Cotton Mather : The Roles Of The Salem Witch Trials

These girls did not all show “symptoms” at one time. The first girl to start experiencing symptoms was Betty Parris. She was followed by Abigail Williams, Ann Putnam Jr., Mary Walcott and Mercy Lewis (History of Massachusetts). These girls were throwing tantrums, hiding under furniture and contorting to pain. Since panic and fear set in, witchcraft was the easy choice to make. In today’s medical science, these girls would have been diagnosed with boredom or epilepsy. Although at the time the cause was unknown, these symptoms were probably brought on from eating rye infected with fungus. The three victims were not the only ones accused. There were numerous cases of scapegoating running prevalent.

During the period of late seventeenth century in colonial Salem, Massachusetts, two girls began acting in an uncanny manner. These girls then accused two woman and a slave for being witches; which caused the town of Salem to emerge into a period of witch cleansing. Mostly, the people of Salem were Puritans who found many different reasons to accuse one of being a witch. The start of the witch trials began in 1692 and ended in 1693 by Governor Phips; whose wife was prosecuted as a witch. These Salem Witch Trials began by religious superstition, the appearance of the perceived witch, and through torture and forced confessions.

The Salem Witch Trials of 1692 took place in the Puritan community of Salem, Massachusetts. Cotton Mather, a clergyman in Salem, emerged throughout the course of the trials as a pillar of support and, ultimately, as a witch-hunter. However, his motives at the beginning of the trials were driven by his Puritanical reasoning which holds a strong belief in Biblical Law. Cotton Mather used his Puritanical faith to find reasoning in God that allowed the Salem Witch Trials to occur.

After Doctor Griggs examined the girls, he diagnosed them with “being victims of black magic,” as stated in the article “Were Witches Burned at the stake During the Salem Witch Trials?” written by Evan Andrews. After the diagnosis had been made, five more young girls of the community began contracting similar symptoms (“Salem Witch Trials”).

The Salem Witch Trials began during the spring of 1692 after a group of young girls in Salem Village, MA, said they were being possessed by the devil and accused local women of witchcraft. With chaos running around the village, the special court began taking on cases. Bridget Bishop, the first convicted witch, was hung that June month. Many people of the Salem community had major consequences including death and harrassment. Belief that the devil could give certain humans, or witches, power to harm others in return for their loyalty emerged throughout europe as early as the 14th century. All of this chaos and phenomenon led to a pointing fingers game of who is guilty. Chaos also brought up the question of why it happened, malice, spite, or

Soon, other girls in the village began to show the same symptoms as Betty and Abigail. Eventually, Betty, Abigail and two other “afflicted” girls named Tituba, Reverend Parris’ slave, Sarah Osborne, a woman who rarely came to church, and Sarah Good, a town beggar, as the women who bewitched them and caused their strange sickness. It all went downhill from there.

The girls at trial could have mass panic attacks as probable evidence at each woman 's trial. The villager suspected certain men and women of witchcraft no one was safe. The same was for the slave named Tituba whose West Indian ancestry mad the villagers extra suspicious of her practicing some form of voodoo, a Haitian religion. A group of small girls which it started from Becky Panis and Abigail Williams a game was played amongst the girls which involved experimenting with fortune telling and little spells. The girls hid anything they did in secret from their parents, because they knew that what they were doing was forbidden(Magoon 37). “ One of the first trials was of Bridget Bishop. Bishop was accused of transforming into a cat. She was found guilty and on June 10, 1692, she was hanged. The putnam family accused Rebecca Nurse of being a witch. She happened to have a long-standing quarrel with the family. In her trial, the jury found her not guilty, but the judge overruled and gave her guilty , she also hanged(Dunn 22-23)”. Modern Psychologist who studied the situation of this time era may have believed that the girls suffered from a psychological disorder that caused panic attacks. These girls were never forgotten by many historians till this day do not understand the inquiries of the situation.

On February 29, 1692, under the guidance of magistrates Johnathan Corwin and John Hathorne, Ann, Elizabeth and Abagail accused three women for afflicting them: Tituba a slave girl from the Caribbean who was owned by the Parris’s; Sarah Good, a homeless beggar and Sarah Osborne, an elderly woman. All three women were brought to trial before the local magistrates and interrogated for days at a time, these interrogations began on March 1, 1692. Both Sarah Osborne and Sarah Good claimed to be innocent, but Tituba confessed, “The Devil came to me and bid me serve him” (Witch Hunt). Tituba states that she has seen images of huge black dogs, red cats and a huge black man who asked her to write her name in his book. She said that she indeed did sign the book along with several other witches who sought out to destroy the Puritans. The Puritans were eager to believe the confession from the slave girl. Tituba’s skin reminded them of the Indians they came to hate so much. She was a dark skinned woman from Barbados, Tituba was also known for speaking her native language and practicing her native religion. Since Tituba confessed, all three women were sent to jail.

The year 1692 is remembered as one of the most scandalous times in American History. Throughout the Salem Witch Trials of 1692, over a hundred people were accused of practicing witchcraft (the majority of them being women). 14 women were hung, and 5 men were accused leading to a total of 19 people dying due to these trials. One man was even pressed to death by substantial weights for declining to enter a plea (Linder 1). No less than eight individuals passed on in jail, including one baby and one child; and more than one hundred and fifty people were imprisoned while anticipating trial. The primary reasons for the witch trials were clashes over managing governmental issues, religion, family, financial aspects, and apprehensions of the citizens. The Salem Witch Trials reflect the harsh and rigid judgements of the Puritans and citizens of Salem. It is one of the most intriguing story in American History.

The young girls accused a slave of the Parris’s by the name of Tituba, a homeless beggar Sarah Good, and an older, poor woman by the name of Sara Osborn. They were brought before Jonathan Corwin and John Hathorne for questioning and to see if there were other witches in the community. In the questioning the two Sarahs denied guilt but Tituba confessed hoping to save herself as acting as an informer.

Rumors of witchcraft began circling the town and names of low class people were called out by the “ring leader” Abigail Williams, people accused were brought in front of the local court system. The trials began with three accused, Tituba, Sarah Good, and Sarah Osborn, while Good and Osborn denied the allegations, Tituba confessed, most likely to save herself from conviction by acting as an informer. In Tituba’s confession, she claimed more witches served for the devil alongside her against the Puritans. By September 1692, hysteria spread throughout the community and names were called out in the chaos, including respected members of the church and community, Rebecca Nurse and Martha Corey (“Salem”). Some “witches” confessed and accused others while some held their innocence.

The Salem witch trials were a series of hearings and prosecutions of people accused of witchcraft in colonial Massachusetts between February 1692 and May 1693. The trials resulted in the executions of twenty people, but most of them women.

Many years ago before I was born, history was made .There were two major events that made history which where the “Salem witch trials” and “McCarthyism”. One started in the late 1600’s while the other started in the 1900’s. In these two events they had a lot of similarities, but they also had some differences as well. As years go by we can see what actually sparked these events and what made them go down in history. The Salem witch trials started in the 1692 in Massachusetts Bay Colony.

In January 1692 a group of young girls in Salem Village in Massachusetts became consumed by disturbing fits, seizures, violent actions and really loud screams. A doctor in the village diagnosed the girls as being victims of black magic. A few months later the infamous salem witch trials began in February of 1692 and ended May of 1693 in Massachusetts. More than 200 people were wrongly accused of witchcraft and 20 of them were executed. 19 of the executed where hung and one of them was crushed to death. Some of the judges during the witch trials where Samuel sewall, william stoughton and Jonathan corwin. The most notorious of them was Jonathan corwin he was a very

This started the hysterical beginning of the Salem Witch trials, which resulted in many women, men, and children being accused of practicing witchcraft. Out of the one hundred fifty people accused in Salem, twenty of them were executed as witches, while others rotted away and died in jail. The people of Salem did not discriminate who they executed or who they sent to jail so the result was a diverse range of citizens being accused.