Salem Witch Trials Essay

The accused would be hanged or killed in another means if they were chosen by the girls to be the witch. The girls who chose the witch were major players in the trials. The doctor that declared it to be the cause of witches was also a major

There were all kinds of different theories going around which made the people of Salem think those girls were witches. One big theory that small town had was the bread that the girls ate they were all thinking that that bread had some type of poisoning, which that was a theory that bread had caused the girls to become witches. In the article the New Yorker Stacy Schiff a newsletter writer states that “Salem witch trials followed an outbreak of rye ergot. Ergot is a fungus blight that forms hallucinogenic drugs in bread.” That ergot poisoning was a serious thing when that drug was in the bread the girls that had ate it would be crazy, they didn’t act the same that’s why they would accuse them of being witches.

In 17th century puritan Salem everything seemed serene and tranquil, but shockingly that wasn’t the case, and it only got worse with the Salem witch trials. The little

So now everyone is scared and freaking out which is really the start of the mass hysteria. It turns into everyone accusing others of being a witch. Whether it be because they don’t like them or just because they want their land. Either way they start accusing everyone, and the girls were seen as “proof.” So, if they didn’t like the person, when they were brought into court they would start screaming, falling or even “fainting.”

For example, Annika L of the Salem Times states, “A fourth theory is that the girls behavior was caused by physical illness.” Despite the fact that such points could be defended with some logic, most of the support would be weak and loose. On the other hand, it can be concluded that the claim made by this essay is more logical and well supported if anything. All in all, it can be determined that the cause of the Salem Witch Trials was the attempt of Salem citizens to either defend or create family ties and enter or sustain continued community safety within the

During the witch trials, many people were reported having hallucinatory fits, seizures, muscle spasms, and delusions. These reactions, are symptoms of ergotism (ergot poisoning), which many people thought to be the signs of

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.

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.

During the demandings time of the late 1990s, a settlement in Massachusetts called Salem murdered people who they suspected to be witches and wizards. The Salem Witch trials interesting enough began when a group of girls were playing a game. After they finished playing the game, they started to act strangely. When the parents brought in a doctor to check on their children, the healer couldn’t find anything wrong with the girls who were unwell. Many modern theories suggest that they could been suffering from mental illness, child abuse or epilepsy.

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.

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,

N) also brings up the possibility of a fungus called ergot triggering the hysteria of 1692. Ergot grows on cereal grains and can be poisonous which was a “common condition resulting from eating contaminated rye bread” back in the seventeen hundred´s. Ergot is believed to have affected the accusers by causing symptoms such as “crawling sensations, tingling in the fingers, vertigo and hallucinations”. To better understand how ergot played a role in the Salem witch hysteria, an additional document listing how much rye and other cereal grains were consumed during the year 1692 would help determine a

This was more commonly found in women more so than in men, this is able to be seen in (Document N and E). While looking at the two tables in (Document E) it is divided into two subjects The Accused and The Accusers, in each table we see the majority of each table is centered around women. A majority of the people that consumed bread and showed the symptoms could be seen as a witch, the symptoms were usually a crawling of the skin sensation, hallucinations, delirium, etc. If you were seen in public seeing things that weren 't there or scratching your skin as if things were on your body you could potentially end up being seen as a witch and killed. This evidence helps explain the hysteria and the hangings because it showed that everyone was on high alert at all times everyone around them could be seen as a someone to blame or as a

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.