Myth-busting: Ergot Poisoning
The years 1691 to 1692 mark an important date in Salem Massachusetts. A small village on the North coast of Massachusetts, Salem became notorious for their injustice and cruelty of their Witch Hunts, in which over 20 people, men and women, were executed in half a year. Surrounded by Religious Paranoia and uncertainty in their newfound community, people began looking at practices of the Devil as a scapegoat for unusual happenings. Believed to have been works of the devil for centuries, this idea has been rebuked in recent times, as a study in 1976 strongly suggested the effects of Rye Ergot Poisoning to be the main force behind the Witch trials. The main cause behind the Salem witch trials can be said to be Ergot Poisoning, also known as Ergotism, where a victim would fall to severe Muscle Spasms and the effects of a modern day LSD.
A dark time in American History, the Salem witch Trials all began in December of 1691, when the “afflicted” girls first accused Tituba, Sarah Good and Sarah Osborne of witchcraft. This Hysteria came to an end an year later in the fall of 1692 (Capourel). In this short period a series of unexplainable events took place, starting with a “trigger” in Tituba admitting to in fact working with the Devil(Goodheart). This is all the drama that a insecure, yet religiously devout community, such as Salem needed to turn to witchcraft and the Devil for a scapegoat. Previous accounts show that colonists had
The Salem Witch Trials of 1692 in Massachusetts are historically known as the tragic event where many people were accused of witchcraft and 19 of those innocent individuals were found guilty and then executed. These individuals were accused by a group of young girls that claimed that they were ‘bewitched"or possessed by the devil. These girls were experiencing symptoms such as hallucinations, convulsions, etc. Doctors then could not diagnose this, so they turned to blame it on witchcraft. In 1976, Linnda Caporael, who is a historian, developed a theory that ergot poisoning was the cause of the Salem Witch Trials.
The Causes of the Salem Witch Trials Much of modern America’s fear and infamous interest in witches has been derived most likely from the profound Salem Witch Trials. “The infamous Salem witch trials began during the spring of 1692, after a group of young girls in Salem Village, Massachusetts, claimed to be possessed by the devil and accused several local women of witchcraft,” stated History.com authors. However, many historians still deliberate how such events occurred in the first place. Based on several presented documents, some conclusions suggest that there was a prominent cause to the beginning of the Salem Witch Trials. All in all, the cause of the Salem Witch Trials was the attempt of Salem citizens to either defend or create family
Nearly anyone from the New England has heard of the famous Salem Witch Trials. A year of persecution, leading to the accusation of nearly 200 citizens of all ages. No one was safe; men, women, children, even pets stood trial and 20 were hung for the supposed crime of witchcraft (Blumberg). 1692 was a year of witch hunting. Most today blame the trials on hysteria, or perhaps a bad case of paranoia.
In 1692, A town in Massachusetts by the name of Salem Village found itself in one most documented cases of mass hysteria in history. This saga started with three girls: Abigail Williams, Elizabeth Parris, and Ann Putnam a neighborhood friend. Abigail Williams, the niece of the town’s minister, began to display weird and questionable behavior. The town’s physician,William Greggs, was called to determine the cause of this sporadic behavior. The town’s physician determined that the three girls were under “the Devil’s influence” and they had been bewitched.
One of the lead causes of the Salem Witch Trials was disease also know at the time as Ergotism. Rye was a grain that could become troubled by the fungus ergot. Ergot can be compared to the modern drug LSD, “...most common symptoms include seizures, convulsions,
The Salem witch trials were a very dark time in the history of the United States. The tragic deaths of the 20 people who died will forever be carved into United States history. There are three main theories about what caused the mass hysteria in Salem. Ergot poisoning, strict rules towards women, and strict religion.
The Salem Witch Trials: Many mysteries have occurred over the years such as the Lost Colony of Roanoke, BigFoot, or the infamous Skinwalker Ranch, but among these the most known mystery would be The Witch Trials of Salem. The event itself is not a mystery but the underlying forces behind the witch trials are. Over the years many theories have been proposed. The most prominent theory is the Ergot Theory, that puts forth the idea that a fungus caused the panic, but we believe that a more sinister cause is behind the panic. We believe that the hysteria was because the town was almost at a boiling point before the witch trials because of the land disputes and along with the puritans religious beliefs this induced the trials.
In the year 1692 the famous Salem Witch Trials occurred in Salem Massachusetts. The scare of witchcraft began with a small group of teenage girls, who claimed to be possessed by the devil. They believed that people’s spirits would come after them, and try to torment them. Hysteria broke out among the people in the town of Salem, and other parts of Massachusetts. Trials occurred for months to scrutinize who was considered a “witch” in the eyes of the judges and teenage girls.
Mental Illness in Salem Witch Trials Introduction Witchcraft is the practice of magic and the use of spells and the invocation of spirits. According to Salem Witch Trials, 2015, the Salem witch trials began during the spring of 1692, after a group of young girls in Salem, Massachusetts claimed to have been bewitched by several adults in the town. More than 150 people were accused and hung, including men, women, and children (Salem Witch Trials, 2015). There were three girls in particular that sparked the trials: Abigail Williams, Betty Parris, and Ann Putnam. Also stated in Salem Witch Trials, their behaviors changed drastically; they began to hallucinate, shout in church, have fits, not eat, not wake up, attempt to fly, and feel as if they
The Salem Witch Trials; Madness or Logic In Stacey Schiff’s, List of 5 Possible Causes of the Salem Witch Trials and Shah Faiza’s, THE WITCHES OF SALEM; Diabolical doings in a Puritan village, discuss in their articles what has been debated by so many historians for years, the causes of the Salem Witch trials. Schiff and the Faiza, purpose is to argue the possible religious, scientific, communal, and sociological reasons on why the trials occurred. All while making word by word in the writer’s testimony as if they were there through emotion and just stating simply the facts and theories. They adopt the hectic tone in order to convey to the readers the significance, tragedy, logic, loss, and possible madness behind these life changing events,
The Salem witch trial hysteria of 1692 may have been instigated by religious, social, geographic and even biological factors. During these trials, 134 people were condemned as witches and 19 were hanged. These statistics also include 5 more deaths that occurred prior to their execution date. It is interesting to look into the causes of this stain on American History, when as shown in document B, eight citizens were hanged in only one day.
Imagine being a wealthy 45-year-old woman in 1692 being accused of being a witch. The Salem Witch trials were caused by jealousy, fear, and lying. People believed that the devil was real and that one of his tricks was to enter a normal person 's body and turn that person into a witch. This caused many deaths and became a serious problem in 1692. First of all, jealousy was one of the causes of the Salem witch trials.
The Salem witch trial was a time about accusing your fellow neighbor or being accused yourself, this all began in 1692 in Salem, Massachusetts. During this time many people were being accused of being a witch, a majority of the time it was because either someone truly believed that you were a witch and were reeking havoc or they were trying to find someone to take the blame if they were to being accused. So this leads us to question, what began the Salem Witch Trials? There were at least three causes of the Salem witch trials hysteria. These were Betty Parris and Abigail Williams story, Ergotism, and the acknowledgment of hysteria.
The Salem Witch Trials The belief of witchcraft can be traced back centuries to as early as the 1300’s. The Salem Witch Trials occurred during 1690’s in which many members of Puritan communities were accused and convicted of witchcraft. These “witch trials” were most famously noted in the town of Salem, Massachusetts. Many believe this town to be the starting point for the mass hysteria which spread to many other areas of New England.
Not many people know much about what actually happened in the Salem Witch Trials. Maybe someone would think that it was just about witchcraft and crazy people being hanged, but it is a lot more than that. The Salem Witch Trials only occurred between 1692 and 1693, but a lot of damage had been done. The idea of the Salem Witch Trials came from Europe during the “witchcraft craze” from the 1300s-1600s. In Europe, many of the accused witches were executed by hanging.