that they blew out of proportion because of their beliefs.
that they blew out of proportion because of their beliefs.
Little material evidence was available in regards to casting demons, spells, and spirits to throw teen girls into fits or seizures so the next best option was evidence based on the unseen. One witness and accuser claimed to see the Devil whispering in the ear of one of the alleged witches, Martha Carrier. No other witness saw this, but the accuser’s testimony was used as evidence to convict Carrier of witchcraft and therefore sentence her to death by hanging. Few members of Salem village sought to use logic to deny spectral evidence because of the fear that it could be true. Puritans were fearful of God’s wrath and the power of the Devil, which led to fear of any less-than-holy supernatural activity. Fear overcame rationale, which was why the court officials were so easily swayed to believe the testimony and spectral evidence provided by the accuser. The cycle of fear, spectral evidence, and sentencing led to twenty deaths total. However, in October of 1692, the governor of Massachusetts broke the…
The Salem Witch Crisis began during the winter of 1691-1692. In Salem Village, Massachusetts, when Betty Parris, the nine-year-old daughter of the village’s minister, Samuel Parris, and his niece, Abigail Williams, fell strangely ill. The girls complained of pinching, prickling sensations, knifelike pains, and the feeling of being choked. Some weeks later, three ore girls showed similar symptoms. Doctors began to suspect that witchcraft was the reason of the girl’s symptoms.…
Three years prior to the hysteria, a very admired and respected minister, Cotton Mather, told of how, “these evil spirits are all around” – “these evil spirits” being the workers of Satan who are working against the power of God. In Document C, he is quoted as a secondary source countering the theory that witchcraft was only performed by Indians. He supports his own theory by referring to the growing number of witchcraft cases that are occurring in Christian households. He makes a general statement warning everyone to spread his word of the growth of the evil spirits and to take caution. This quote seems to plant the seed of witchcraft in everyone’s mind. Once warned, the people of Salem walk on egg shells trying to find signs of witchcraft, but also avoiding them as much as possible.…
Salem Witch Hysteria (139): In 1691, several teenagers met in the kitchen of the village minister. Soon, the girls began to shout, bark, grovel and twitch for no reason. They told people that three women were Satan’s servants and tormenting them. The three women were arrested. At the hearing, the “afflicted” girls had fits. One of the accused confessed and gave names of other people who she claimed were working for the devil. The governor disbanded the witch court in Salem and ordered the remaining suspects should be released. Nineteen “witches” were dead and more than 100 were in jail. Some historians say that it was all about land feuds between people. Most of the accused defied the traditional female roles, which could have been another reason. In 1692, some of the afflicted girls shouted “a witch” and began acting possessed. No one noticed so the girls stopped and left meaning it all could have been for…
For hundreds of years, the word “witch” has been associated with innumerable negative images. Witches were considered devil worshipers who committed scores of evil deeds toward society. By the 14th Century, a law was passed outlawing any practice of witchcraft or sorcery; anyone in Europe accused of witchcraft was subject to the torture and execution. In the 1450’s there was a breakout of violent persecutions against people accused of being witches. “During this time more than 100,000 people (mostly woman) were killed for allegedly practicing witchcraft” (Kallen 33) . Witches were viewed by the public as dangerous and uncontrollable menaces to society. They were believed to have relationships with the devil, this relationship was developed because of the church demonizing the witches in the 1450’s. During this time, people lacked medical knowledge about sickness and disease. When the witches were healthy during many of these wide spread diseases, the people believed they were the ones that cursed everyone with it. The people believed that witches could curse people that they did not like. In the city, It was common for old beggars to be on the side of the street asking for change but when people refused to give the beggars coins, they would angrily curse at the passersby. If the people that the…
The year 1692 marked a major event in history in the town of Salem, Massachusetts. During the year 1692, Salem, a colony filled with Puritans who believe in religion very strongly, but as their beliefs grow, the more the people were starting to die. The problem or question is what caused the Salem witch crisis hysteria of 1692? There were many causes for the Salem witch trial hysteria but the possible three main reasons were the conflicts between young and older women, the “afflicted” girls were acting throughout the trial, and the town’s differences in wealth and power.…
Witch trials were mainly caused by young girls hallucinating that some people were witches and that they were being attacked by their specter. This hallucination was caused by ergotism which is a fungus that grows on…
This hysteria might’ve been caused by the power struggle in this community, according to Document C, the village of Salem had more accused people than actual accusers. This means that, in order to gain fame and power, the people in Salem wanted to accuse people of being witches because if you accused…
The Salem Witch Trials of 1692 was a time of panic and bedlam. Men and women of all ages were being “inhabited by the Devil” in turn making them witches. During the 1600s, English immigrants arrived in New England, a number of them being Puritans. The Puritans were Protestant Christians who were unhappy with the way England practiced Christianity so they moved to New England for a fresh start. However, once it was the 17th century, witchcraft became more well known and people became more worried about their well being. There were three causes to this panic: people were afraid of being accused so they accused others, girls who were bored and messing around, and Western Salem Village’s loss of political influence.…
The salem witch trials took place in 1692, back then people believed almost everything they were told. When a well known reverend discovered his daughter, niece, slave, and a couple of girls from town dancing and singing in the woods, his first instinct was to rush over and confront the girls. When he got there the girls faked fainting to try and avoid getting in trouble, by doing so they made the reverend thing witchcraft was among them. He eminently falsely accused his salve for the girls odd behavior, he also summoned reverend Hale who was an “expert” in the field of witchcraft. By doing this reverend parris sealed many of the villagers fait with know, but only time would tell.…
The Salem witch trials were caused by jealousy, paranormia,and teenagers. Jealousy was a huge part because of the rich people having better land or have more money so people accused them to be able to own their stuff. Paranormia was a part of it because people were scared that the devil was entering their body to make them do bad things. Teenages were also part of it becsuse teeagers didn’t get a long with everyone, so when they didn’t they acted like the person was put a witchcraft spell on them. This is why the Salem witch trials in 1692…
The most popular historical perspective of what occurred is that in early 1692, the Rev. Samuel Parris’s 9-year-old daughter Betty and his 12-year-old niece Abigail, “began to fall into horrid fits”. There has been debate as to whether these fits were real, or if the girls were just acting. The village doctor could not explain these bizarre “fits”, and blamed it on the supernatural. One must understand that these were Puritans, their belief system at that time gave a great deal of power to the spiritual world. If something good happen to somebody they were said to be in God 's good graces. If something bad happened to somebody, it was said to be the devil 's work.…
The Salem Witch Trials of 1692 is one of the most well-known historical events. In 1692, 20 people were hanged for being a so-called “witch.” Most accusations were made by six girls, which included Betty Parris, Abigail Williams, and Ann Putnam Jr.. Witches were people whose bodies had supposedly been taken over by The Devil. But what really caused the Salem Witch Trials hysteria? The three reasons that caused the mass hysteria were how certain people, ages, genders, and marital statuses were targeted, the fact that the girls were so good at acting, they were able to fool the entire village, and that neighbor conflicts created tension and jealousy.…
In early times people didn’t understand reason. Especially the Puritans who only saw God’s will and the evilness of the devil. During the Salem witchcraft crisis, Puritans struggled to decipher communal security and find the truth around them. They believed that Satan recruited humans to do his evil and be servants to him, i.e. witches. The witches had a magical power that allowed them to harm others. To protect the community the judges of the town took it upon themselves to hold jury trials and hang the witches as punishment. Many believed the witches were burned at the stake, however that is untrue.…
The witch craze in Europe lasted from the fifteenth century through the seventeenth century. Women were targets to persecution. Witchcraft had already been considered evil but religious conflicts from the Reformation started another uprising. People, women in particular, were being persecuted as witches for suspicious behavior, fear of the unknown and religious beliefs along with ignorance. People being suspicious and accusing of others was a main source for persecution.…