Ergot Poisoning And The Salem Witch Trials

Intro: What is Ergot poisoning and how does it affect the brain? Scientists have found that ergot; the poisonous fungus that grows in rye, is highly toxic. The symptoms display themselves in an altered state of mind. Ergot has also been used for medicinal purposes beside being a naturally occurring fungus.Ergot poisoning was the fundamental reason for the mass hysteria during the Salem Witch Trials of 1692.

Clark, Josh. "Ergot Poisoning Theory." Were the American Colonists Drugged during the Salem Witchcraft Trial? HowStuffWorks, a Division of InfoSpace LLC, n.d. Web. 30 July 2015.

The Salem Witch Trials was a very dark period in our history that occurred in the colony of Salem, Massachusetts. These trials began in February 1692 and ended in May of 1693. There were over two hundred individuals who were accused of practicing witchcraft. Of those two hundred accused, nearly twenty innocent souls were lost. This was one of the most severe cases of mass hysteria in recorded history. There was a great effort exhorted by the Massachusetts General Court to declare a guilty verdict, that the framers of the United States Constitution went to great lengths to never let this type of tragedy occur again; commonly known as the eighth amendment. Remarkably so, some may argue that there were similarities in Salem and the

Lastly to further fuel the hysteria on all the occurring witch trials, was the possibility of ergot playing a role among the Puritan accusers, as was proposed by Linda Caporael in document N. Ergot, which may or may not have been present and consumed in the diet of the Puritans, could lead to abnormal body symptoms such as a raise in anxiety. With all the trials occurring around the village of Salem, it’s likely the thought of possibly being accused caused anxiety levels to soar among the people, particular the females. According to documents B and E, most of the accusers were women who accused other

The article later on examines “In an effort to explain by scientific means the strange afflictions suffered by those "bewitched" Salem residents in 1692, a study published in Science magazine in 1976 cited the fungus ergot (found in rye, wheat and other cereals), which toxicologists say can cause symptoms such as delusions, vomiting and muscle spasms.” By stating this new-found resource, this gives the reading a logos appeal to reason the circumstance that there wasn’t anything supernatural involved with the hysteria in 1692. The outbursts caused by this unknown fungus and the resentment of the neighboring townsfolk heightened their suspicion toward themselves and

The Salem Witch Trials was an uncanny and eerie event of hearings and prosecutions of people being accused of witchcraft in colonial Massachusetts. Although it lasted from 1691 to 1692, it lead to more than 200 people, including men and women, being accused and arrested of witchcraft and 20 of those people executed. The hysteria began with two young girls: Elizabeth Parris and Abigail Williams claiming to be possessed by the devil, causing the “witch-fever” among the Salem village. In this essay the circumstances behind poor harvest, sickness and the conjecture of witches and witchcraft being highly considered as a cause in this era will be described. The Salem Witch Trials were caused by environmental factors because the Salem community had limited understanding of natural causes such as poor harvest, sickness and diseases.

Puritans had many beliefs that affected the Salem Witch Trials, these were based on how the attendance or lack of attendance of the church, how people should behave, social class, and the way the government should be handled. Puritans were English Protestants that came to America in 1630. They sought to reform the Church of England. When they first came to America they settled at Salem, Massachusetts. The main reason the Puritan’s came to Salem was for freedom of religion which they did not have in England. The Puritans also came because they believed that the Church of England was not religious or enforcing religion enough. Puritans were just like the Pilgrims. Years later the Salem Witch Trials started in 1692 and ended

There have been many theories and conspiracies following up the Salem Witch Trials of 1962 in Salem, Massachusetts. Many claims try to explain the existence of witches during the time but very few try to disprove those claims as well. Although they hold strong arguments only one theory has been able to be proven scientifically through the accounts of actual victims. Ergot poisonings have been very evident through the beginning of the “bewitchments” and throughout the trials. In 1962, eight young girls began to experience sickly symptoms and strange happenings that no nurse or doctor could explain. As they were left clueless with no explanation they concluded that girls were “bewitched” and ended up accusing three elderly women of being the witches of Satan while conducting spiritual acts of terrorism on them for sacrificial reasons. These women admitted to the crime and were sentenced to jail although more accounts of the same symptoms and happenings were spreading to even more people in the area. The theory of ergotism may be proven by the location and time period of the trials, the side effects of the ergot poisoning, and even the authentic accounts of the “bewitched” victims.

The Salem witch trials took place in Salem Village, Massachusetts. The group of girls claims to have seen magic or witchcraft. Years later, people began speculating the actual reality of the actions witnessed and believe it was actually caused by wheat and rye during that time that had a type hallucinatory fungus growing on it. This fungus is called Ergot, it has a byproduct similar to the drug Lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD). The side effects of this fungus after progression include: convulsions, spasms, vision problems, confusion, and death of not treated

When considering possible explanations for the Salem witch trials, it is important to consider and reference other historical accounts of witchcraft. Although Salem presents its own unique case, and therefore is a result of things specific singularly to Salem, there may yet be a link to other cases of witchcraft. Cases may differ in religion, denomination, or other spiritual beliefs, and social setting. Additionally, a study of horticulture in the Salem area shows that hallucinogenic mushrooms may have contributed to the visions of witches. However, I have discovered in my studies that in most cases, there seems to be growing discontentment in each community before and during accusations of witchcraft. This is the clearest link between all cases. In my opinion, witchcraft is a result of suppressed feelings caused by human suffering. This is displayed as accusers in a community using witchcraft as an excuse to release tension, or rid themselves of enemies.

In Arthur Miller’s The Crucible, he writes, “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 77). This partially fictionalized tale of the Salem Witch Trials points to one of the causes of the trials, vengeance, but the over dramatized tale 's early stages were quiet. The Salem Witch Episode had humble beginnings in the town of Salem Village, Massachusetts, but evolved into one of the most widely known witch trials in American History. The gallows in Salem claimed the lives of nineteen men and woman during the spring and summer of 1692 due to the accusations of witchcraft with over a hundred people who were accused. After all the terror and the uproar of the trials occurred, everything came to a screeching halt (Linder 1). Due to the unique circumstances of this particular set of witch trials, from the rampant accusations to the discontinuation of the trials mass hysteria does not seem to be fault as with other witch trials, but a variety of factors. The Salem witch trials were not just a simple case of mass hysteria, but a combination of factors ranging from poisons to superstitions to scapegoats, resulting in the outbreak of the Salem Witch episode.

Many people believe the Salem Witch Trials were caused by Ergotism, while others believe it to be just a form of hysteria, but what if I told you it could have been all of those combined together with another theory added in? In the story, The Crucible, mass hysteria broke out all through Salem being caused by the witch trials. The witch trials, however, may not have been the only thing causing the hysteria. Argot poisoning in the water along with puritan pressure causing the little girls to act out and throw fits could also be blamed on starting the hysteria. Disorders that could have been passed down through heredity could also have a part in this.

While researching texts written about the Salem Witch Trials, I found a few authors who published articles and books about the Salem Witch Trials. These authors often showed that the most likely cause of the fits coming from the victims was produced by ergot of rye. However, I could not find much discussion about another important source of the fits’ cause: witchcraft. My goal in this paper is to produce a convincing argument that the victims during the Salem Witch Trials that experienced strange behaviors came from ergot of rye rather than witchcraft.

The Salem Witch Trials were a horrendous event in the history of America and was the first of its kind. A question that has risen up numerous times is what was the actual cause of the trials. We know that a few girls made the first accusations, but why. I will now explain how Salem became one of the most notorious towns in Massachusetts. Ergot poisoning was the cause for the witch trials as it caused the girls to become crazed and delirious.

In conclusion, I would say that the very first theory is why the Salem community reacted in a very brutal way . In the first theory it talked about ergot and that it could be why the accusations started, because the girls complained about biting, pinching, hitting, and those are symptoms associated with ergotism . But this is only one of the many reasons why i think ergot could be why all this ruckus happened, and it’s kinda the most rational reason, and it's the one that makes more sense and stands out of all three.Because the other theories were good but they didn’t really didn’t have explanations of why that could be,why the accusations started . So, after coming to a conclusion, i would say that the first theory out of all four were it