The young girls and their leader Abigail are the core of sin and evil in the girls and the community. Throughout the story accusations are thrown at others from the community who are believed righteous. Ultimately in this story the sin is coming directly from the devil. The girls are believed to have formed a pact with the devil and are now attempting to lure others to come with them. Overall, in both texts, sin and how sin affects the lives of the people and their communities is the recurring theme.
Throughout the years, witchcraft has been the common fear of mankind. In England, the legal definition of a witch was “a person who hath a conference with the devil to consult with him or to do some act”. In early modern Europe, women were thought to be witches due to their biblical association with the devil, the superstitions and misunderstanding of the people of Europe, and the negative perceptions of those who deviated from the social norm. As a result, these beliefs and superstitions led to the death of thousands of alleged witches. (Witch Hunts) Witches were thought to be consults of the devil who gave up their bodies and led others away from the church for the devil in exchange for otherworldly power.
Hysteria leads the people of Salem to believe that those who were friends are executing witchery and associating themselves with the devil. The continuous accusations of witchery present the people of Salem with a chance to redeem long-term grudges. The abundant case of Abigail Williams uses the current situation to indict charges on Elizabeth Proctor, having her sent to jail. Not to be entirely blamed, Reverend Parries also pronounces his placement in society by accusing the people who question his authority. Hysteria can prosper from those who feed off of it.
Gillian MacDonald 21 March 2013 ENG 4U Mr. Chalmers The Ringleaders of the Salem Witch Trials In the book The Crucible by Arthur Miller, the theme of hysteria is dominantly present throughout the entire play. It is not hard to narrow down the cause of the widespread hysteria to three people that inevitably had their hand in the trials. The devious character, Abigail, shows her wicked mind and skill of manipulation in the play so she can get what she wants, John Proctor. The slave, Tituba, gave into the accusations and started the hysteria of the witch trials. The last character that contributed to an entire town’s belief in witches would be Danforth.
The witches sound evil and many fear them because of their powers and witchery. They also want Macbeth to be king by saying, “Hail, Hail!” when he walks in. The witches know that this will make him anxious, in which it does. These three hags can also be portrayed as Fates in the mythology state. February 1, 2012 “When shall we three meet again?
Hysteria in Salem In 1692, in Salem Massachusetts, the superstition of witches existed in a society of strong Christian beliefs. Anybody who acted out of the ordinary was accused of being a witch and the accused would actually be forgiven if they blamed their accusations on another individual. In this play, a group of young girls is accused of being witches. These girls then blame other people in order to get out of trouble and even pretend to be "bewitched" in front of the court during a trial. This leads into the deaths of the innocent people who are accused and automatically found guilty.
Salem, Massachusetts in the late 17th century was full of hysteria about witches casting spells, spirits being conjured, and the devil influencing the townspeople. Accusations of witchcraft, for personal vengeance, hurled fellow citizens into jail for eventual execution. The greedy were taking neighbors land once their innocent blood was spilled for crimes of witchery. John Proctor disliked the court’s lack of justice, and thought that the spreaders of the lies only did it to get what they wanted. All he wanted was for fair trials to be conducted and evidence to be looked for, because he was a very just individual and when a debate of who had authority he said “we vote by name in this society, not by acreage” (1.
Nevertheless, it is the innate evil in Macbeth that makes him curious about their predictions. In fact Banquo’s statements on noticing Macbeth’s reaction to the witches’ prophesies, “Look how our partner’s rapt,” make us suspect Macbeth’s integrity. Again, the fact that he gets dependant on the witches for further advice clearly demonstrates the evil in him. While it was the initial influence of the witches, that led Macbeth astray, it is ultimately Macbeth’s decision to commit such heinous crimes.” Apart from the witches, Lady Macbeth also has a profound influence on bringing about Macbeth’s tragedy. Lady Macbeth is an evil and ruthless woman who, being aware of Macbeth’s ambitious nature decides to exploit it and manipulates him into murdering King Duncan.
Macbeth and the Extraterrestrial In Shakespeare’s Macbeth, the supernatural plays an essential role in the character development of the most important characters. Prophecies of greatness, brought on by three witches and led by their leader Hecate, lead to corruption in even the most loyal of men. The theme of what these witches say, “Fair is foul and foul is fair” make people believe good things will happen, when really they are being led astray. One man – Macbeth himself – falls prey to these prophecies, leading him to betrayal, murder, and even insanity. In the time of Shakespeare, people were very superstitious, so he used the witches for theatrical effect.
Finally, we see this concept taken to the extreme with the weird sisters. The witches make Macbeth believe something that is false, and lead him on for most of the play. Potentially, if the witches had not given Macbeth this sense of confidence than he may have never killed, Duncan, Banquo or Macduff’s family. This concept of appearance vs. reality not only caused Macbeth to rise up and become king, it also caused his inevitable downfall. Throughout the play Macbeth uses his acting abilities and deceptive qualities to make people believe something, which in reality is false.