Reverend Samuel Parris played a significant role in the Salem witch trials, and many historians believe that he is the most responsible for the hysteria that swept through the town. There are several reasons why Parris is considered to be the most responsible for the witch trials.
First, Parris was a divisive figure in the community. He was a strict Puritan minister who was known for his fire-and-brimstone sermons. He was also known for his strict discipline of his congregation, which included harsh punishments for those who did not follow his teachings. This strictness led to resentment among some members of the community, who felt that Parris was too harsh and unforgiving.
Second, Parris was the one who first brought the idea of witchcraft
In Act One of The Crucible, Reverend Parris was the most responsible for the uncontrollable situation about witchcraft in Salem. In The Crucible, Parris says “I cannot blink what I saw, Abigail, for my enemies will not blink it”(1093). Parris was making it clear to his niece that he wasn’t going to keep quiet on the opposed witchcraft he witnessed them do in the forest. When Abigail suggested to Parris that he should go to the people of the village and deny witchcraft himself, he refused. Parris didn’t want to tell people that he saw his daughter and niece dancing ungodly in the forest because that would also ruin his reputation.
Parris was the man to bring the Puritan belief into the village of Salem. With it Paris also brought a bigger split of ideals. The village was now split between pro- and anti- Parris factions. One of the slaves that Parris brought with him was a woman whose name was Tituba.
Samuel Parris was a man who cared a little too much about people 's opinion about him because of him being power hungry. He had a right to feel like that as a minister but because he cared so much it lead him to make poor decision. During the trials he only cared about clearing Abigail and Betty 's name so he wouldn 't look bad for having witchcraft under his roof. He didn 't really care about everyone
Salem had a hard time when Parris was elected to be the Reverend, apparently they had a different candidate in mind. A character in the story that was fine in the beginning but later began doubting the way people thought about him after the incident, is Rev. Parris. After walking into the woods and witnessing the group of young women dancing and some nude, while trying to conjure spirits. He later confesses to the court what he sees in the forest.
Arthur says that, “In history [Parris] cut a villainous path, and there is very little good to be said for him” (Miller 3). Wherever he went, despite his best efforts, he felt that people were always trying to persecute him (Miller 4). He is certain that there are individuals in Salem that would
The Finding Even though winter was around the corner, Reverend Parris was sweating like a waterfall. While the court room feeling stuffy with pressure on his shoulders, Parris was brought back to the night where he walks in the misty forest to find a group of girls dancing around a fire. With every BANG of the gavel he tried to find a way to understand what he had seen. A girl naked running around, Tituba singing her Barbados songs and his niece Abigail Williams holding a bottle of blood in her hands.
He always worried that others wanted to take over his position as a minister and that John Proctor was the leader of those people. Parris made many enemies in the village which caused him to quickly sentence John Proctor and Giles Cory. Parris only cares about his reputation and tells Abigail that he “fought here three long years to bend [those] stiff-necked people to [himself], and now, just now when some good respect is rising for [him] in the parish, [Abigail] [compromises] [his] very character" because of her dancing in the woods (11). Still, Parris is all about his own reputation and his family’s. He supports the judges in exposing the witches because he fears some may accuse his family of witchcraft, therefore he distracts attention away from himself and his family by blaming others.
The era of the Salem Witch Trials was one of the most bone-chilling times in American history. (Pelka) Reverend Samuel Parris wasn’t always a reverend. When Parris was in his mid-thirties, he was attending Harvard University, striving to become a minister.
He is called to Salem due to his expertise in witchcraft, being described as having “much experience in all demonic arts”, (1.193) and is therefore a credible figure. Unlike Reverend Parris, he is generally well-liked by the population of the town. Due to his and Reverend Parris’ contrasting images, he is perceived as far more charismatic and capable in carrying out religious duties. Because of the power given to him, he is faced with large decisions. Initially, he followed the court and signed the death warrants of countless individuals, expressing that “There is too much evidence now to deny it” (2.471-472).
Eventually, as stated in Document A, Bridget Bishop was the first witch to be hanged in the Salem Witch Trials on June 10, 1692. However, Parris happens to be the father of an “afflicted” girl that was enticed by a witch named Tituba. The one thing can be inferred from this document though is that Parris’s experience with witches most likely altered his opinion to be negative towards these people. Despite his bias, Document C supports the conclusion of family ties being the cause of the Salem Witch Trials. Parris most likely obscures these women’s personage in order to protect his daughter from witches.
REVIEW OF LITRATURE A.) SUMMARY SOURCE A Although the whole book had information on the Salem witch trials. The introduction, chapter 1 and 2 and the conclusion had information regarding the research needed • Introduction: states what the Salem witch trials where and who they accused.
During the Witch Trials, Parris’ teachings also revolved more around Satan and a person’s sinful ways. Lastly, the final effect of the Salem Witch Trials was that it affected many individuals personally. Reverend Parris’ reputation became so horrible, they voted him out of the church. Then, John Procter was convicted of witchcraft and hung. Meanwhile, Abigail was driven out of town and thought to have become a prostitute in Boston.
The only remorse Parris every shows is for himself when he is worried for his life. “In meeting, he felt insulted if someone rose to shut the door without first asking his permission. He was a widower with no interest in children, or talent with them” (p.3). Parris is a person who wants order and power. He feels insulted when someone does not ask permission for doing something while preaching.
Reverend Parris shows the first example of the importance of reputation in the Salem. In Act I, lines 63-66, Parris discovers the girls dancing in the forest; he recognizes the threat of witchcraft that has formed in his
One cause of the witch trial hysteria was the story of Betty Parris and Abigail Williams, the two were cousins, they decided to visit a fortune teller. This occurred on February 29, 1692, shortly after receiving their fortunes Parris’s father, who was a priest, began to notice that his daughter was acting strange, he eventually found out about the session with the teller and was