The Threat of Anne Hutchinson
Questions:
What had Anne Hutchinson done?
Why was Anne Hutchinson such a threat to the Massachusetts Bay colony?
How was Anne Hutchinson's trial an ordeal for her and how was it an ordeal for
the community?
Anne Hutchinson, for centuries now, has been seen as a woman who
paved the way for religious freedom. She was a great leader in the cause for
religious toleration in America and the advancement of women in society. Anne
Hutchinson was "a magnetic woman of extraordinary talent and intellect" as well
as a woman "who quickly gained respect among Boston's women as a midwife,
healer, and spiritual counselor" (AP, p. 92).
Although Hutchinson is documented to have been banished as a religious
dissenter, the real motive for her persecution was that she challenged the
submissive role of women in Puritan society by standing up and expressing her
own religious convictions.
Anne Hutchinson seemed destined for banishment from the Puritan
Church and the Massachusetts Bay Colony. She had a strong demeanor, no doubt
from the 14 children she bore to her husband William, and possessed an avid
interest in religion and theology. Add to this the influence of John Cotton, and the
fact that her father and brother-in-law had been banished from their respective
colonies, and you certainly see the role fate played in her life.
When the Hutchinson's arrived in Massachusetts Bay Colony in 1634,
they were received with open arms. With the prosperity of William, and Anne's
background of medicine and nursing, it is no surprise they were welcome
additions to the community. This, however, was short lived. Anne had high
expectations, originally, for finally having the freedom to express her belief...
... middle of paper ...
...shed codes. It is,
undeniably, a major movement for freedom of speech.
The effect on the community was that it propagated fear among the
Puritans that would continually grow until it resulted in disaster. I believe that
what was to follow in Salem and the surrounding areas was a direct result of this
trial and others like it. The Puritans felt they would all be punished by God, not
necessarily because of Hutchinson, but because they had strayed from the true
path of the Puritan church. This belief is what led to the destruction of
Puritanism.
After Anne left Massachusetts Bay Colony she lived out her life in exile,
first in Rhode Island and later on Long Island where she died during an attack by
Native Americans. Hutchinson did not succeed in changing the laws of her time.
but her courageous actions help set the stage for religious freedom in America.
Despite the law she began to travel and lecture across the nation for the women's right to vote. She also campaigned for the abolition of slavery, the right for women to own their own property and retain their earnings, and she advocated for women's labor organizations.
Many significant historical events in history provide many unanswered questions about what exactly occurred. Much of this is attributed to the lack of proper documentation or explanation about just what exactly was occurring at the time. The Salem Witch Trials offer an interesting middle-ground to this confusion, in that there was a well-documented history of what was occurring as well as a rather broad explanation of the situation. By the end of the Salem Witch Trials in 1692, over one hundred and fifty Salem residents were accused of witchcraft with twenty-nine of them being found guilty and nineteen of them hung. The question then is, what caused all of the hysteria? Of all the atrocities
First, the Puritan values and expectations were strict, and those who had defied their teachings would have been at a much higher chance of being accused as a witch. Second, economic struggles within Salem Town and Village had further divided the two, by crop failure and livestock death. Ultimately causing economic damages. Third, personal opinions and disputes had contributed to the trials and accusations. The law system was unfair during the trials, so when or if someone was accused the court would side with the accuser, unless of course, they were a witch themselves. In conclusion, the people who died and who were accused of witchcraft were not really witches, Salem and it’s inhabitants were under the influence of mass hysteria, personal beliefs and grudges that eventually became the chaos of the Salem witch hunts of
The puritans were very religious. They wanted to show everyone what happens if you are good and believe in god and the heavens. If you do bad things you would be punished or be killed. If you do good things you can be hand chosen to go to heaven.
Salem was under british rule and at the time of 1692 was waiting for a new governor. They also had no laws imposed because they had no charter. When the time came that the new governor, William Phips, reached Massachusetts, there was already cells filled with supposed witches. Many people in Salem Village had to support themselves by making their own clothes and food. Because the weather was so bad, some people had a hard time surviving with the little food they could get, and if starvation didn’t kill them, plagues like smallpox would. Furthermore, from the lack of leadership and lack of resources, it is clear that people would assume that the circumstances happening at the time was work from the devil. It is no surprise that the people of Salem town and village were convinced that witchcraft was being practiced in their town and it inevitably led to death and hysteria in all of Salem. (An Unsolved
The church and Christian beliefs had a very large impact on the Puritan religion and lifestyle. According to discovery education, “Church was the cornerstone of the mainly Puritan society of the 17th century.”( Douglas 4). Puritan laws were intensively rigid and people in society were expected to follow a moral strict code. And because of Puritans and their strict moral codes, any act that was considered to go against this code was considered a sin and deserved to be punished. In Puritan theology, God h...
Latner’s purpose of writing the article is to inform the reader of the reason why the events at Salem happened due to religious leaders impact and how their actions held significance. “Examining the bitter disputes that wracked Salem Village and Andover suggests that we should accord religion”(Latner, 2006, 93). Latners goal was to prove that the events of Salem happened not because of
As we may already know, the town of Salem was subject to an epidemic of the accusations of witchcraft that lasted over ten months. Witchcraft of this time period was not taken lightly. In England alone over 40,000-60,000 people were killed after being found guilty of witchcraft. Needless to say the people found witchcraft as a virus that infected the town. The first cases started off with the daughters of Samuel Parris, the town minister, accusing his slave, Tituba, of being a witch. She claimed that she and others in the town were witches and there was even a wizard. The town broke out in hysteria in further months. Over 100 people were put in jail because of accusations. The council that were to find these people’s innocence or guilt were corrupted as well because to claim innocence meant you were guilty and if you were to claim guilt you could be redeemed. Many of the items found incriminating were pins and voodoo dolls. Many of these people faced the psychological terror of being pressured into claiming guilt to a crime, you didn’t commit in front of a committee and scared the community to death that they were going to be subjected to. Many of the witnesses to these trials were said to have undergone physical distress or act inhumanly. Many historians say to these records that since their body was put under so much strain and fear of the witchcraft that surrounded them all the time, their bodies going through strange changes such as paralysis or temporary blindness with no real cause rather than stress. But many historians also believe the witnesses were voluntarily acting and committing fraud against the others. But why was this such an enigma to understand why this small town in New England was all of a sudden becoming a cen...
In the end, the Salem Witch Trials didn’t have a very good effect on anyone in Salem. These trials also left a major imprint on Salem.
Being a important leader in this time she really helped give a deep message to people that were ignorant to the fact of how people were being treated. She was the face of anti slavery and soon became the bomb that started the civil war. She was a small woman with a sharp tongue that wasn’t concern with what people felt like she should be doing she was doing what she knew was right.
The Puritans didn't have all the luxuries we have today. They were told many things by preachers such as Jonathon Edwards, who lit a candle of fear in their minds. If I was alive to hear Edwards preach, I'd certainly have to question myself. He preached that God holds us in his hands and he can make or break us. If God decides it so, he will let us go and we will fall from his hands to nothing but Hell. Certainly no one wants to go to Hell. So, the Puritans tried to better their lives, and go by rules or "resolutions." They believed if they followed these resolutions, even though their fate was predetermined by God, they could live a life of good and maybe prove they are meant to go to Heaven.
In Puritan led Massachusetts Bay Colony during the days of Anne Hutchinson was an intriguing place to have lived. It was designed ideally as a holy mission in the New World called the “city upon a hill,” a mission to provide a prime example of how protestant lives should have subsisted of. A key ingredient to the success of the Puritan community was the cohesion of the community as a whole, which was created by a high level of conformity in the colony. Puritan leaders provided leadership for all facets of life; socially, economically, religiously, and even politically. A certain hierarchy was very apparent in the Massachusetts Bay Colony, in which ministers always seemed to have gotten their way. Governor Winthrop got his way in 1637 by banishing a woman, Anne Hutchinson, whom he thought posed a threat to the structure of the colony. I believe that there is a legit rationale for her banishment, this being her religious ideas that were very close to that of the Antinomians who Governor Winthrop was not too fond of. I also think that this was not the primal reason. In my mind, Anne’s gender played a large role in determining whether or not she actually posed a serious threat to the solidarity of Massachusetts.
In the next and final part when Anne starts talking about the scripture god revealed to her. In the middle she says: “but after he was pleased to reveal himself to me”, “He” being god. That was kind of like the icing on the cake. What got John Winthrop really mad was the fact that Anne said that god was pleased to reveal himself to her this is a big part because Anne is a woman and women are looked down upon in their society. The way Anne acted during her trail compiled with the fact she was a woman and her claim of personal revelation sealed her ticket out of Massachusetts Bay. As I have said before this case shows Annes fiery spirit and her willingness to rebel against oppressors. This document is very important, it shows the “chain of respect” if you could say. It shows that men believed to be superior to women and above them as well.
The tragedy of the Salem Witch Trials will forever hold a place in America’s history. With change for those living in the new world, came an abundance of unfortunate events. Those events being over one-hundred people being accused of practicing witchcraft, and twenty of them, just in Salem, were wrongfully tried and hanged. The trials played a big role of people’s views on religion and
At the eve of America’s creation, many colonists came to the New World seeking escape from religious persecution in England. But often, these colonists were not seeking freedom for all religions, just for their own, and were often punishing those who did not worship to their specifications. The Puritans of the New England were no exception, with the exile of Anne Hutchinson and Roger Williams, and the tragedy that was the Salem Witch Trials. The governments of the New England colonies believed that those who strayed from their specific, strict standards were a civic threat and should be punished harshly