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Salem Witch Trials Research Paper

1063 Words5 Pages

In Salem, Massachusetts, 1692, tensions were elevated. Many of the Massachusetts colonists experienced satanophobia, or the fear of Satan, for many years. This fear became heightened after three girls, 9-year-old Elizabeth Parris, 11-year-old Abigail Williams, and 11-year-old Ann Putnam began showing strange symptoms: extreme outbursts of screaming, violent contortions, and uncontrollable fits. But there were several other girls who showed similiar signs; they were all known as the 'Afllicted Girls'. After Elizabeth Parris's father questioned the doctor about her condition, the doctor came to the conclusion that the girls were bewitched since he found nothing physically wrong with them. Later, two of the girls named the women they believed …show more content…

This was a special type of court in English law established specifically to hear cases that are extraordinary and serious in nature.The courts designed to prosecute the accused women did not adhere by the rule 'innocent' until proven guilty; if you were accused, you were automatically deemed a witch. The evidence used against the accused included testimonies from other people, watching them going through their fits, or their own confession. Recanting led to an even harsher punishment to force them to admit their …show more content…

Although his death was gruesome and cruel, it strengthened the growing opposition to the Salem Witch Trials. The trials and executions continued; however, colonists began to doubt that so many people could actually be guilty of witchcraft, fearing many innocent lives were being taken. Local clergymen began speaking out against the witch hunt and tried to persuade officials to stop the trials. If they could not stop the trials, they at least wanted to make the trials more valid and fair. They thought is was too easy to falsify evidence and send an innocent person to their doom. Increase Mather concluded that, "It would better that ten suspected witches may escape than one innocent person be condemned.” Questioning the validity of the trials helped bring about the end of the Salem witch

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