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Life in the village of salem during witch trials and the red scare
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Explain the social and religious Salem of the witch trials
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Carol F. Karlsen’s work The Devil in the Shape of a Woman takes the perspective of a social historian in developing an argument that posits gender and economic considerations, particularly land inheritance, were responsible for witchcraft in New England. Alternatively, Paul Boyer and Stephen Nissenbaum argue in Salem Possessed that witchcraft in Salem was a result of unique circumstances in which factionalism, due to diverging economic, religious, and autonomous desires between Salem Village and Salem Town, fostered a precarious environment that facilitated witchcraft accusations. Boyer and Nissenbaum engage in a comprehensive analysis of tax records, village maps, and allegiances within the town to illuminate the complex social makeup of Salem in the years surrounding 1692 allowing the reader to better interpret the actions of important actors in Salem. Boyer and Nissembaum present a compelling argument for the origins of witchcraft, by elucidating Salem’s social environment at the time and providing context for individuals’ actions in a way Karlsen falls …show more content…
Using maps of land ownership as evidence, Boyer and Nissenbaum reveal the “dramatic diminution of individual wealth from one generation to another” that the Putnams experienced from land division as a result of inheritance. In Boyer and Nissenbaum’s context, however, one can observe the detrimental affect of land inheritance as a factor in the Putnam’s actions, but, unlike Karlsen, it is not the reason for the witchcraft accusations. By elucidating the actions of the Porter and Putnam clans over time, Boyer and Nissenbaum make a compelling argument that Karlsen’s theory is only one aspect of what led to the witchcraft
“PUTNAM: Don’t you understand it, sir? There is a murdering witch among us, bound to keep herself in the
Salem Possessed: The Social Origins of Witchcraft is a concise, 231 page informational text by Paul Boyer and Stephen Nissenbaum. Published in 1974, it explores the economic and social conditions present in the Salem village during the 1600s that led to the hysteria surrounding witchcraft. Multiple graphs and illustrations are present, as well as an average sized font, an abundance of footnotes typically on the left page, and a prominent voice from the authors. The book was written to serve as a more comprehensive informational piece on the Salem witch trials due to the authors finding other pieces written about the same topic to be inaccurate. Paul Boyer and Stephen Nissenbaum wanted to create something that utilized
For example, Ann Putnam wants healthy children and envies Rebecca Nurse for all the healthy children she bore. She accuses Nurse of killing most of her offspring using witchcraft. In fact, the official warrant for Rebecca Nurse’s arrest is issued “[f]or the marvelous and supernatural murder of Goody Putnam 's babies”(67). Ann Putnam does not care if one of Salem’s most devout families is torn apart so long as its members suffer for their happiness. In addition, Thomas Putnam’s desire for more land causes him to make his daughter accuse an innocent man of witchcraft since “[t]he day [she] cried out on Jacobs, [Putnam] said she’d given him a fair gift of land”(89). His greed for land surpasses his care for the other residents of the town. Both Ann and Thomas Putnam are willing to destroy other families for their own benefit, and they succeed because the townspeople’s fear of witchcraft clouds their common sense that the accusers may have ulterior
In books, the reader is generally left with a succinct ending including details about the plot and leaves the audience to decide whether or not they personally believe the protagonist achieved a goal or completed the task at hand. In Devil in a Blue Dress, Easy, the protagonist, begins with a goal of “paying [his] mortgage” so that people didn’t view him as “another poor beggar” (Mosley 53). In The Good Thief, Ren, the main character, is asked what the one thing he wants most in the world and he replies with “A family” because he has been an orphan his whole life (Tinti 53). Devil in a Blue Dress has a more satisfying end, despite the violence and morally questionable undertakings, because Easy achieves the objective he began with.
Salem in the 1600s was a textbook example of an extremist society with sexist norms and no separation of church and state. Because it had no laws, only people considered authorities on law, it was always a society based on norms laid down by the first settlers and severity on the verge of madness. The power was imbalanced, focused subjectively in the people who had means to control others. Some people attempted to right the wrongs of the powerful, as people are wont to do eventually. Because of them, change indeed came to Salem, slowly and after excessive ruin and death. Before the rebels’ impact took hold, Salem’s Puritan society was a religious dystopian disaster, a fact illustrated excellently by Arthur Miller’s play, The Crucible. This religious dystopian disaster carried many flaws and conflicts that can be seen in other societies, both historical and modern.
Steven Gregory’s The Devil behind the Mirror: Globalization and Politics in the Dominican Republic is an eye-opening text on the impacts of globalization on developing countries. Based in the coastal cities of Boca Chica and Andres in the Dominican Republic, Gregory offers an insight to the negativity that globalization has induced rather than the benefits and hopes it promises. He shows us how the country’s shift into the neoliberal tourism industry has changed people’s lives, specifically the poor. His main focuses are centered on class, race, and gender.
The term witchcraft is defines as the practice of magic intended to influence nature. It is believed that only people associated with the devil can perform such acts. The Salem Witch Trials was much more than just America’s history, it’s also part of the history of women. The story of witchcraft is first and foremost the story of women. Especially in its western life, Karlsen (1989) noted that “witchcraft challenges us with ideas about women, with fears about women, with the place of women in society and with women themselves”. Witchcraft also confronts us too with violence against women. Even through some men were executed as witches during the witch hunts, the numbers were far less then women. Witches were generally thought to be women and most of those who were accused and executed for being witches were women. Why were women there so many women accused of witchcraft compared to men? Were woman accused of witchcraft because men thought it was a way to control these women? It all happened in 1692, in an era where women were expected to behave a certain way, and women were punished if they threatened what was considered the right way of life. The emphasis of this paper is the explanation of Salem proceedings in view of the role and the position of women in Colonial America.
The thoroughness is one of its key strengths, allowing for people of varying knowledge about Salem to gain an understanding of the events and background of the witch trials. The author includes multiple sources to show the exceptionally varying ideals and their effects on Salem. “the peace that came under Joseph Green's conciliatory leaders... the important role religious strife played in the events of 1692”(Latner, 2006, 118). Joseph Green completely paralleled his predecessors, he was responsible for restoring order to Salem. This is significant because it shows the impact that ministers had, they had the power to change the town completely, Green was one of the first to not cause strife. Compared to Christine Leigh Heyrman’s “Witchcraft in Salem Village: Intersections of Religion and Society” Latner’s article correlates with the central idea that religious leaders and religion itself started the witch
The notorious witch trials of Salem, Massachusetts occurred from June through September. It is a brief, but turbulent period in history and the causes of the trials have long been a source of discussion among historians. Many try to explain or rationalize the bizarre happenings of the witch hunts and the causes that contributed to them. To understand the trials and how they came to be, we must first examine the ideals and views of the people surrounding the events. Although religious beliefs were the most influential factor, socioeconomic tensions, and ergot poisoning are also strongly supported theories. A combination of motives seems the most rational explanation of the frenzy that followed the illness of the two girls. This paper looks closely at the some of the possible causes of one of the most notable occurrences in history.
“The Devil’s Wife” by Carol Ann Duffy is a tragic and powerful poem. Written in the form of a dramatic monologue, Duffy adopts the persona of Myra Hindley, the notorious Moors Murderer. “The Devil’s Wife” consists of five individually titled sections, each describing an individual part of Hindley’s experiences from meeting Brady to feeling sorry for herself while sitting in her prison cell. Themes relating to avoiding responsibility, self-pity and her fear of society’s reaction to her crimes are explored as Duffy creates an effective persona
In A Storm of Witchcraft-The Salem Trials and The American Experience, Emerson W. Baker offers a fresh perspective on the views of the Puritans and how they believed everything was a sign of god’s pleasure or displeasure in the seventeenth-century. New England exposed their core values in a poor attempt to protect themselves from what they observed as a horrendous threat in his book A Storm of Witchcraft-The Salem Trials and The American Experience. Bakers writing style could cover a whole wide range of factors in the Bay Colony in Massachusetts in the 1690s, including government, religious and political problems, that set the stage for the dramatic events in Salem. As emphasize in his book Salem was unique events that produced something extraordinary thought out New England in 1692. Captivating in a wide range of perspectives, he looks at key characters in the outbreak-the accused witches and the people they allegedly bewitched, as well as the judges and government officials who prosecuted them with questions about why Salem tragedy unfolded as it did, and why it has become an enduring legacy. Baker argues that the trials marked a turning point in the Bay colony history.
Jealousy also played a big role in who was to blame for the deaths in Salem. The Putnams were a small family, whose seven children out of eight did not survive. Mrs. Putnam was a very jealous person when it came to families, and Mr. Putnam was a very jealous person when it came to land. Goody Putnam wanted more children and was jealous of Rebecca Nurse and her large family, so she blamed her for witchcraft.
In Massachusetts Bay colony, there were social stresses and there was a quarrel over land ownership in the Putnam family, twelve others from Gloucester; thirteen from the port of Salem; and fifty-five from Andover women. Rebellious acts started going on and the desire of power became outrageous as they physically started attacking ...
Thomas Putnam has a very large part in initiating the Salem witch hunt. He is the first character who blames unnatural causes for the illness among the children. Furthermore, he firmly believes in the existence of 'vengeful spirits layin' hands on these children';(15). 'There is a murderous witch among us,'; he vehemently cries out(16). His action isn't surprising because he has lost seven newborns and his Ruth is sick. He wants to hunt down the witch, but he needs some aid. He lays his eyes on Parris because Parris is the minister and Betty is also ill. Thus, Putnam tries to coerce Parris to witchcraft. 'Declare it yourself,'; Putnam tells Parris, 'you have discovered witchcraft';(16). At this point, Putnam captures everyone's attention, and then he strikes.
Devil on the Cross is a novel written by Ngugi Wa Thiongo in attempt to talk to all Kenyans battling neo-colonialism. Being politically independent, but economically dependent on other countries has evidently had a huge toll on Kenya and its citizens. Kenya is a land where nothing is free. Foreigners had made their way into occupying the land and have used it as a mean of profit for them and a few citizens in Kenya. Through the use of six different characters, Devil on the Cross manages to depict the struggles experienced within the cities of Kenya. The characters of Wariinga, Robin Mwaura, Wangari, Muturi, Gatuiria, and the man in the dark glasses show different experiences of Kenya’s neo-colonialism occurrences.