Potential Causes Of The Salem Witch Trials

1685 Words4 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: How did the salem witch trials reflect attitudes towards women and the status of women in colonial new england

In the early winter of 1692, the first speculations of witchcraft occurred with the female children of Salem. Reverend Parris’ daughter nine-year old Betty Parris, and his niece Abigail Williams, began to display terrifying and peculiar behavior. Their outbursts, body contortions, and eerie actions were similar to the ones of the Goodwin children in 1688. Soon after, other Salem girls began to demonstrate the symptoms that flabbergasted the town. There are many literatures works and in-depth studies over the trials. Even now, there is still no certain reason why or how the hysteria of witchery befell on the village. The Salem Witch Trials are best described by George Lincoln Burr: The episode is one of the nation's most notorious cases of mass hysteria, and has been used in political rhetoric and popular literature as a vivid cautionary tale about the dangers of isolationism, religious extremism, false accusations and lapses in due process. (197) There were different theories of why the Salem girls acted the way they did. Family feuds, influences, ergot poisoning, and the bewitchment of Satan are potential concepts of the witchcraft hysteria. Not to mention, the female stereotype of witches through lack of religious faith and social class caused the deaths of nineteen people and unforgivable scars and pain for dozens more. Historical evidence points out family feuds between the Putnam and Porter families, an important theory to the reasons behind the accusations. The whole town of Salem was a part and engaged in this heated quarrel for the control of the village. The two families had different views for Salem and Kate Murphy said it divided the village into two factions, “One interested in gaining more autonomy for Salem Villag... ... middle of paper ... ...rk: John Wiley & Sons, Inc., 1966. Print. Karlsen, Carol F. The Devil in the Shape of a Woman: Witchcraft in Colonial New England. New York: W. W. Norton & Company, 1987. Print. Karson, Anastasia. Revenge in the Salem Witchcraft Hysteria: The Putnam Family and George Burroughs. Loyola University New Orleans, 1998. Web. 6 Dec. 2013. Kramer, Heinrich and Jacop Sprenger. “Malleus Maleficarum.” Malleusmaleficarum.org, 2002. PDF file. K-Z, Anna. Ergot Theory Could Clear Accused Witches. University of Chicago, 2012. Web. 6 Dec. 2013 Linder, Douglas O. The Witchcraft Trials in Salem: A Commentary. University of Missouri-Kansas City, 2009. Web. 5 Dec. 2013. Murphy, Kate. Salem Possessed: The Social Origins of Witchcraft. University of Virginia, 2001. Web. 6 Dec. 2013 Robinson, Enders A. The Devil Discovered: Salem Witchcraft 1692. New York: Hippocrene Books, 1991. Print.

Show More
Related

  • Social Issues In The Salem Witch Trials

    1403 Words  | 3 Pages

    Trials regarding the witchcraft began at the dawn of 1692, after a group of young girls in Salem Village, Massachusetts, were said to be bewitched. Salem, a village that homes nearly 2,000 people, was surrounded by paranoia. Inhabitants were confined to their home during the winter

    Read More

  • Salem Possessed: The Social Origins Of Witchcraft

    931 Words  | 2 Pages

    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

    Read More

  • Comparing the Salem Witch Trials and Modern Satanic Trials

    2443 Words  | 5 Pages

    Sebald, Hans, Ph.D. Witch-Children: from Salem Witch-Hunts to Modern Courtrooms. New York: Prometheus Books, 1995.

    Read More

  • Hysteria in The Crucible by Arthur Miller and in the Red Scare

    1670 Words  | 4 Pages

    Robinson, Enders A. & Co. The Devil Discovered: Salem Witchcraft 1692, New York:. Hippocrene Books, 1991. http://www Shrecker, Ellen. A.

    Read More

  • The History of the Salem Witchcraft Trials

    2587 Words  | 6 Pages

    ...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.

    Read More

  • The Causes Of The Salem Witchcraft Trials Of 1692

    1230 Words  | 3 Pages

    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

    Read More

  • Causes of the Salem Witch Trials

    2019 Words  | 5 Pages

    Hinds, Maurene J. Witchcraft on Trial: From the Salem Witch Hunts to the Crucible. Library ed. Berkeley Heights, NJ: Enslow, 2009. Print.

    Read More

  • Causes Of The Salem Witch Trials

    1230 Words  | 3 Pages

    More than three centuries ago, an entire community in Salem, Massachusetts, just 5 miles from Salem Town fell victim to what would become the most notorious instance of witch hysteria in United States history. The infamous witch trials of Salem, Massachusetts remain one of the most unscrupulous and inexplicable phenomena in the United States, having resulted in a total of 20 deaths and 165 accusations related to Witchcraft within the span of four months. [3] The brief, but tumultuous period has long been a source of debate amongst historians. For nearly a century, it was widely accepted that social tensions and Puritan religious beliefs were the primary cause of the trials, but in the 1970’s, a college undergraduate suggested ergot poisoning might be to blame. Ergotism – ergot poisoning – is born from the fungus Claviceps purpurea, which is known to infect rye and other cereal grains, it produces a chemical known as ergotamine which is the base for toxic hallucinogenic chemicals such as LSD. [2] Studies have shown that the consumption of ergot-contaminated food results in symptoms much like those associated with the afflicted girls in Salem, 1692. [2] Collectively, Ergot poisoning, and the implication Puritanism and Puritan values had on the genuine fear of witches, and socioeconomic tension caused the events that would become the Salem witch hysteria of 1692.

    Read More

  • The Role of Young Women in the Salem Witch Trials

    1318 Words  | 3 Pages

    Kocic, Ana. (2010). Salem Witchcraft Trails: The Perception of Women In History, Literature And Culture. Linguistics and Literature, Vol. 8 (Issue N1), 1-7. http://facta.junis.ni.ac.rs/lal/lal201001/lal201001-01.pdf

    Read More

  • Cause Of The Salem Witch Trials

    774 Words  | 2 Pages

    The Salem Witch Trials took place in Salem, Massachusetts, in 1692. At this time there appeared to be an outbreak of witches. This started when the children of the Goodwin family begin having mysterious fits. The doctors, not knowing what had happened to the children, blamed it on witchcraft. From that point on many people were accused of being a witch and were killed. This occurred for many different reasons; either they were hanged for their crimes, crushed by stones for refusing to stand trial on their cases, or from waiting in the jail for so long before their case came up. As people began to investigate the Salem Witch Trials further they came up with two explanations; either the people of Salem were begin acted through by the devil or

    Read More

  • The Causes of the Salem Witch Trials

    664 Words  | 2 Pages

    In the early winter months of 1692, in colonial Massachusetts, two young girls began exhibiting strange symptoms that were described to be "beyond the power of Epileptic Fits or natural disease to effect (examiner.com)." Doctors looked them over, but could not come up with any sort of logical explanation for their ailments. Therefore, the girls were accused of taking part in witchcraft. Soon, other young women in the village started showing similar symptoms. This "illness" of sort slowly made its way through the village to many of the residents. Soon, people started coming up with possible theories as to what started all the madness.

    Read More

  • The Salem Witch Trials

    2023 Words  | 5 Pages

    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.

    Read More

  • A Summary of the Salem Witch Trials

    1086 Words  | 3 Pages

    With the roots taking hold, an avalanche of accusations followed for the next few months. The beliefs that helped trigger the accusation that left men, women and children abused, murdered, or left to rot in jail came from false hearsay. Arthur Miller says, it is widely assumed that hysteria approximately close to what was seen 308 years ago could never again effect out government system. Today some events call assumptions to question; in some cases we see sticking similari...

    Read More

  • The Devil in the Shape of a woman

    737 Words  | 2 Pages

    “The Devil in the Shape of a Woman” was an excellent book that focuses on the unjusts that have been done to women in the name of witchcraft in Salem, and many other areas as well. It goes over statistical data surrounding gender, property inherence, and the perceptions of women in colonial New England. Unlike the other studies of colonial witchcraft, this book examines it as a whole, other then the usual Salem outbreaks in the late 17th century.

    Read More

  • Primary Sources for the Salem Witch Trials

    1715 Words  | 4 Pages

    McBain, J. ‘The Salem Witch Trials: A Primary Source History of the Witchcraft Trials in Salem, Massachusetts’, (Rosen Publishing Group, New York, 2002)

    Read More

More about Potential Causes Of The Salem Witch Trials

Open Document