Wait a second!
More handpicked essays just for you.
More handpicked essays just for you.
Salem witch trials puritans
Puritan world view
Religion in salem witch trials
Don’t take our word for it - see why 10 million students trust us with their essay needs.
Although there were many possible causes for the Salem witch trial hysteria of 1692, social division and drama were the most significant. Interestingly, historians have found out about the differences that were present between the accused and the accusers of the witches that fueled the witch hunt. Accordingly, the eastern side of Salem was more powerful and wealthier than the western side of town, which consisted of most accusers who charged people on the east (Doc E). As it is possible to see, there was a division, or crack, in the community, and the western half became jealous or disliked the others in the other half.
During the Salem Witch trials many died due to false accusations of being witches. Just like with the Jews during the Holocaust of the 1940s. Jews were persecuted similarly to the Salem witch trials of 1692. These two events are similar due to that, but still very different in their own ways.
Religion affects what people believe, therefore, puritans were religious and believed there was a God and Devil. Their belief had eventually come to the Devil had arisen upon Salem. Reverend Parris speculates there may be a Devil upon Salem after the unexplainable sickness Betty obtained in act one. “Parris: A wide opinion’s running in the parish that the Devil may be among us…” Eventually everyone began to believe there were witches that work with the Devil. Therefore, the Salem Witch Trials began and all the puritans investigate into this matter.
Extremist religious beliefs of the supernatural and religious intolerance in Salem acted as a catalyst of the Salem Witch Trials. In England, talks of moving to America for religious freedom disseminated rapidly due to British stigma against puritanism. Puritans came to America and began practicing puritanism freely. Even for this time, Puritans practiced their beliefs orthodoxly. Puritans believed that solely God’s grace allowed them into heaven, and that they had almost no way of interfering with their own salvation.
The lying caused the witch trial hysteria. In 1692,In salem massachusetts. The puritans believed of what they read in the bible and becasue of the fales accusations twenty people died. One of them was a man and he was pressed to death. The three causes of the salem witch trails were the dividing towns,lying,and age.
The Puritans believed word from word what was written in the bible, they put their religious belief into their laws and believed that all sins should be punished by hanging or thrown in jail. Not only did they extremely focus on religion but there was already tension between Salem Village and Salem Town, where they were far wealthier. As the accusations of witches started in Salem, the Puritans religious belief and the conflict between Salem Village and Salem Town caused the Salem Witch Trials. Puritans are colonists who were seeking religious tolerance, so they left England and settled in the American colonies. Their goal was to create communities that was centered around the church to support their Christian way of life (Salem Witch Trials).
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.
Religiousness brought out fearfulness and strictness among others, these all stirred up mischief among the Puritans. People were always worried about someone spying on them or others being a witch. The fearfulness is what caused the strictness. The town feared witches and so they brought out strict laws against any actions. The town people had to obey the rules or else they could be discriminated against.
One of the the main reasons that people argue for why the Salem Witch Trials happened is because of the religion that they worshipped. This argument has merit, because as the Salem Witch Trials Learning Adventure state 's, “Church was the cornerstone of 17th century life in New England” (Salem Witch Trials - Learning Adventures). During this time, it was illegal to avoid going to church. This was built upon by the fact that there was not the separation of church and state that we have today. Ministers of the church were also judges in the courtroom.
What is a witch? A witch is a person who practices magic as part of a religion. In 1692, mass hysteria broke out in Salem, Massachusetts. A group of girls came together and said they had been possessed by the devil. Together the group of girls accused many women in their town of practicing witchcraft.
Salem Witchcraft Trials In Salem, Massachusetts in 1692 there was an outbreak of teenage girls who were accused of practicing witchcraft. If you were accused of being a witch you had two options. One option was for the person to deny their practice of witchcraft, which resulted in their hanging, while the other option was for them to confess their practice of witchcraft and be exiled from the community. The following paragraphs will examine events and details concerning two specific Salem Witchcraft Trials; one in which the accused confessed to the practice of witchcraft and another in which the accused denied being a witch.
During the Salem witch trials in 1692 many people were accused of performing witchcraft. This essay will discuss the definition of a witch, who was classified as a witch, who were accused, what these said witches did to the people of salem, and the reasons as to why the accused were accused. Definition of a Witch
The Salem Witch Trials were impacted by the Puritan religion, and the church’s social role and motives in the accusations made. The Salem Witch Trials were a reflection of how politics, the imaginations and fears of people can have severe consequences. The Puritans believed God shields his servants from harm’s way. However, when life in the Salem community begins to go awry, the only explanation was of the Devil. The strong belief of the Devil, and the effects of sin in Puritanism affected the community drastically.
During 1692, in Salem Massachusetts, many girls were accusing older women of witchcraft. Many of the people were puritans and townspeople. Puritans were religious people and thought the witches were from the devil. They would think that the devil took over a regular person’s body and make them do things they didn’t mean to do. The reason why everyone started to panic was because many young girls were telling the jury that these people were doing bad things to them.
Religious ideas played a central role in the way people understood and reacted to the world around them in colonial America. The colonies were founded by various religious groups seeking freedom to practice their faith without persecution. Religion influenced many aspects of colonial people's daily life, from politics and social order to economic practices and daily life. Religious ideas were not only important but often the cause of antagonism and violence in colonial America. One example of religious antagonism in colonial America can be seen in the Salem witch trials of 1692 (American YAWP, 3.5).