During the time of the Salem Witchcraft Trials of 1692, more than twenty people died an innocent death. All of those innocent people were accused of one thing, witchcraft. During 1692, in the small town of Salem, Massachusetts many terrible events happened. A group of Puritans lived in Salem during this time. They had come from England, where they were prosecuted because of their religious beliefs. They chose to come live in America and choose their own way to live. They were very strict people, who did not like to act different from others. They were also very simple people who devoted most of their lives to God. Men hunted for food and were ministers. Women worked at home doing chores like sewing, cooking, cleaning, and making clothes. The Puritans were also very superstitious. They believed that the devil would cause people to do bad things on earth by using the people who worshiped him. Witches sent out their specters and harmed others. Puritans believed by putting heavy chains on a witch, that it would hold down their specter. Puritans also believed that by hanging a witch, all the people the witch cast a spell on would be healed. Hysteria took over the town and caused them to believe that their neighbors were practicing witchcraft. If there was a wind storm and a fence was knocked down, people believed that their neighbors used witchcraft to do it. Everyone from ordinary people to the governor’s wife was accused of witchcraft. Even a pregnant woman and the most perfect puritan woman were accused. No one in the small town was safe. As one can see, the chaotic Salem Witchcraft Trials of 1692 were caused by superstition, the strict puritan lifestyle, religious beliefs, and hysteria. Puritan Lifestyle was one ... ... middle of paper ... ...in their family to become sick and possibly die. Many people were accused of witchcraft. More than twenty people died all together. One person was flattened to death because he was accused of witchcraft. When people were accused they had to go to jail, which the conditions were terrible. Then, they had to get a trial from the Court of Oyer and Terminer. After an accused witch had their trial, and went to jail, they would be carted off to Gallows Hill. This was the hill where all the witches were hanged. After a witch was hanged, later that night, their family would usually take the body down and give it a proper burial. The Salem Witchcraft Trials were one of the most terrible times in the history of America. As you can see the chaotic Salem Witchcraft Trials of 1692 were caused by superstition, the strict puritan lifestyle, religious beliefs, and hysteria.
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Show MoreSociety throughout time has proven to be a frail and feeble structure that has failed to maintain organization on multiple occasions. People have demonstrated that with just enough chaos and pressure, they will have no qualms with deserting their morals at the sight of adversity. Whether it be creating a witch hunt to better the lives of the poor, or putting fellow American citizens’ in concentration camps based off their Japanese ancestry. There is no boundary that people won’t cross in order to feel safe and justified in their decisions. In Isaac Reed’s article,” Deep culture in action: resignification, synecdoche, and metanarrative in the moral panic of the Salem Witch Trials”, he examines the concept of
In the sixteenth century, witchcraft accusations were more prevalent and somewhat common than they are in modern society. One of the most popular witch hunts of American History of the sixteenth century, that has received popularity amongst modern culture and scholars, was the Salem witch hunts otherwise known as the Salem witch trials of 1692. But, Salem was not the only town in New England that had witch trials in 1692. Richard Godbeer’s book, “Escaping Salem, The Other Witch Hunt of 1692,” is one of the very few books that talks about the other witch trials that took place in New England. By comparing Stamford to Salem, Godbeer argues that Stamford’s witch trials were more typical of legal witch accusations in Colonial America; Salem’s trials were an anomaly. What made Stamford typical was the local Magistrates insistence on following the letter of the law which made proving witchcraft very difficult.
A series of events occurred leading up to, and during the Salem Witch Trials making the situation far detrimental than it should have been. Salem, Massachusetts became the main focus in 1692 when over one hundred people were falsely accused of practicing witchcraft. Twenty were executed by being hanged, one by being pressed, and one-hundred and fifty-six jailed. Women played a big role in the trials. Most of them were the accusers, and the unlucky ones were the accused. The Puritans of this town had just recently moved from their old homes, so living in a new environment may have had an effect on the outrageous hysteria. People were not good with change. With that being said, Individualism began to conquer the principles of Puritanism while trying to protect oneself. Humanity was in a panic from trying to deal with new economic expansion. “The Puritan inhabitants were always alert to the “signs” that
The events of the salem witch trial took place in a massachusetts puritan village, They were a highly religious group which meant they believed strongly in the devil and witchcraft. The puritans were very intolerant, it was mandatory to attend church and individuality was frowned upon. They had a very strict moral code that punished all sins. knowing how the puritans lived and what they perceived as
The Salem Witch Trials were a prime part of American history during the early 17th century. During this time, religion was the prime focus and way of life within colonies. This was especially true for the Puritan way of life. Puritans first came to America in hopes of practicing Christianity their own way, to the purest form. The Puritans were fundamentalists who believed every word transcribed in the Bible by God was to be followed exactly for what it was. The idea of the devil controlling a woman and forming her into a Witch was originated from people’s lack of awareness on illness, disease or simple hysteria. The Colonists lack of expertise on the methodical approach through sciences, left them concluding to a spiritual phenomenon.
In the Puritan New England town of Salem, Massachusetts, a gathering of young ladies goes moving in the timberland with a dark slave named Tituba. While dancing, they are gotten by the nearby clergyman, Reverend Parris. One of the young ladies, Parris' little girl Betty, falls into a trance like state like state. A jam accumulates in the Paris home while gossipy tidbits about witchcraft fill the town. Having sent for Reverend Hale, a specialist on witchcraft, Parris questions Abigail Williams, the young ladies' instigator, about the occasions that occurred in the backwoods. Abigail, who is Parris' niece and ward, confesses to doing nothing past "dancing." While Parris tries to quiet the jam that has accumulated in his home, Abigail converses with a portion of alternate young ladies, letting them know not to confess to anything. John Proctor, a neighborhood agriculturist, at
During the time of the Salem Witch Trials, accused witches were forced to complete at least one of seven tests. The first test was named "the swimming test". During this test, accused witches had to strip of all their clothes except their undergarments before they were thrown into a body of water. People believed that guilty witches would float, while the people that sunk were innocent. Ropes were tied around the accused persons waist, but drownings did still occur. ("7 Bizarre Witch Trial Tests")
In Salem, Massachusetts there was a bantam village where about five hundred people lived. Most of them were Puritans. The village had very strict laws, especially about their religion. If you even missed a day of church you were to be questioned. The people in the village also had lots of fears. Their biggest fear was the work of Satan, this includes witchery. If you were suspected or accused of witchery you were put in jail, or you would have been hung.
The Salem Witch Trials caused mass hysteria. If anything unusual happened, it was ruled to be the work of the devil. When someone was accused of being a witch, they were jailed. If they could not prove their innocence, they could confess to being a witch, or be hung. “Confession seems foolhardy to a defendant who is certain of his or her innocence.” (I don’t remember how to cite stuff: Witchcraft in Salem, USHistory.org). If they confessed, they would spend the rest of their life in prison. In order to avoid being hanged, people
This source helped me understand how it all started and gave a lot of information on the victims. I also liked this one a lot because of the information it gave on how the trials ended.
In January of 1692 in the town of Salem, Massachusetts, Elizabeth Parris, daughter of Reverend Parris, his niece Abigail Williams and Ann Putnam Jr. fell into a trance-like state experiencing convulsions and screaming. Physicians were called in to examine the girls but they could not find a cause for the behavior that they were undergoing. Since the physicians along with everyone else in the community could not find anything physically wrong with the girls, they came to the conclusion that it must be the work of Satan, thus beginning the Salem Witch Trials.
The Salem witch trials unfairly convicted many innocent people. After girls started saying they saw these people with the devil they were accusing everyone.They started accusing everyone of witchcraft they believed the girls without any evidence just by what the lying girls say. The whole town was terrified because a lot of people had already been accused of witchcraft. Over 200 people were convicted of witchcraft. Many people were hanged or because they thought they were witches or had connections with the devil.You would hear people saying the devil is loose in salem.
To start off, the Puritan society blamed misfortune on the supernatural and this created the perfect environment for mass hysteria, which lead to the Salem witch trials. The people of Salem were paranoid and suspicious of the smallest issues. Their way life was very strict, and even small
Do you believe in evil? Or how a devil could possess you and take over your whole body? This article that i’m going to talk about is the conflict in salem: the witchcraft trials. During the Salem witchcraft trials of 1962, young girls in Salem village, Massachusetts, were claimed to be possessed by the devil and was accused of witchcraft. The first convicted witch was, Bridget Bishop, was executed. She is portrayed as a feisty, innkeeper who can’t keep herself out of trouble. The Bridget Bishop who was tried and hanged possessed a quick wit and independent spirit that could not be crushed by the court of Oyer and Terminer. Puritans during that time had left England and move to America to live their own way of life. They believed that devil
The Salem Witch Trials began in the spring of 1692 in the small village of Salem, Massachusetts. The Salem Witch Trials began because some young girls claimed to be possessed by the devil. More than 150 people where accused to witchcraft, and twenty people died.The Salem Witch Trials were famous, many innocent people were accused of being witches, and many innocent people were killed.