritan village with a Christian religion that seems to be forgotten when under pressure. Puritans are taught to stick to their Christian beliefs, and in The Crucible, they simply stray away from the beliefs and violate them to save their own life. One instance where they go away from their puritan beliefs is that the people of Salem drift away from each other and turn on each other. One very strong belief of Puritanism is that unity among them strengthened their community. In a Puritan community, they take care of each other’s needs and look out for their neighbors. In The Crucible, they certainly do not take care of one another. In fact, it is the complete opposite. Almost everyone in the play becomes very egocentric. This is all the effect of the accusations of witchcraft in Salem. Another instance where they stray from their Puritan religion is that they break many of the Ten Commandments. The Ten Commandments are the ten basic rules that shall not be broken by any means by a firm Christian believer. One of the ten commandments they break during the play is killing. The bible clearly states in Exodus 20:13, “Thou shalt not kill.” The Bible states it very concise. Puritans are taught to take these commandments very seriously. Puritans believe that the bible is a plan for how one is to...
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...that built upon each other and allowed for the witch hunts and trials in Salem Massachusetts to evolve from eradicating impurities in an apparent pure society, to opportunistic hunting within an impure society, which ultimately built up to its demise in 1693. The citizens of Salem, Massachusetts were predominately Puritan, whom were very strict and abide very closely to the Bible due to their belief of predestination; this behavior, conjuncted with the influence of Britain on the colonies led to the rise of witch hunts in Salem. After the influence came from Britain, the Puritans began many witch hunts due to...
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...The Salem Witch Trials was a crucial piece of American History. It was like inviting hell on earth and having a nightmare brought to life. It’s something that shouldn’t be repeated. There’s many unanswered questions to the real reasons the Salem Witch Trials began that experts discovered numerous theories. The lifestyle of the puritans, the disease that overcame, and the communities differences are all real reasons behind the Salem Witch Trials. In the late 17th century times were changing. It might have seemed for the better in some places, and in others not at all. America in 1692 was like freedom with ankle bracelets. Puritans came from Europe wanting to get away from the harsh ways of their homeland, and start a life with their own set of rules on the other side of the world. Yet, their rules were less crucial, but still strict. The young females thought and wanted their generation to be different. The puritans were austere on females especially on vanity. But since this was just the beginning of when people started coming Europe they had the same things in mind like freedom, new opportunities, and a new life just not the same ideas. The young ladies had gotten...
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...one city in Massachusetts, the year 1692 brings back thoughts of a painful and dangerous time. Salem Village of Massachusetts was the home of the Salem Witch Trials. Widespread fear, devotion to puritanism, and an underlying illness is what caused the hysteria of the infamous Salem Witch Trials. The Salem Witch Trial Hysteria started in the spring of 1692 when a group of teenage girls claimed to be possessed by the Devil and began to accuse women in the community of witchcraft. The first women were accused on February 29th, 1692 and by June, 118 people had been accused of witchcraft. The majority of people accused were women between the ages of 41-60 (Document E). As word spread about these so called “witches” people became more and more frightened and therefore more susceptible to the rumors around them. Cotton Mather, a respected minister...
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