These women were seen as both the most challenging to fit within a "social matrix organized around the family unit" as well as an economic burden by their neighbors. Women labeled "witches" were seen as wanters and takers driven by self interests and lacked the ability to reciprocate favors to neighbors no fortunate then themselves. Resentment from these neighbors paved the path for witches to be seen as a "locus of dangerous envy." These stigmas place on women are commonly regarded to have dissipated thought out time, but certain attitudes seemed from the persecution of these women created long lasting damage toward femininity and consequences remain visible even in
Abigail show herself to be an even more mischievous character by accusing Tituba of Witchcraft, and wrong doing. Tituba in turn is held in suspicion of being a witch and is threatened with the taking of her life if she refuses to talk about her supposed involvement with the devil. She blames others about witchcraft even though she is the one believing it. She is the "leader" of the girls; she tells them what to do and when to do it. For example when they were in the court room and she was brought in to testify against Mary Warren the girls kept repeating what Abigail said and they did everything she
Moreover, when Reverend Parris confronts Abigail about being fired by Elizabeth Proctor, Abigail denies any wrongdoings. She accuses Elizabeth as “a lying, cold, sniveling women” who spreads rumor about to degrade her social status. Abigail’s motivation in the witchcraft is thus revealed, which is jealousy towards Elizabeth. As Abigail successfully frames other people for being responsible about the witchcraft, she further imposes her domination over the other girls. Her domination is demonstrated physically and verbally.
In “The Crucible”, the girls accused people of being witches just to make themselves look better to others to gain respect. “We are what we always were in Salem, but now the little crazy children are jangling the keys of the kingdom, and common vengeance writes the law!” (Miller 196). The direct quote from “The Crucible” means children who are overtaken by social fears have the power to control the life or death of a single individual, by accusing them of witchcraft. Many women were killed in the town of Salem during the trials and the ones who weren't killed had their reputations forever lowered. Everyone who was charged by McCarthy had his or her own reputation diminished also.
At the start of 1692, two adolescent girls from Salem village started to ail from mysterious fits. Seventeen months afterwards, after lawful action was taken on 144 individuals, with 20 of them being sentenced to death, the humiliating Salem witchcraft court proceedings ended at long last. (Norton, 2003 pg. 3 -4) During those times, the magistrates who headed court cases paid no attention to women as well as girls who were aged below twenty five years old but in that witch case, things took a different turn as women were the prevalent accusers and the magistrate gave them opportunity to air their views (Norton, 2003 p.7). Norton's supposition regarding the 1692 hunt for witches at Salem village support a clash of traditions thesis and some
It says in the textbook that it’s estimated that between on million and nine million Europeans were executed as witches in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries. Again, also people from the British colony were doing what they wanted to do, But in there colony witchcraft is bad and you get hung for it, my thing is that the people they locked up for witchcraft and killed, Judge Hawthorne would not let the people tell there part because some of them did it and some didn’t. it also says in the book, small parish of Salem village many were quick to blame witchcraft when the ministers daughter and several other girls were afflicted by seizures and lapses. I just think its crazy how judge Hawthorne and Judge Kaufman could really execute people without getting the full story on both parts of the
Many of these characters go through life changing events that change them forever. Even the neighbors suddenly turn on each other and accuse people they’ve known for years of practicing witchcraft and devil-worship. The town of Salem falls into mass hysteria, “an uncontrollable outburst of emotion or fear.” Arthur Miller’s play, “The Crucible” is about the Salem witch trials in 1860. These were classic examples of mass hysteria, resulting in the hanging of a great many respectable men and woman of charges of “trafficking” with the devil. They were convicted by people at least as themselves, largely on the evidence of four young girls who had been caught dancing in the moonlight and laid their dissolute behavior to the influence of Satan.
Sean McDermott Mrs. Scuilli English 11 14 October 2011 The Power of Women in The Crucible In Arthur Miller’s play, The Crucible, he shows what had happen in the colonial Massachusetts what was happening again during his time and the time of the Red scare. During the play Miller uses the role of women and their struggle to gain and fall from power affects everyone around them. In The Crucible, the female character, were very powerless, but when the events of the witch trials allow them to come into power on the theocracy, and their power has very negative effects on everyone in Salem. Abigail Williams, the most important witness of the Salem witch trials, gains power through abusing the emotions of the other girls in the town. Miller
They made life miserable for those accused and did not stop, even when they had had their “fun”. The Crucible, written by Arthur Miller, draws obvious parallels between the 1950’s Red Scare and the witch-hunts that took place in Salem of 1692. Miller connects the hysteria brought about through accusations thrown around by both Senator McCarthy and Abigail Williams by emphasizing how much power their groups hold over everyone. During the times of the Salem Witch Trials and the Red Scare, fear ruled those unfortunate enough to be involved in nearly any conflict. Be it fear of witchcraft or communism,the fact is that it swept throughout the early and post-industrial United States.
Tituba's confession ignited a series of witchcraft manhunts leading to women and men being hanged, one man crushed to death by heavy rocks, and 150 more men were held in prison awaiting trail . Ergo, the key concepts included within this essay will be, who were the accusers, what do their fears tell us about the beliefs and society, why did the trials come to an end, and what does the outcome of the trials tell us about the leaders of English society in North America. The story of the Salem Witch-Hunt begins within the household of Reverend Samuel Parris when his daughter became sick, and her cousin fell ill also. The doctor was quick to jump in and diagnose both girls, Betty Parris and Anne(Abigail) Williams, as being “bewitched”. The two girls exhibited fits such as screaming, throwing things around, and contorting themselves in awkward positions (Blumberg,2007).