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Recommended: A history of witchcraft around the world

In 1692 the devil was thought to be in Colonial Massachusetts. The illogical people in Salem Village accused each other of witchcraft, or the devil’s magic. From June to September people were put into jails, given trials, and killed. 20 citizens from Salem were executed. It started when two young girls, Betty Parris and Abigail Williams started having unexplained fits. The girls were Reverend Samuel Parris’s daughter and niece. They called Doctor William Griggs and he simply diagnosed it as witchcraft. When asked who was causing the fits they accused their slave, Tituba. Tituba was from the Caribbean and she claimed to be able to perform voodoo rituals of sorts. This lead the girls to believe it was her. It is unknown what caused their fits, but there are some very understandable and educated theories. Some theories might be epilepsy, convulsive ergotism, or the girls were begging for attention. It is unknown what caused their fits, but it wasn’t witchcraft. There are many causes of uncontrollable fits, like epilepsy. Epilepsy is a neurological, or brain, disorder marked by sudden recurrent episodes of sensory disturbance (spinal cord damage), loss of consciousness, or convulsions (seizures), associated with abnormal electrical activity in the brain. The girls could have hit their head hard enough to have a seizure, and then they could have developed epilepsy. Another way to develop epilepsy is to be born with it. Epilepsy can be genetic so the girls could have developed epilepsy and had seizures. Epilepsy can kill people. Epilepsy is a very logical theory because 70 percent of all cases of epilepsy are mysteries. If the cause of epilepsy is unknown, it would explain the unknown reasons for the fits. Another cause of fits could... ... middle of paper ... ...r of witchcraft. There could have been many reasons for these fits, and witchcraft is not one. Scientists have some theories and suspicions about what caused the girls’ fits. Some explanations could be epilepsy, convulsive ergotism, or the girls wanted some tender loving care. Epilepsy is a disorder that causes people to have seizures, and convulsive ergotism is a disease from fungus in rye bread that causes fits, skin irritation, vomiting, choking, and hallucinations. Another theory is that the girls were just looking for attention. They could have been lonely and wanted the spotlight for once. The causes of these girls’ fits are unknown and they will most likely remain unknown, unless someone finds actual proof of what happened. In 1692 people in Salem, Massachusetts were not being rational. From now on, America should stay logical and stop believing in fairytales.

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