Guilty or Proven Innocent? The Salem witch trials occurred from February 1692 to May 1693 in Salem, Massachusetts. During the Salem witch trials no single person or family was safe from persecution. Once accused of witchcraft you were incarcerated and appeared at a hearing in the courts. The families of the convicted did not receive any compensation for damages and were not giving the properties of their family members. The Salem witch trials only lasted for a little over a year, but it ruined the lives of those who were convicted and their families. The McCarthy hearings, otherwise known as the red scare, began in 1954. The United States had just joined the cold war, skepticism of communists was at its peak. If any man were accused of being a communist he would be held in jail until his hearing. At the time of his hearing if the man didn’t confess and name other communists he was incarcerated for a year. I a man did confess and disclosed the names of others he would be let go and the circle would continue. Throughout the Salem Witch trials and McCarthy hearings those who were accused of a crime were regarded as guilty until proven innocent. The Salem witch trials originally started with Abigail and John Proctor having an affair. John Proctor’s wife found out and fired Abigail and told her never to step foot in her house. …show more content…
“In 1994, the Soviets tested an atom bomb of their own.” (History.com Staff, "Cold War History"). This act caused President Truman to spend more money on the army and defense of the United States and panic and hysteria spread to the minds of the people of our country. “...and the world lived under the threat of thermonuclear war for the first time.” (History.com Staff, "Soviets explode atomic bomb"). The testing of the atomic bomb scared families and caused communism to be hated at a greater
How does The Salem Witch Trials relate to The Japanese Internment? Did both events happen out of fear or was this meant to be? The Salem Witch Trials and The Japanese Internment were both out of fear, and they are very similar by the events that occurred. The Salem Witch Trials took place in 1692.
The witch trials in Salem began in 1692. It got brought up by a group of younger girls saying they were possessed by the devil. During this they accused many of being witches and use of witchcraft. Sarah Good was one of the more well known victims during this.
On February 9, 1950, McCarthy showed a paper of two hundred and five people known to be communists. As time went by, this list became smaller and smaller. In about a week or so, this list went from two hundred and five people to ten. McCarthy did not have the evidence to prove that these people are truly communists to start with so this list just becomes smaller with time. In the Crucible, many people were accused of witchcraft and were sentenced to death.
In both cases, individuals were suspected of wrongdoing and forced to confess or name others, often under intimidation or the threat of punishment. Those who refused to admit or name others were imprisoned, excommunicated from society, and in some circumstances executed. Abuse of power is evident in both McCarthyism and the witch trials, as both had no regard for due process or the rights of the accused. Another parallel between these two historical events is how certain people were targeted based on their religion or cultural background. In the case of McCarthyism, anyone suspected of having communist sympathies was investigated and often blacklisted from employment or social activities.
From the way the judge handled John’s defenses, witnesses were charged guilty until proven innocent and it was extremely hard to prove someone innocent. In hindsight, one may scowl at the lack of natural rights and justice in the judicial system during Salem Witch Trials, but were the trials during the Red Scare any different from those of the Witch Trials? According to Georgakas, witnesses from the Red Scare were “expected to state that they had been misled or confused in the past and were now regretful [by] naming other[s] who had been with them in Communist organizations or at Communist functions” (Georgakas). And those accused who refused to name others were jailed or had their passport confiscated (“Auther Miller: McCarthyism”). This unjust treatment of the accused was in clear violation of the Constitution and the Bill of Rights.
What Caused the Salem Witch Trials of 1692 In Salem, Massachusetts there were Witch Trials held during the summer months of 1692. Throughout the seventeenth century in New England, witchcraft was said to be a crime punishable by death. Puritans came to New England in the early 1600’s to practice their Christianity in the purest form possible. They believed every word in the bible and that the words of God were to be followed down to the last sentence there was. Havoc started occurring around the town and 19 women along with men were hanged for witchcraft.
However the witch trials started one thing is for sure, many lives and families were affected by these tragic events. In 1693 the people remaining in jail were released and four years later a day of fasting was declared for the many tragedies caused by the Salem witch trials. Eighteen years down the road in 1711, the Massachusetts colony tried hard to clean up the names of the people accused of witchcraft and even went as far as providing compensation to the family members affected by the false accusations (Staff,
The Salem Witch Trials started around 1692 where many villagers started to accuse young women of being witches. It started off as a mere rumor but soon became serious when word spread. If any villager felt like they knew someone who was a witch they were able to report them to the local authorities and begin a trial. “The very first victim of the witch trials was Bridget Bishop . . .
Introduction George Jacobs Sr. said, “You tax me for a wizard, you may as well tax me for a buzzard I have done no harm.” Although his words were true, many chose to either believe this hysteria or turn the other way. He died along with many other women and men. This was just the start of the many terrors of the Salem witch trials. Yet if you confessed to being a witch then you had a better chance of living, but if you denied you would automatically get hanged.
Salem, Massachusetts, USA and occurred between February 1692 and May 1693. Over 150 people were arrested and imprisoned and even more accused; but not pursued by the authorities. 29 were convicted of witchcraft but only 19 were hanged. The best known trials were in the Court of Oyer and Terminer.
Salem Witch Trials The Salem Witch Trials were a terrible event that happened in the history of the United States of America was when innocent individuals where accused and sentenced to death for the crime of witch craft. More than 20 people were executed by hanging and one man was pressed to death by stones being stacked on his chest. In England they would burn people at the stake or throw them in a body of water with stones tied on their feet and if they swam to the top, they were a witch is they drowned, they were innocent.
The Salem Witch trials popped up around 1692 and they were a disaster. The reason why they came up was because of their religion. The people in the town of Salem were puritans. This means their religion was very strict and that they believed in the devil. The way this all started was that the people who were accused of being witches were acting funny.
Throughout history there have been many instances where people were put in jail and even killed for no reason. Two examples of this would be The Salem Witch Trials and The Holocaust. These two events have their similarities and differences, but is ultimately the same situation. The Salem Witch Trials started in 1692 in the town of Salem,Massachusetts (Miller,1124). It all started with a group of young girls(Miller,1124).
True Story: The Salem Witch trail took place in Salem, Massachusetts in 1692. A group of girls accused of witchcraft, when Reverend Samuel Parris niece and daughter were ill and rumors spread that it was witchcraft. Sarah Osborne, Sarah Goode and Tituba were accused of being around when the girls were doing rituals and made the girls do the rituals. Abigail’s allegations began to grow blaming many innocent people.
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.