Salem Witch Trials Research Paper

To learn more about the Salem witchcraft hysteria, Historian Paul Boyer, and Professor Stephen Nissenbaum sought to further understand the accusations of witchcraft. During the late 1600’s life in colonial New England was one led by religion and politics. Salem was broken up into two factions, Salem Village, and Salem Town. Salem Village, which was led by the Putnam family was a rapidly growing

During the time period of 1691 to 1692 the town of Salem, a small thriving community within the Puritan Massachusetts Bay colony, was struck by widespread hysteria in the form of witch trials. The way these trials and accusations played out are historically unlike any other witch trials found in European and American history. Historians have pointed to a number of economic, political, and social changes of the then existing institutions throughout the Massachusetts Bay area to be the cause of the Salem witch trials, along with the direction they took. If studied closely however, it becomes apparent that the main cause for the Salem witch trials can be found in the way the people of Salem viewed and

The Salem Witch Trials were a time of paranoia and mass hysteria. In this small town of Massachusetts hundreds were accused of witchcraft and 19 people were executed. Salem was home to very devout Puritans. The worries arrived when young girls would become sick with no explanation or cure. The doctors not knowing what the cause of the illness was, quickly pronounce the girls bewitched. It spread terror through the town. The girls, as well as other residents, started accusing others of witchery. Many accusations were because of vengeance or self-interest. There were rivalries between families over land or wealth. Neighbors started accusing each other in order to gain their land. The religious community had an intensified sense of fear that the Devil was walking among them. They believed witches were out to destroy the Puritans. In order to purify the village of evil they had trials for the accused.

In the winter of 1628-1629 Massachusetts was a dark and reveling place. Puritans colonized Salem in 1628. It was the beginning of Massachusetts Bay Colonies. Salem was being considered as the largest trial American history has seen (Hoffer), a place of devil worship and deception. Many English protestants, also known as Puritans were being accused of witchcraft and worshiping the devil. Witchcraft was known as giving the devil permission to go into that person’s body, take their shape and go around harming other people. As hysteria spread, more women were hearing of this matter, a witch-hunt began in the village of Salem.

First of all, Salem itself was not a single town. Salem village, where the trials took place, was a poorer agrarian community contrasted by the wealthier merchants of Salem Town. In Salem, the community supported two very large families. “(Salem Village) was

Most of the people in Salem are Puritans. Puritans have a different beliefs and lifestyle. They have high expectations in the workforce and in holding back opinions and emotions. Puritans have strong faith in God and they have the faith in the idea of covenants of God, Adam, and Abraham so they have a strict moral code. Some of the Puritans are full covenant members of the church so they are free and have full citizen rights. They believe that everyone who have sinned must be punished and everyone who follows Satan is a witch.

What really happened during Salem 1692? Many questions still haunt many Americans in the beginning of the twenty-first century. During 1692 the people of Massachusetts were living in fear about satanic afflictions, like the same way everyone else feels about terrorism around the world today. Everything about witchcraft outbreak during that year was strange. Many responses to the information were never answered during the late seventeenth-century when the witchcraft crisis occurred. During this time there were horrifyingly Indian attacks that mainly scared northern frontier of settlers, refugees, and also the main accusers of witches these groups all fled to communities like Salem. But on the other side colony’s leaders were very defensive about

Einstein once said, “The world is a dangerous place, not because of those who do evil, but because of those who do nothing” (Gurteen). The Salem witch trials began in the Spring of 1692 in Salem Village, Massachusetts. A group of young girls, who claimed to be possessed by the devil, began accusing a few women of witchcraft, which caused hysteria among the people in the Massachusetts Bay Colony. Approximately 150 people were convicted of practicing witchcraft, 19 were hanged at Gallows Hill, and others died in captivity (“Salem Witch Trials”). These tragic events lead to the convictions of many innocent people in Salem Village and later in Salem Town, Ipswich, Gloucester, and other towns (Brooks). The Salem witch trials are a

The cycle of false accusations resulted in 200 people accused of witchcraft, and 20 people killed, only ending when the governor stepped in when his own wife was accused of witchcraft. The trials had a lasting effect on our society today and created the term witch hunt to describe the act of falsely accusing people of misdeeds that they have no proof of. The Salem witch trials is a historical event that has come to be infamous because of how devastating it was to the people of Sale4m. The impact of the Salem witch trials continues to this day and are a lesson in how rumors and false accusations can have devastating

Three hundred and twenty-five years later and people are still talking about the witch trials. But some just don’t take it seriously that twenty-seven were tortured and or hanged. Salem just somewhere to go on Halloween; for a good story and a scare. People come from all over to see where it all took place. And to go on one of many tours the town has to offer.

Salem, Massachusetts in 1692, infamously known now for witchcraft. The Salem Witch trials, engulfed by an event so ingrained with popular culture of today, needs to be examined to further understand why an affair of its magnitude happened. Historically, several witch trials where happening during the seventeenth century, but the Salem Witch trials stands out. Salem was submerged into a madness of witchcraft because of several outstanding factors. These factors led the charge of the witchcraft crisis in Salem, connecting the crisis.

AIDs Hysteria and The Salem Witch Trials (Rough draft) How can a person be so judgemental towards someone with no evidence? People are judgemental because it’s in human nature. The Salem Witch Trials and the Aids Hysteria are terrible events that happened to innocent people. They have multiple characteristics in common such as singling people out and isolating those who are different.

Salem is a city located on the East Coast of the United States in the state of Massachusetts. The city’s nicknames are “The Witch City” and “The City of Witches”. The witch trials that occurred in Salem was a course of hearings and prosecutions against people that were accused of practicing witchcraft and dark magic.

Nearby Salem, MA, the City of Witches, comes alive (or is that dead) during Halloween each year and is a must visit during the Halloween season.

Salem, the perfect location to spend the first day of the fall season. Salem brings in one million tourists annually because of its fall foliage and history of the Salem Witch Trials that took place in 1692. My excitement built up as I anticipated being in the same location as the movie Hocus Pocus was based in and for the next 24 hours I would be immersed in a city known for being a Halloween focused town. I dream to live in a place where it is fall every day and where my favorite holiday is publicized, so Salem seemed like the perfect place to spend the first week of fall in.