In the Salem Witch Trials, Sarah Good, Sarah Osbourne and Tituba were the first three women to be accused of witchcraft for allegedly afflicting Betty Paris and Abigail Williams, two young girls, with a demonic disease. They had been accused of witchcraft out of rumors about their “outcast” natures and eccentricities by other girls and were sent to jail despite any tangible evidence of their alleged connection with witchcraft. A spread of accusations arose within Salem following their arrest, most of which had their basis in rumor rather than on concrete evidence. During the period of McCarthyism, Senator Joseph McCarthy accused two hundred and five people of being “card carrying” communists in a speech in Wheeling, Virginia. He accused government employees,
The historical significance of Susannah Martin’s trial is in communion with each other convicted witch, in that an idea can lead to destruction, not only destruction of the lives that were taken due to this idea, but almost to the colony itself. In order to explain the life of Susanna Martin it is first necessary to explain the life of the Salem witch trials. The era of the witch trials lasted less than a year, from the first arrests on March 1, 1692 to the final hanging on September 22, 1692. In 17th century New England, witchcraft under British law was seen as a felony and a crime committed against their government, and the punishment for the crime was hanging. There is often a
The Salem Witch Trials were a result of mass hysteria fueled by the accusations of Abigail Williams and her friends. During the Salem Witch Trials those suspected of witchcraft were jailed and given a trial. During the trial the accused was dogged for a confession and even names of other wishes. The incentive was if they confessed, God would forgive them and they could live, but of course no one was really a witch so most plead innocent and were hung anyways, simply because of a suspicion. The whole event of the Salem Witch Trials is viewed as unjust because after the accusations spread, many townspeople simply accused their neighbors of being a witch to gain revenge, money, land, or something similar.
The unwarranted accusations that Joseph McCarthy and the citizens of Salem made are what fueled the widespread hysteria in both situations. According to Miller “It seemed that the hysteria in Salem had a certain inner procedure, or several, which were duplicating once again and that perhaps by revealing the nature of that procedure some light could be thrown on what we were doing ourselves. "(Miller) He made this statement in comparison to the present day witch hunts; which were at the time of the McCarthy trials. The people of Salem accused others of witchcraft to protect their own lives. In both eras, they struck fear in citizens due to the "guilty until you confess" attitude which were in favor of the court.
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
While these two events were decades apart they had many similarities. They both began from false accusations, both spread unnecessary panic, and both used fear to gain power. The Salem Witch Hunts were a cause of mass hysteria that came from accusations made by Abigail Williams, Betty Paris, Mercy Lewis, and Tituba. These girls were caught dancing in the woods and accused of being witches due to some of their peculiar behavior which included screaming, bending into awkward positions, and making strange sounds. To keep themselves out of trouble the girls said other women in the community were practicing witchcraft.
Not only does she deny doing witchcraft, she also manages to accuse Tituba of having full responsibility while she is the one who starts the whole thing. At the end of the chapter, she also frames some other citizens, saying that she sees them with the Devil. Her affair with John Proctor is furthermore exposed to the audience. Betty, Reverend Parris’s daughter, reveals that Abigail attempts to drink blood as a charm in order to kill Elizabeth Proctor, who is John Proctor’s wife. Moreover, when Reverend Parris confronts Abigail about being fired by Elizabeth Proctor, Abigail denies any wrongdoings.
Analytical Essay on the individual living in Salem in The Crucible Being a part of the Salem community was something dangerous because no matter what you did, you were bound to be accused of witchcraft. In The Crucible, it starts out with Tituba being accused, Reverend Parris’ slave, because of her coming from Barbados, being of low social status in the town, and because the girls needed someone to blame it on. Tituba was then being whipped, so she needed to accuse someone else. In this case she was accusing out of fear for her life; she then accuses Sarah Good and Sarah Osborne. These two women were two poor women of low social status and here they are being accused.
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
It is about a town, after accusations from a few girls, which begins a mad hunt for witches that did not exist. Many townspeople were hung on charges of witchcraft. Miller brings out the absurdity of the incident with the theme of truth and righteousness. The theme is conveyed through the struggles of Miller’s main character, John Proctor. The main characters are Reverend Hale, John Proctor, and Elizabeth Proctor.