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Angel Puebla

Ms. Smith

English 11-Period 1

17 November 2016

Witch Trials

The Salem Witch were a series of witchcraft trials that took place in 1692 in

Massachusetts. Nearly 200 people were accused of witchcraft and by the end of the trials, 19

were sentenced to death by being hanged and executed. The wave of hysteria was strong belief in

the occult, disputes, cold weather theory, boredom, and personal differences.

One of the waves of hysteria is the strong belief in the occult and the outlook of the

Puritans. The strict Puritan code was far from tolerant. It was against the law not to attend

church-where men and women sat on opposite sides through long services. The Puritan lifestyle

was restrained and Rigid: People were expected to work hard and repress their emotions or

opinions. Individual difference was frowned upon. Even the dark, somber Puritan dress was

dictated by the church (Discovery Education). In the past, the reverend would say the bible

states that dancing and singing was the sign of the devil going into you and taking over your

body. This also shows that this could be a reason for the girls outburst in a way to get something

happening that would not usually happen. This quote further states that the girls would rather

make people fear them and get some entertainment for themselves in the village than getting

punished.
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Many of those who were accused of witchcraft had unsettled accounts with their accusers

or were a threat to the Puritan values. About 50 people were directly or indirectly accused by

the members of the Puritans family which strictly followed the Puritan beliefs and customs, and

strongly supported Reverend, Samuel, Parris, the initiator of the witch hunt. Putnams rival

family, the Porters tried to organize the villagers against the trials. The attempt had failed and 19

of their supporters got accused of witchcraft (Encyclopedia of American Folklore). This quote

states that the author wanted to show that the people in the village that accused people of being a

witch were doing it out of anger. They thought it was a way to get rid of the people that they had

rivalry or disagreements. With them gone, they had the village however they wanted it to be.

According to this theory, the Salem tragedy might have been related to the cold weather,

more specifically a pursuit for something or someone to blame for the related hardship such as

crop failure. This theory is supported by historical records which indicate that the years

preceding the witch the witch trials were particularly cold. Also, the notorious witch hunt took

place within the period of the so-called Great Witch Craze which in turn coincides with what is

known as the Little Ice Age, a period of abnormally cold climate between the mid-14th and mid-

19 century (Encyclopedia of American Folklore). The author was trying to state that the weather

could have influenced how the people saw and did things. Since they did not have the proper

clothing to keep them sane from the cold.

One of the waves of hysteria was boredom and what they did to have a little fun. The

strict Puritan code was far from tolerant. It was against the law not to attend church-where men

and women sat on opposite sides through long services. The Puritan lifestyle was restrained and

rigid: People were expected to work hard and repress their emotions or opinions. Individuals

differences were frowned upon. Even the darker. Somber Puritan dress was dictated by the
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church (Discovery Education). In the past, the reverend would say the bible would state that

dancing and singing was the sign of the devil going into you and taking over your body. They

also show that this could be a reason for the girls outburst in a way to get something happening

that would not usually happen. This quote further states that the girls would rather make people

fear them and get some entertainment for themselves in the village than getting punished.

In the end, the story of the Salem Witch Trials could have happened in many ways. It did

not necessarily happen because the devil took over their body. The five hysterias are a strong

belief in the occult, disputes, cold weather theory, boredom, and personal differences.