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Religiosity and the political economy of the salem witch trials
Social impact of salem witch trials
Social impact of salem witch trials
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For instance, the defendants were not allowed an attorney or any sort of help, although the prosecution was. This even violated the sixth amendment in the American Constitution, meaning it was outright illegal (EB 1). Another example of unfairness to the defendant, is that all of the judges of the court had no legal background or training, and ran the courts only from the knowledge of the Bible, and advice from Ministers (2 CSD 1). This lack of legal background almost guaranteed that if they had to make a decision, they would decide in favor of the prosecution, because that was the side they supported. Furthermore, the courts were also run unfairly because anytime someone was found not guilty, the judges would urge the jury to think again, trying to make them vote guilty (1 CSD
A diverse array of historiographical arguments concerning the preliminary causes of the Salem Witch Trials have emerged subsequently to their occurrences, clashing along a vastly debatable spectrum of economic, social, and political influences (Brinkley, 2014, 74). Escalating accusations backed by miniscule evidence reaped terror among the Salem community. No one was truly immune to an accusation, and being accused had a high probability of ruining one's reputation for the remainder of their lives. Conversely to the linear notion of believing a singular cause was responsible for the atrocities among the Salem community, an intertwined network of various tensions set the anemic foundation for a monstrosity of inhumane punishment and hollow allegation
INTRODUCTION: During the late 17th century, there were many accusations of witchcraft within the thirteen colonies. Many men and women of all ages and authority were accused of witchcraft. When the British were colonizing North America, the traditions of witchcraft were supposedly taken to the new land with the colonists. The Salem Witch Trials taught people that they shouldn’t believe everything they are told and that people shouldn’t assume something without having specific research that can prove it.
This extreme tension in such a small community created a powder keg of pent up hostilities toward one another. This problem was most evident in Salem, Massachusetts during the Salem Witch Trials. Although a very different class from that of the south it was a class struggle at its core nonetheless. The majority of those accused of being witches were on opposite sides of the social classes. Either they were considered very poor and of low social position or they were wealthy by way of inheritance or their own making and thereby challenged the social hierarchy of men in charge within the Puritan community.
The Salem Witch Trials do not directly correlate with the Bill of Rights but were used to highlight the importance of protecting individual rights and limiting the power of the government. The trials directly show how the government can abuse the power the people allow. The colonies were also under the control of the United Kingdom, making it so the government ran directly from the Church, which did not change until the United States separated from the UK altogether. The government was dictated by the Church of England, every witch that was accused and found guilty was not only fighting against the UK government but also the religious factor that was incorporated into the government. “...they had been deprived of the rights to which they should have been entitled under English common law” (Purdy, 2023).
In this time, the late 1600s, only certain people in society had a vast amount of power. Among these people are judges, reverends, and large landowners. The witch trials that took place in this time period were influential to the lower class people. Many of which did not have a voice in the community. With this in mind, the witch trials gave the powerless lower class citizens the power to speak their mind on the situation.
The Salem Witch Trials; Madness or Logic In Stacey Schiff’s, List of 5 Possible Causes of the Salem Witch Trials and Shah Faiza’s, THE WITCHES OF SALEM; Diabolical doings in a Puritan village, discuss in their articles what has been debated by so many historians for years, the causes of the Salem Witch trials. Schiff and the Faiza, purpose is to argue the possible religious, scientific, communal, and sociological reasons on why the trials occurred. All while making word by word in the writer’s testimony as if they were there through emotion and just stating simply the facts and theories. They adopt the hectic tone in order to convey to the readers the significance, tragedy, logic, loss, and possible madness behind these life changing events,
If the American court system only allowed the victims of the crime to testify in court, while neglecting all other evidence and hardly paying attention to the accused, how different would it be compared to trials today? For Salem, Massachusetts, this method of prosecution organization led to one of the most infamous events in pre-Colonial times: The Salem Witch Trials. This incident began in February 1692, and by the time it ended in May 1693, twenty citizens were sent to the gallows, and over one hundred others sat in prison, waiting to be tried for months at a time. What made these trials distinguishable was the judges’ decision to allow spectral evidence. Spectral evidence, by definition, is the testimony of a witness who claimed that the
The courts in Salem made a lot of rash decisions based in religion and not enough evidence. Many people were hanged in The Crucible. The people were hanged because they were “witches”. The courts in Salem did not have any fool proof evidence of the existence of witches, but they believed in it anyway.
In Salem, Massachusetts, Puritans were strong believers in the Bible. The Bible states, “Thou shalt not suffer a witch to live.” The Puritans beliefs led to them accusing 20 innocent people of being a witch, this resulted in their deaths in 1692. Even though the Puritans couldn’t see it at the time, their accusations were really based off jealousy, lies, and Salem being divided into two parts. One cause of the Salem witch trial hysteria was jealousy.
Nearly anyone from the New England has heard of the famous Salem Witch Trials. A year of persecution, leading to the accusation of nearly 200 citizens of all ages. No one was safe; men, women, children, even pets stood trial and 20 were hung for the supposed crime of witchcraft (Blumberg). 1692 was a year of witch hunting. Most today blame the trials on hysteria, or perhaps a bad case of paranoia.
February 1692, Salem, Massachusetts. A town run by religion. As if tensions and jealousy weren’t high enough the witch trials begin accusing people left and right of being possessed by the devil. For example old man Jacobs was accused of being possessed by the devil and entering a little girl’s room in the middle of night. Even with all the reasonable evidence on his side he was found guilty and sentenced to hang.
Over 300 years ago, more than 100 citizens of the colony of Massachusetts were accused of the crime of witchcraft, and many executed. Although this era in history, known as the Salem Witch Trials, lasted only mere months, its impact on the American criminal justice system has lasted until present day. Although both the trials in Salem and modern America are based on a similar justice system, there are vast differences, specifically in the rights of the defense, most notable in the separation of Church and State, the standards of evidence, and the presumption of innocence until proven guilty. The modern American criminal justice system, in comparison to that of the time of the Salem Witch Trials, has changed drastically. No longer is the rule of law based on
Imagine, you have a dream of a better, new life. You pursue that dream; but the only way of accomplishing that is going to a different country. When you get to that country, you decide to continue to speak only English in, perhaps, in a country that only speaks Portuguese. You have strong beliefs that your life is so much better now; but it is now a nuisance that you cannot speak the country’s native language. It is clear to see in the United States, especially Colorado, that this is an actual issue that almost everyone has to deal with on a daily basis.
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.
