Analysis Of Nathaniel Hawthorne 's ' The Salem Witch '

Kode Creer A5 Dear judges, I graciously request that you must stop this madness of the witch hunt because the “Witches” aren’t witches, witness testimonies are inaccurate, and the main witness of the trial is a manipulative liar that loveth none other than herself. The fear of the town has terrorized everyone to lie to get safe ,but they put their other men in trouble by accusing others of associating themselves with the devil. I am thus saying that the devil doesn’t live in Salem ,so the witch trials are as false as a flat earth. Please end this madness, kind sirs!

Nathaniel Hawthorne was one of the best fiction authors of the 1800’s, and is still highly praised to this day. Hawthorne paved the way for future successful authors such as William Faulkner. Hawthorne was born on July 4, 1804, in Salem, Massachusetts, the second of three children born to Nathaniel and Elizabeth Hathorne (their son added the "w" to the family name when he began his writing career). In 1808, Hawthorne’s father, a ship's captain, died of yellow fever in the distant port of Surinam Hawthorne attended college at Bowdoin College where his main concentration was writing.” (Egotism; or, The Bosom Serpent) “In sketches, tales, and romances published in the second third of the nineteenth century, Hawthorne chose mainly American materials,

History generally regards the period of Salem witchcraft trials as a radical instatement of religious zeal which favored superstition over reason and targeted a large number of women over a much smaller number of men. Admittedly, the 1692 witchcraft crisis is a very complex historical episode, yet seeing as the majority of the people involved were women, it can be perceived as a gender issue, and illustrative for the definition of the role of women in New England. The present work's aim is to outline the colonial mindset concerning women and present relevant theories by means of analyzing three cases of witchcraft accusation together with delving into the accusers' perspective.

The Salem Witchcraft trials in Massachusetts during 1692 resulted in nineteen innocent men and women being hanged, one man pressed to death, and in the deaths of more than seventeen who died in jail. It all began at the end of 1691 when a few girls in the town began to experiment with magic by gathering around a crystal ball to try to find the answer to questions such as "what trade their sweet harts should be of ". This conjuring took place in the Parris household where a woman named Tituba, an Indian slave, headed the rituals. Soon after they had begun to practice these rituals, girls who had been involved, including the Master Parris' daughter and niece, became sick.

Church had an enormous influence on the Puritan religion. The colonist from New England had mainly come over for religious reasons because they did not agree with the Protestant Church of England. The colonist came to America in search of a new home and place to live where they could have a community based on their common religious beliefs. In their community, they had a closed society built around their church and activities. The Puritan life basically revolves around the church which influenced how they lived their everyday lives. They had to go to church twice a week, attend long sermons, and avoid dancing which was deemed as a sinful act.

Stacy Schiff’s national bestseller The Witches highlights the suspicions, betrayals and hysteria of the Salem Witch Trials. In 1692, the commonwealth of Massachusetts executed five men, fourteen women, and two dogs for witchcraft. One might wonder how and why this Puritan colony became so caught up in this witch frenzy. In this book she is able to paint a clear picture of the panic that occurred among the people of Salem.

The Salem Witchcraft Trials of 1692 were a dark time in American history. There were many possible causes of the Salem Witch Trials. A few major causes that led to the Salem Witch Trials were religion, reputations, and lack of laws.

The Salem Witch Trials were a huge part of history, full of controversy and mystery, it confused historians today and in the past. The Trial’s killed approximately 20 people and 14 of them were women, mostly killed by hanging. Many people were convinced that children and women could be witches, and that’s why these short lasting trials went down in history.

Nathaniel Hawthorne was born on July 4, 1804 in Salem Massachusetts and died on May 19, 1964 in Plymouth New Hampshire. Mr. Hawthorne was injured when he was young and during that time he became fascinated with literature and writing, eventually he went to college and made friends many of whom are famous classic writers. After graduation he returned home and wrote many of his famous book, The Hollows of the Three Hills, An Old Woman's Tale, My Kinsman, and many more. During this time Hawthorne worked for the Boston Custom House, where he met his first wife. They eventually got married, moved to Massachusetts, and had three children. Due to financial reasons they moved back to Salem and he got a job at the Salem Custom House, soon he was let go due to the election of a new president named Zachary Taylor. During this time he started writing again, this is when he wrote The Scarlet Letter.

Accusations of witchcraft ran rampant in the 17th century colonial settlements in the United States. The individuals accused, mostly women, were put on trial and punished, if found guilty. The most well-known of such cases on public record are the Salem Witch Trials. Between February, 1692 and May, 1693, hearings and prosecutions were set up to deal with those accused of dabbling in the dark arts in the cities of Andover, Salem, and Ipswich, all in Massachusetts Bay. These trials came to commonly be referred to as the Salem Witch Trials because some of the most notorious cases were heard in the Oyer and Terminer courts in Salem. At the time, practicing witchcraft was considered a serious crime, and was

Salem was a small town that was filled with people who believed in witchcraft back in 1692. People have been put in trials for months that led to death. Witchcraft began in the homes of a village minister named Samuel Parris. His nine-year-old, Betty and his niece, Abigail said they have been “bitten and pinched by invisible agents; their arms, necks, and back turned this way and that way, and returned back again.” The youngest one, betty, began to complain saying she felt “pinching, prickling sensations, knifelike pains, and the feeling that she was being chocked.” Weeks later, three more girls started to experience the same symptoms. Witchcraft became a crime and the hunt to find witches began. 40,000-60,000 people were executed in early modern Europe. Ministers of that time would call Salem the invisible world. They believe in demons, witchcraft, familiar, and magic in the seventeenth century of New England. Salam villagers

There was a point in our history when people believed in witches. If you were accused as a witch, you would be tried, most of the time found guilty, and hanged. These events happened in Salem, Massachusetts in 1692. During the Salem witch trials in 1692, more women were accused than men. At the same time, women were also accusers. Many things could have caused women to be accused and accusers. These included, the stories Tituba told, the effects of Ergot Poisoning, Hysteria and the hunger for Power. During this time, the young girls (Elizabeth Parris, and Abigail Williams) started having fits. This was after Tituba told stories about demons and witches to them. These fits were similar to the fits one would have gotten if poisoned with

Nathaniel Hawthorne was one of the most important authors in the history of American literature and the genre of Romanticism or Dark Romanticism, due to his unique style of writing and his focus upon subjects of Puritan religion and the unknown. I consider Hawthorne an important author, due to the fact that he skillfully and accurately based his fictional writings upon happenings of colonial times, was one of the first authors to display unfortunate outcomes for his characters’ immoral choices according to Puritan beliefs, and wrote of things that were considered taboo in his time, such as witchcraft, scientific innovation and experimentation. I strongly believe that Hawthorne’s influence for his writings were his Puritan ancestral background, his fascination with Puritan beliefs, and his interest in what was considered the unknown such as witchcraft and science. According to the Norton Anthology Textbook Vol. B, Nathaniel Hawthorne was “born in Salem, Massachusetts in 1804” (370). Hawthorne belonged “to a family whose ancestral roots were tied to Puritan history, with his family being among the first settlers of Massachusetts and having one of his relatives serve as a judge during the Salem witch trials” (370). Hawthorne, as a young boy, “had a particular interest in writings such as John Bunyan’s Puritan allegory The Pilgrim’s Progress, and by his mid-teens he took interest in British novelists such as Henry Fielding, Tobias Smollet, William Godwin, and Sir Walter Scott”

I beg of you to put an end to this madness. There is no reason for innocent girls to be accused for something that they had no apart of. I understand why you respect Parris' opinions and believe the accusations he places on people, although I ask you to investigate both sides to the story before placing blame. I say this in the most respectable way, many of Salem's residents fear for their lives that they will be executed because you believe many lies that are told by foolish children. This community used to be a place to feel safe and confident in who you are, although the tables have turned.

Cherry 1 Source Text Excerpt Analysis This old town of Salem-my native place, though I have dwelt much away from it, both in boyhood and mature years-possesses, or did possess, a hold on my affections, the force of which I have never realized during my seasons of actual residence. (6) Hawthorne shows that although he has moved away, his New England “soul and spirt” remain in Salem and he is still drawn to Salem and still struggles with some of the Puritan values that were instilled in him.