“Fear and paranoia over lost control sometimes led to gruesome excesses… Salem Village during the 1690 s was a case in point.” (Nash and Graves, 50) Many events that occurred in the late 17 th Century were results of animosity and aggression between Salem Town and Salem Village. The tension between the two villages created an idea of one being possessed by the devil. With that, unjustified events such as Salem witch trails took place in order to remedy the problem. In the early 17 th Century where belief in witchcraft was widespread through out Europe and New England.
Came along the now infamous Salem witch trails where almost three hundred New Englanders, mostly women were charged with practicing witchcraft and at least twenty people were executed for being witches. During the winter of 1691-1692, three women were accused of being Satan’s servants, Tituba, Sarah Goods, and Sarah Osborne. During the witch trail, Tituba confessed to the accusations and became a turncoat towards her fellow village people. Tituba proclaimed how the other people in the community were also partaking in witch craft. So from there on rumors were being spread like wild fire. Finally it took the false accusation of the governor wife to put an end to the absurd witch trails.
The main cause of the witch trails was partly due to the religion that the Puritans practice. The Puritans believed that there should be a covenant between God and his people. They also believed in seeking the will of God and not the will of the people. Their ultimate source of authority was the Bible, however the clash between church and state reflected over the life of the village. If one was to go against the religion of the village one can be excommunicated from the society. For example many women who were accused of witchcraft were those who did not fit into their traditional role.
The Essay on Governor Danforth Salem Devil Tituba
In the town of Salem, Massachusetts 1692, where madness was at a peek, talk of the devil was in the air and neighbors were accusing each other of witchcraft, evil found its home. However when dealing with the madness, it is hard to put the blame on a single soul because everybody was responsible in their own way. But of all of Salem three people stand out the most: the Negro slave from Barbados ...
Such as some women engaged in business transaction outside of home, others did not church and most of them were middle-aged without sons or brothers. This then meant that they were to receive inherent property and could live as independent women. Puritans ideology played a significant role in the 17 th century. I believe that the Salem witch trail was illogical to a point where superstitions led them to kill innocent civilians.
How can a society let its religious faith take over its decisions making? A town should have rules, guidelines, and the right to have a fair trail in court. Religion shouldn’t be the main focus in life. One should be able to make decisions without being questioned about their faith. The freedom of speech, religion, etc. can be often taken for granted in which God has given us the free will to make such decision on our own.
No one should be able to take that freedom away from us under any circumstances. In conclusion many of the persecuted were given unjust trails because of the time and place that they occurred. Religion played a important role in the society of Salem Village. We should recognize how far we have come from narrow minded ignorant mentality of the 17 th Century. Today’s day and age we as a society are not patronized for whom we are and what types of beliefs we practice.
Instead we are given the opportunity to represent what the American Dream is all about. Work Cities Nash, Roderick and Graves, Gregory; From These Beginnings, by Addison Wesley Longman 2000 Shi, David and Tindall, George; America, by W. W. Norton and Company Inc 1999.
