Salem Witch Trial Essay

Tituba caused the witch hunt outrage in Salem. Tituba was the servant of Reverend Parris. Practicing black magic was one of her hobbies and she showed this hobby to Reverend Parris’s curious daughter and niece. The young

Not many people believe in witchcraft. Once you live in Salem, where people are accusing others of being witches, you’ll start to believe. So, why did people go crazy in Salem 1692? It was caused by poor young girls who acted possessed because they were jealous of the rich. Young girls that did not want to be told what to do, afflicted girls acting as if they were possessed, and poor people that were jealous of the rich cause the death of 24 people in Salem 1692.

But do you want to know what caused the Salem Witch Trials hysteria? There was three causes of the salem witch trials hysteria. These were, the people of Salem, Massachusetts were practicing witchcraft, the devil was possesing people, and there were people in Salem, Massachusetts

Centuries ago within the two years of 1692 and 1693, the Salem witch trials took place in Salem, Massachusetts Bay Colony. During this tragic event, there were over two hundred people, including male and female, who were accused of being witches. Isolating the accusations, there were only about twenty or those people who were executed for the practice of “Devil’s Magic”. Such practice of witchcraft was against many religions, like Christianity (Blumberg). The trials begin in January of 1692 because of Reverend Parris’ daughter, Elizabeth (who was only nine), and his niece, Abigail Williams (who was eleven).

I think the leading factors in the Salem witchcraft hysteria were politics, religion, superstition, and acting. All the accusations made during the trials and examinations were based off of “spectral evidence” and what 12 year olds were saying. However, during the time period all the children were seen as good Christian children. Perhaps more common sense could have been used but, since the town was run based off of religion the priest’s word was like the law.

Tituba was accused of witchcraft by the girls and sent to jail (Loiselle). Tituba reported that the devil had come to her and five others, including Sarah Good and Sarah Osborne, and declared they aid him in hurting children. Sarah Good’s husband and their four-year-old daughter, Dorcas, both vouched that Sarah was more than likely a witch (Currie 12-14). Other girls who were accused of witchcraft brought up the chance of Dorcas Good being a witch.

There are obviously theories about Salem such as, actually having the Devil take over bodies, having the rye in the wheat and bread which every family ate. The fact that Salem had its coldest winter in years and that they were still suffering from Indian attacks, played a role in some people as being the most reasonable theory out there. Religion was very important to them, hence why they were told to recite the Lord’s Prayer, and if they couldn’t they weren’t strong in their religion which in turn makes people say that the Devil is upon them, punishing them. No one but the people who lived through this time period would know what happened, but us, we will never know exactly why what happened in Salem

They could confess, and be redeemed or go to trial. With there being little to no evidence, besides sightings of spirits, and someone doing harm to another, that is all it would take to find that person guilty. As well there were no defense lawyers, for almost every trial the person accused would be found guilty and executed. Between June and september of 1962 19 women and men were found guilty of witchcraft, and seeing as they did not confess to their actions, they were there by hung on Gallows Hill, few miles outside of Salem. Due to these incidents many say that these trials were one of the most tragic series of events in the history of the United States, as well the history of the Christian

In Salem, Massachusetts, Puritans were strong believers in the Bible. The Bible states, “Thou shalt not suffer a witch to live.” The Puritans beliefs led to them accusing 20 innocent people of being a witch, this resulted in their deaths in 1692. Even though the Puritans couldn’t see it at the time, their accusations were really based off jealousy, lies, and Salem being divided into two parts. One cause of the Salem witch trial hysteria was jealousy.

REVIEW OF LITRATURE A.) SUMMARY SOURCE A Although the whole book had information on the Salem witch trials. The introduction, chapter 1 and 2 and the conclusion had information regarding the research needed • Introduction: states what the Salem witch trials where and who they accused.

Women were believed more likely to side with the devil then men due to their lustful nature and obedience to men. The first 3 people to be accused of witchcraft was: Sarah Good(a beggar), Tituba(a native) and Sarah

The first instance of witchery is Betty/Elizabeth Parris, along with Abigail Williams when they started to scream and giggle uncontrollably, along with delusions, vomiting, muscle spasms, screaming, and

Can you imagine being accused of a crime that you did not commit? This is exactly what happened from June 10th to September 22nd. Twenty innocent women were put to death in a small town by the name of, Salem Boston. This was called the “ Salem Witch Trials.” The Salem Witch Trials were due to a variety of things.

When the examination occurred, a confession was made from Tituba that she along with Sarah Good and Sarah Osborne had communicated with Satan and that they had agreed to let him bind them as witches. This confession created chaos and caused the hunt for witches to become larger and more common. More than 200 people were later accused of being a witch. Of the 200 accused, 19 of them were hanged. Those accused whom survived were either pardoned, escaped jail or were found non-guilty (Brooks, Rebecca B).

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.