Causes of The Salem Witch Craft Trials Essay Example For Students

Causes of The Salem Witch Craft Trials Essay Witchcraft, Insanity, and the Ten Signs of DecaySince there never was a spurned lover stirring things up in Salem Village, and there is no evidence from the time that Tituba practiced Caribbean black magic, yet these trials and executions actually still took place, how can you explain why they occurred?The Salem Witchcraft Trials began not as an act of revenge against an ex-lover, as they did in The Crucible, but as series of seemingly unlinked, complex events, which a paranoid and scared group of people incorrectly linked. And while there were countless other witchcraft trials, Salems trials remain the best-known. In Salem, fears of witchcraft perpetuated by popular writings were personified when two girls were said to be bewitched. A hysteria overcame the people of Salem, whose trials went awry. In less than six months, 19 men and women were hanged, 17 innocents died in filthy prisons, an 80-year old man was crushed to death, and two dogs were stoned to death for collaborating with the Devil (Richardson 6). How could an entire village, including scholars, believe in witchcraft? Were these trials justified? Or were they evil, as many people think? How could respected, learned men believe the accounts of psychotics? Most importantly, could the trials have been avoided?A major cause of the Salem Witchcraft trials was superstition, an irrational belief resulting from ignorance or fear of the unknown (Saliba). A lack of scientific reasoning led many people to believe that, for instance, walking under a ladder would bring seven years of bad luck. The Puritans in Salem had even more reasons to be superstitious. Cotton Mathers Memorable Providences, Relating to Witchcrafts and Possessions, with its inaccurate accounts of witchcraft, terrified. In addition, crude medical techniques, constant food poisoning, and unsanitary conditions killed many Puritans. (In the Trials, dead people and dead livestock were used as evidence of witchcraft.) More importantly, war with a nearby Indian tribe was immi nent (Schlect 1); when livestock died, the Puritans thought their village was cursed, vulnerable to Indian attack. With several factions vying for control of the Village, and a series of legislative and property disputes with the nearby Salem Town which controlled Salem Village, it is easy to see how the people of Salem were so vulnerable to the notion of witches taking over their town. The Puritans who settled in Massachusetts left England because they thought the Church was obscuring Gods glory with its obsession of earthly things. While they realized that they could not escape this possession, (they believed they were intrinsically sinful (Encarta)), they felt that it was their responsibility to stay free from sin to glorify God. Thus, the they believed that there were ten visible signs of decay:1. Visible decay of godliness2. Manifestations of pride especially among the rich3. Presence of heretics among them, witches4. Violations of the Sabbath, and swearing and sleeping during sermons5. Decay of family government6. People full of contention more lawsuits and lawyers7. Sex and alcohol abuse on the increase8. Decay in business morality lying, underpaying laborers, etc. 9. No disposition to reform10. Lacking in social behavior(Geree)Upon arriving in Massachusetts, the Puritans established a theocracy; religion and the power of religious authorities became vital to the Salem Witchcraft Trials. Some historians believe that, without religion, the Salem Witchcraft Trials and other persecutions would never have taken place. Reverend Parriss chief duty should not have been religious; he needed to resolve squabbles between factions in his village; regardless, he used his religious authority to persecute those who were allegedly sinful. Ironically, he showed visible signs of decay: he was greedy in his land disputes (rule 1); he did not free those who pleaded innocent, because that would weaken his power (rule 2); and he chose not to reform (rule 9). Puritans believed that the Devil could possess any non-secular person, and cause him to say or do unordinary (and thus heretical) things. That Little Betty Parris was sick, and that the Dr. Griggs (who was too proud to say that he could not diagnose Little Bettys illness) claimed she was bewitched (Richardson 7), were enough reasons for court authorities to suspect witchcraft was the cause of the illness. In addition, several young girls in the village had participated in black magic experiments harmless adolescent games in the company of Tituba, Reverend Parriss slave. The restless young girls allegedly met in Parriss shed, and created and listened to Titubas incredible tales of sorcery and black arts, which were doubtless an outlet for their repressed feelings. Soon, faulty cause-and-effect relationships sparked delirium. Dress codes EssayWhatever the cause of the girls insanity, the Salem Witchcraft Trials would not have consumed so many lives had there been a different legal system in the Puritan colonies. Since the Puritan colonies were theocracies, violations of the Bibles laws and its interpretations were punishable by death. It is ironic that the Puritans left the theocracy and injustice of the Church to set up a system that was nearly identical to the old one. Villagers who committed crimes that many people today think are trivial such as using the Lords name in vain or being disrespectful to elders were severely punished. Witches, murderers, and adulteresses were after a brief trial imprisoned or hanged on Gallows Hill. Perhaps the most frightening aspect of the Salem Witchcraft Trials was not the hysteria that swept through the town, but the lack of concrete evidence in the court. Poppets (voodoo dolls) and potions were used to arrest and try suspected witches. The most popular evidence was spectral evidence, claims that ghosts of people were tormenting others. The afflicted sometimes confessed that spectral images would waken or attack them. Cotton Mather, one of Salems clergymen, wisely questioned whether spectral evidence should be used in trials (Encarta Online 1). Court officials disputed his arguments, and the trial procedures remained unchanged. None of the evidence in the trials would stand up in court today. For instance, in 1692, a clergyman or doctor would examine the accused for the Devils birthmarks, such as webbed hands. If such marks were found, the court would believe that he was a witch. Gossip was also used as evidence in trials. In one trial, a woman was accused of witchcraft because a neighbor heard rumors that she had bewitched someones pigs. Occasionally, citizens would create gossip to imprison their enemies. The court continued to believe outlandish testimonies. At the height of the trials, over 200 people were jailed. Only a letter that Thomas Brattle wrote to Governor Phips slowed the trials. On October 8, reliance on spectral and intangible evidence was no longer allowed in trials (Salem Witch Trials 1). Less than one month later, Governor Phips dissolved the Court of Oyer and Terminer and replaced it with a fairer court. The new court imprisoned two people. Three hundred years later, it still frightens people to think that the testimonies of insane girls were used to send people to the gallows. It seems impossible that fallacies could be responsible for the deaths of 25 people in Salem and tens of thousands elsewhere. While there were several other witchcraft trials in New England, and thousands on other continents (most notably, the Inquisitions), none have captured our morbid fear of the supernatural as did the Salem Witchcraft Trials. It is amazing today to think of a time where people actually believed in absurd folklore such as witches flying and possessing their victims. As George Lyman Kittredge said, Our forefathers believed in witchcraft, not because they were Puritans, not because they were Colonialists, not because they were New Englanders but because they were men of their time. Works CitedThe Character of an Old-English Puritan or Non-conformist. John Geree, MA. St Albons: W. Wilson, 1646. The Crucible Project, Marquis and Mello. http://204.165.132.2:90/crucible/main3.htmEncarta 97. CD-ROM. Richmond: Microsoft. 1997. Encarta Online Deluxe. 2000. http://encarta.msn.com/encartaEncyclopaedia Britannica Online. 2000. http://www.britannica.comErgot Claviceps purpurea, Evans, Dr. Ieuan. September 21, 1997. http://www.agric.gov.ab.ca/pests/diseases/63010120.htmFamous American Trials: Salem Witchcraft Trials. Douglas Linder. 1998. http://www.law.umkc.edu/faculty/projects/ftrials/salem/asa_math.htmHansen, Chadwick. Witchcraft at Salem. New York: George Braziller Inc., 1969. Historia: Salem in 1692 (pt. 1), Chris Schlect. 1999. http://www.credenda.org/issues/vol7/hist7-1.htmRichardson, Catherine. The Salem Witchcraft Trials. Salem: Essex Institute, 1983. Salem Witch Museum: Education, Alison DAmario. August 2000. http://www.salemwitchmuseum.com/learn.htmlSalem Witch Trials 1692: A Chronology of Events. February 3, 2000. http://www.salemweb.com/memorial