Salem witchcraft trials Essay

Submitted By Hailey-link
Words: 788
Pages: 4
Open Document
Salem witchcraft trials speech by Hailey link
Sir Bedevere asked the peasant in Monty Python and the Holy Grail “What makes you think she is a witch?” to which the peasant replied “she turned me into a Newt”. “A Newt” says Sir Bedevere, to which the peasant says meekly, “I got better” and the crowd shouts “Burn her anyway!”(Monty Python). Witches and wizards have been the subject of films and books for many years. From Monty Python to the famous Harry Potter Series, the subject is one that people are fascinated with. The most famous story in history about witches took place hundreds of years ago in the small village of Salem, Massachusetts and has been written about in history books ever since. The adults of Salem Village and the surrounding townships did not know why some of the village girls were afflicted with fits and seizures but felt that the logical conclusion was that the devil was working in the girls and they had become witches, but they had no concrete evidence of this. This period of history captured the attention of Arthur Miller, who wrote a play called the Crucible in 1952 that later turned into a screenplay and move. Miller took these events in history and told a story that people could see unfold on stage and screen. The events of the Salem Witchcraft Trials that were told in The Crucible have several historical inaccuracies that Arthur Miller himself has admitted to writing because they would play out better on stage. A few of the The differences between history and the drama written by Miller include the lack of information about all of the judges who presided over the trial, and the lack of information regarding Cotton Mather’s influence on the trials.
Marc Aronson, in his book “Witch hunt, mysteries of the salem witch trials”, shares that in addition to Thomas Danforth and John Hathorne, who are identified in the play, the other judges who presided over the trial included William stout, John Richards, Nathaniel Saltonstall, Jonathan Corwin, Peter Sargent, Bartholomew Gedney and Samuel Sewall. At least five of the judges had to be present and sitting on the panel and at least one of the five had to be Delton, Richards, or Gedney. The full panel of judges were appointed for the special court of Oyer and terminer. The examination of the accused individual in the play were actually part of a special court of Oyer and terminer, but they were not the actual trials as those began a few months later in June 1692.
Cotton Matther was a prominent Puritan minister who felt that the incidences of witchcraft proved that New England was a Holy Place since the Devil had taken such an interest in it by inflicting evil spirits in the people who lived in there. Charles Upham, in his book, Witchcraft and Cotton Mather , shares that Initially Mather felt that all witches be rooted out and punished to the full extent of the law at that time. Matther started to hear about the
Show More

Related Documents: Salem witchcraft trials Essay

The Salem Witchcraft Trials Of 1692

The Salem witch trials of 1692 took place in Salem, Massachusetts. Overall, 141 people were apprehended as 19 were sent to the gallows and one person crushed to death. Historical investigators explained the Salem witch trials as a course of court cases that were targeted at tried persons who had been charged with witchcraft. The trials occurred between 1692 and 1693. Strict Religion, social roles, and food poisoning resulted in the false accusations of witches in Salem. The church was the foundation…

Words 802 - Pages 4

Effects Of Ergotism In The Salem Witchcraft Trials

The Salem girls were afflicted by ergot, not by witchcraft. “Convulsive ergotism is described by many symptoms which are crawling sensations, tingling in the fingers, vertigo, tinnitus aurium, headaches, hallucinations, vomiting and diarrhea” (Caporael). “All of these symptoms of convulsive ergotism were present in the Salem witchcraft trials. Another reason explaining the ergotism effect was that spring sowing for the rye, a popular grain at the time which can easily be infected by ergot, took place…

Words 233 - Pages 1

Salem witchcraft trial Essay example

The Salem witch trials were merely one violent tempest in a series of fierce community storms that date back before the 1660s. Salem witchcraft trial basically is the result of supernatural anxiety, suppression of dissent, and weak legal / judicial system. People had strong belief that Satan is acting in the world, and Satan recruits witches to work for him. People believed a person afflicted by witchcraft exhibits certain symptoms when they were just symptoms from mental or physical disease. People…

Words 356 - Pages 2

Salem Witchcraft Trials: The Little Ice Age

"The witchcraft trials suggest that even when considering events and circumstances thought to be psychological or cultural, key underlying motivations can be closely related to economic circumstances. “ -Emily Oster, Harvard University. Transition in thesis. The environmental and economical conditions around Salem caused personal greed and fear to trump logic and created the Mass hysteria that is the Salem Witch Trials. One of the environmental conditions Salem faced was the Little Ice Age which…

Words 782 - Pages 4

Essay on Causes of the Salem Witch Craft Trials

in Salem Village, and there is no evidence from the time that Tituba practiced Caribbean black magic, yet these trials and executions actually still took place, how can you explain why they occurred? The Salem Witchcraft Trials began not as an act of revenge against an ex-lover, as they did in The Crucible, but as series of seemingly unlinked, complex events, which a paranoid and scared group of people incorrectly linked. And while there were countless other witchcraft trials, Salem trials remain…

Words 2046 - Pages 9

The Salem Witch Trials Essay

What happened during the Salem Witch Trials? One of the most interesting and fascinating events to ever occur in United States history was the Salem Witch Trials. The trials took place in between February 1692 and May 1693. For over a year women were accused of being a witch, and then hung for the accusations. During the 17th century, witchcraft was used by peasants, and the idea of their “white magic” that helped their agriculture became the idea of “dark magic” and was associated with evil…

Words 1341 - Pages 6

Salem Witch Trials Research Paper

being bewitched. A tale was created by the girls that spread from neighbor to neighbor, causing mass hysteria and chaos in the town of Salem. Later that year, over 150 men and women were imprisoned on the accusation of witchcraft. By the end of the trials, 19 people were unfairly hung and executed; it was the largest witch trial to occur in the U.S. The Salem Witch Trials were unfair executions of the innocent caused by hearsay and mass panic. Elizabeth Parris and Abigail Williams were born into wealthy…

Words 1520 - Pages 7

Causes Of The Salem Witch Trials In 1692

In 1692, the people of Salem Massachusetts experienced an event that took the lives of several innocent people. The residents of Salem village believed or claimed that other residents living among them were practicing witchcraft. This began the Salem Witch Trials. The Salem witch trials occurred because of congregational strife, economic conditions, and personal jealousies. On February in 1692, Betty Parris got sick. She was in pain and as a result she dove under the furniture. She claimed to have…

Words 364 - Pages 2

Ergotism Is The Main Cause Of The Salem Witch Trials

An outbreak of witchcraft occurred in the town of Salem, Massachusetts during the year of 1692. Twenty people in Salem were put to death during a fifteen week period. During this period in time there was a countless number of people accused of witchcraft and placed in jail. Three of the main causes of the Salem Witch Trials would be the spread of Ergotism through Salem, Bridget Bishop being accused of witchcraft, and hysteria making the girls not know what to believe. Ergotism is the main cause…

Words 436 - Pages 2

Salem Witch Trials Research Paper

In July 1692, what was supposed to be a beautiful summer for most Puritans in Salem Village, Massachusetts, soon turned dark as many were scheduled to hang for witchcraft. Earlier in the year, several young girls claimed that over 200 individuals were practicing witchcraft. The girls were genuinely afflicted, not by ergot, but by witchcraft. In Puritan belief, Satan cannot take the place or possession of any unwilling person. If a person saw the spirit of the accused, it confirmed that they were…

Words 1541 - Pages 7