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 “Ergot” fungus blight was very toxic and actually caused the strange behaviors exemplified by the people who were thought to be affected by witchcraft. When the rye was consumed a foodborne intoxication accrued and this theory was not discovered till 284 years later in 1976 by Linda Caporael. The Indian tribes of New England include the Abenaki, Pawtucket, Massachusest, Narragansett. Pequot, and Wampanoag tribes. The Puritans viewed the Indians as devil worshipers, and witches were viewed as servants of the devil.
Due to the fact that Elizabethans were afraid of evil, the odd people in communities started being accused of witchcraft. Witchcraft had a great impact of the daily and social lives of the Elizabethans. Soon neighbors slung accusations at each other and started ruckus all over England. Children rolled on the floor having convulsions and blaming random people for hexing or possessing them (Saintives). Anyone with odd names, weird looks, or were found mumbling chants, were accused of witchcraft and were put to death.
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.
The Salem Witch Trials started by little girls acting strangely and then accusing others to have bewitched them. The defendants during the Salem Witch Trials took desperate matters to avoid being executed. Sarah Good resorted to saying the other accused “witch”, Sarah Osborne, had “tormented the children.” At one point Osborne even pretended to also have been infected by the witches’ magic. Tituba admitted to being a witch and told stories of flying around on broomsticks and being visited by creatures. Confessing to witchcraft was the only way a member of the accused wouldn’t be executed.
Her great aunt had been showing signs of mental derangement and the town’s people found that since it was hereditary she could have it leading them to say “even with insanity in the family” (Pg.2). Many townspeople said “she had gone completely crazy at last” referring to Miss Emily and that had folks had begun to feel bad for her because of it (Pg. 2). More evidence that led the general public to believe Miss Emily was a lunatic was that she slept with a dead man. After Miss Emily had died they recovered Homers body and discovered a fresh hair on the pillow next to his that suggested she had been sleeping with the dead body all along.
In the novel A Break with Charity by Ann Rinaldi, Susanna is the daughter of a wealthy family in Salem, Massachusetts during the 1692 Witch Trials. Before the trials begin, she desperately wants to fit in and become part of a group of girls in town. However, after those girls begin accusing innocent people of witchcraft, Susannah’s parents included, she divulges the information she held in so long. This is a story of the afflicted girls lying and the words that come straight from Ann Putnam herself, capable of ending the trials once and for all. After reading A Break with Charity by Ann Rinaldi, the reader gains knowledge of the Salem Witch Trials through a young woman who experienced the commotion first hand.
With McCarthy, he accused fellow government officials, actors, actresses and movie directors of communism and no one stood against him because they feared being called a communist. With the Witch Trials those who were accused of witchcraft were jailed or hung, and it was started by a woman coveting another woman’s husband. The Salem Witch Trials started by accusations from Abigail Williams. At first she was merely a common girl who once worked for the Proctors. But when Mrs. Proctor began to suspect her of messing around with her husband, she threw Abigail out.
Why else would anything happen other than by evil magic? Martha Stechlin was the last one to see several orphan children before their murders and is the prime suspect in all of this mess. Jakob Kuisl, the hangman of Schongau, must torture Martha in order to make her confess practicing witchcraft, but Jakob is convinced that Martha wouldn’t hurt a fly. She even helped deliver his son and cared so much for many children so why would she murder them? Jakob, Magdalena his daughter, and Simon the physician’s son have to find out who is murdering all of the orphaned children before it is too late for Martha.
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.