Mysteries of the Salem Witch Trials Essay,Introduction
The Salem witch trials of took place in Salem, Massachusetts. Overall, people were arrested as 19 were hanged and one person crushed to death. Researchers describe the Salem witch trials as a series of court trials that were aimed at prosecuting persons who had been accused of witchcraft. The trials t See more WebSalem Witch Trials. Throughout history millions of people have been scorned, accused, arrested, tortured, put to trial and, persecuted as witches. One would think that by the WebNov 26, · The Salem witch trials can be described as diverse and distinct hearings that were held before different county courts. These trials were mostly initiated to WebThe Salem Witch Trials were a series of trials that occurred during Colonial America where many people, mostly women, were falsely accused of and wrongly punished for WebThe Salem Witch Trials were a chain of hearings and prosecutions of people held accountable for witchcraft in Salem, Massachusetts. When a group of young girls began ... read more
The first two affected girls were Elizabeth Parris and Abigail Williams, they began to name the three women whom they believed were bewitching them. These individuals included Sarah Good, Sarah Osbourn and Tituba who was a salve at the time. All three of these women were considered social outcasts and were easy targets for this suspected crime. Fear and hysteria in Salem MA, created a culture that led to the mistreatment of women. The Salem witch trials, a cover up for other deeper issues or simply a religion matter? These individuals also feared their religion was under attack again and worried they were losing control of their colony.
The Puritans strongly believed and felt that the Devil was as real as the all holy God whom himself, they loved and worshipped. The puritans felt that if members of society were weak or considered the weakest at upholding the correct values and morals, specifically women and children, they would then be selected to carry out the Devils dirty work. Witches were considered to be followers of Satan or the Devil and felt as if the accused individuals traded their souls for his assistance. It was believed that they employed demons to accomplish deeds, the act of doing this changed the souls from human to animal form. Many individuals of this religion believed that this is where witches were to come into play or action and therefore were deemed punishable under Puritan Law.
Puritans believed that in order for sins to be forgiven one had to with hold a solemn vow or relationship with God, if one was not to maintain the practice of preaching they then they were considered sinful. Predestination, the idea that God had chose you and granted you a certain role. On December 17th, William Stoughton, whom was in charge of the trials conducted or issued a proclamation in the hopes of establishing amends with God himself. So, what was the reasoning behind the Salem Witch Trials? Was it the work of the Devil, influencing women and children to act on behalf of him or was it a serious illness caused by their environment?
Were these trials an act of revenge among social outcast or all individuals? Many forms of reasoning have been brought to the table of why this event happened, was it epilepsy, boredom, child abuse, mental illness or even a disease brought on by eating rye infected with fungus? Sadly, these accused individuals consisted mostly of women and children, this category of people was easily accused due to many individuals viewing them as sinners, allowing easy attest and persuasion of the devil. When the trials began three women were called upon for questioning, Sarah Good, Sarah Osbourn and Tituba. Sarah Osbourn married a wealthy man by the name of Robert Prince, Prince owned acres of farm land. In the year Robert passed away, leaving Osbourn behind with their two young children and the remaining land.
In the following years there were many court cases dealing with the battle over the land, Sarah Osborne virus her own children. Sarah Osborne was placed in jail and later died while being shackled to a wall, therefor never receiving a fair trial. Many historians continue to point the finger of blame towards the slave Tituba whom was owned by Samuel Parris of Danvers, Massachusetts. Historians felt as her confession fueled the fire of the trials, she confessed to introducing the young girls to the supernatural realm or world. Ergot is a fungal disease of grains such as rye and it is caused by the species claviceps, which is a fugus that grows on the ears of rye.
This disease increases the risk of infected plants and harmful harvests, windy climates increase the risk of the disease spreading. Innocent until proven guilty. In May, as the number of cases grew, Governor William Phips set up a special court for the presented cases, this court would become known as the Court of Oyer and Terminer and would hear cases that are extraordinary and serious in nature. During these trials this right of innocent till proven guilty was not given, all suspects were considered guilty. This method consisted of placing the prisoner or the accused on the ground, naked as the day they were born with a heavy board on top of them.
Proctor felt as these accused as well as himself have and will not receive a fair trial and wished to have the trials moved to Boston. In the year of , one of afflicted girls Ann Putnam, Jr. Nurse was a well-respected individual whom helped spark the question of if trials were the right course of action. It was this same year that the state of Massachusetts cleared the name of some of the remaining victims that were not listed in the law. These possibilities include the people having a voice, a say of their environment and surroundings. As you continue to review history you will notice that all events good or bad, better or aid our nation.
Such as the history of women and children being easy targets for hardships like abuse and mistreatment lead to the creation of the 19th amendment which states that equal protection and rights are granted to any gender and race of a United State citizen. Mistreatment is the act of treating an induvial unfairly or badly such as the culture Salem MA created against women. For example, on April 11th, John Proctor was the first man arrested and held accountable for witchcraft. Although it was known as the Salem Witch Trials, several counties, such as Andover, were involved. The Puritan lifestyle was very strict, and the slightest change in behavior, missing church for instance, a rose suspicion. People were so caught up with the idea of witches and witchcraft, when they had little knowledge of misfortunes, like sickness or death, they blamed supernatural forces.
The disasters were believed to be upon them through supernatural forces, like witchcraft. The powerful beliefs of witchcraft and witches were brought by the English to America; it was part of their belief system and culture, which was passed from generation to generation and responsible for the Salem Witch Trials. Historians believe that the causes of the witch trials had to deal with social and economical animosity behind the accusations, but mostly mass hysteria was the main culprit. The accusations were not considered unusual because witchcraft beliefs were very strong in this time period. Witches were regular people whose pride, envy, or greed apparently led them to make a pact with the Devil.
Spectral evidence is a spirit resembling the accused had been seen harming a victim. The number of witchcraft accusations rose to witches sitting in jail. More than half of the girls accusing people of witchcraft were between the ages of eleven to twenty most were servants in other family households. The fear of witchcraft broke ties between families and friends. During this time 50 people were able to save themselves by giving false confessions, the twenty others whom refused to confess were executed. Governor William Phips forbid any more imprisonments of witchcraft in October Shortly after he suspended all the trials in , he pardoned all the convicted people of witchcraft. This ended the Salem Witch Trials in May How did the Salem Witch Trials affect Salem and America?
The Court deemed the trails unlawful and illegitimate. The ending of the Salem Witch Trials created a good closure in the community. The people e had realized their mistakes of accusations and made a memorial honoring the deaths of the people accused of witchcraft in The impact of hysteria is still amongst us today and has not gone away.
The accusation which became known as witchcraft hysteria in history stunned the whole town. It was first initiated by three 3 young girls who were relatives of the town reverend, Reverend Samuel Parris Brett, Although no one really knew the real cause of these fits and bizarre behaviors, it was clear that the victims were suffering from physical and mental difficulties. The victims experienced physical and mental pains such as vomiting and temporary blindness and hallucination. The girls would scream from the pain they are undergoing. They would hallucinate of seeing the Devil. They would claim that the Devil was telling them to sign his book and join him to be his loyal followers. These strange behaviors made the townspeople of Salem panic. Though such claim had no concrete basis, the townspeople truly believed that the town of Salem was indeed haunted by witches.
The people also believed that it was their God given right to eliminate such supernatural beings for the betterment of mankind. The girls were brought into intense questioning which resulted to the naming of three 3 women as witches. The identified accused were Sarah Good, an elder beggar, Sarah Osborne, a woman known for having an adulterous affair and the slave Tituba. The last woman accused admitted that she was a witch when she was interrogated and pointed out others as being witches. This begun the witch hunt of Brett, As the three 3 women were arrested the girls still sustained their peculiar behaviors and continued to accuse other people. The prison cells of Salem overflew with accused witches.
No clear evidences were presented. In the year Salem had been experiencing bad weather which reduced harvests, an epidemic of small pox had swept the town where many were affected of the sickness and the Indians renewed their attacks on the frontier settlements Brett, There was also an internal conflict as Salem was divided into two 2 groups, Salem Town and Salem Village. Salem Town was a popular place for trade where merchants and businessmen dwell while Salem Village was a place for farmers to plant their crops. For many years Salem Village wanted to be a separate township. Salem Village even had their own separate ministry Brett, It was later found out that most of the accused, namely Hutchinson, Bishop and Phips were members of the anti-Parris faction.
They belonged to a group where they did not approved of the separation of Salem Village from Salem Town. It all seemed like a dramatic plot for Parris and his clan to blame the political and social conditions of Salem on witchcraft. As time passed by, women were becoming more empowered. Notice that most accused were women who were unpopular in society. They are those who have very strong personalities and who have tendencies to go against the male dominated society of Salem. Bridget Bishop was married three 3 times thus she was accused of being a witch by using her sexual prowess to seduce men although at the time of her trial she was about sixty 60 years old Ray, Lastly Lady Phips, the wife of politician William Phips was also accused of being a witch.
My suspect is her husband was disliked by the Parris faction thus she was named a witch. After thorough research, I think that both the accused and accusers were all influenced by hearsay. The logical judgments of the accusers were clouded by their fear of political and social change thus resulting to them pushing the blame on witchcraft which cannot explain logical facts. The accusers took advantage of the ignorance of the people to make them believe that it was indeed supernatural causes which made the town of Salem suffer. They used their positions in society to influence the public in punishing those who are delinquent in society. It is sad for the accused because they suffer the injustice brought upon them by false accusations and hearsays with no concrete proof.
The accused were brought to court for trial and questioning but before they could defend themselves the judges and jurors already found them guilty. They were just attacked on the stand. The people in the court room would just find faults on the accused to further prove they were guilty. It seemed a hopeless case for the accused because no one seemed to believe them. The people witnessing court trials would sympathize with the victims even if there were no logical reasons or evidences supporting the claims of the latter. In the case of Bridget Bishop, when she was questioned during her trial at first she opted to go for denial but when all her claims were ignored and the judge continued to attack her stance she grew weary and angry.
Her behavior was seen as a sign of guilt thus she was proclaimed guilty and was executed Ray, Women were primary victims because in seventeenth century society, they are only seen as someone who tends the household and children. If they would practice roles of men they were seen as socially unacceptable. She became a threat because she was seen as someone who had a voice thus power. Her innocence became difficult to prove when most of her jurors were conservative men who believed that women should only bear and rear children and take care of the household. Hutchinson was also giving religious advice to men and women thus she was a threat because she knew how to lead and she had followers to back her up. Social behaviors were important in seventeenth century Salem especially during the witch hunt hysteria.
Anyone can be suspected of being a witch if they act socially unacceptable. For the protection of the people it would always be best to act according to what society dictates but by doing so the political and social leaders controlled the people. The leaders would always have the power to dictate the people. If they do not wish to follow they would be accused and oppressed. In this scenario the people will never have the freedom of speech and expression. Sarah Osborne Brett, and Bridget Bishop Ray, were both accused of being witches because of their inappropriate social behaviors. They were both considered adulterous women by the Bible. Osborne was known to have an adulterous affair and Bishop was married three 3 times. In order to punish them for their personal affairs they were both accused of being witches and thus executed.
Salem as a town is popular for being a place of witches in myths and novels. Before researching and studying the topic, I was familiar with Salem as a place where witches dwell but after doing my homework I found out that the whole event was a big injustice to the poor and helpless who were merely expressing themselves. The witch hysteria was all brought out by greedy political leaders who wanted to place blame on the innocent for the problematic conditions of the town. It was not surprising that the officials would push the blame on the helpless but what was surprising was how the people got carried away and lost their logical sense of judgments to the idea of witchcraft. DuBois, E. Need a custom Essay sample written from scratch by professional specifically for you?
Learn More. You are free to use it for research and reference purposes in order to write your own paper; however, you must cite it accordingly. Removal Request. If you are the copyright owner of this paper and no longer wish to have your work published on IvyPanda. The Ideas of Freedom and Slavery in Relation to the American Revolution Addressing America's Biggest Issues. GET WRITING HELP. Cite This paper. Copy to Clipboard Copied! APA-7 APA-6 Chicago N-B Chicago A-D MLA-9 Harvard. Reference IvyPanda. Bibliography IvyPanda. References IvyPanda. Powered by CiteTotal, citation website. More related papers. Check the price of your paper.
Salem Witch Trials Essay,Discussion
WebSalem Witch Trials. Throughout history millions of people have been scorned, accused, arrested, tortured, put to trial and, persecuted as witches. One would think that by the WebThe Salem Witch Trials were a chain of hearings and prosecutions of people held accountable for witchcraft in Salem, Massachusetts. When a group of young girls began WebMay 31, · The accusation which became known as witchcraft hysteria in history stunned the whole town. It was first initiated by three (3) young girls who were relatives WebNov 26, · The Salem witch trials can be described as diverse and distinct hearings that were held before different county courts. These trials were mostly initiated to WebThe Salem Witch Trials were a series of trials that occurred during Colonial America where many people, mostly women, were falsely accused of and wrongly punished for The Salem witch trials of took place in Salem, Massachusetts. Overall, people were arrested as 19 were hanged and one person crushed to death. Researchers describe the Salem witch trials as a series of court trials that were aimed at prosecuting persons who had been accused of witchcraft. The trials t See more ... read more
In this case, they relied upon it for agriculture and farming by using particular charms that they considered effective and efficient. Essay on The Salem Witch Trials Words 11 Pages 4 Works Cited. Although it was known as the Salem Witch Trials, several counties, such as Andover, were involved. What Are The Causes Of The Salem Witch Trials Words 6 Pages The Salem Witch Trials were a series of trials that occurred during Colonial America where many people, mostly women, were falsely accused of and wrongly punished for performing witchcraft. No distinction was made between persons who flatly violated the law and those who infringed on prescribed customs. It was not until when people started to protest the use of spectral evidence in court.
The most famous outbreak was in Salem, Massachusetts, hence the name Salem Witch Trials. After multiple cases, most were thrown out by the court while others, 26 to be exact, salem witch trial essay, were convicted of witchcraft and were executed shortly. Removal Request. If studied closely however, it becomes apparent that the main cause for the Salem witch trials can be found in the way the people of Salem viewed and. The accusations were not considered unusual salem witch trial essay witchcraft beliefs were very strong in this time period. This explains the political supremacy that the government had over the church during the 17 th Century.
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