Salem Witch Trials Research Paper

Decent Essays
There are certain events in history that put the human race to shame. Whichever way people look at things we cannot deny that most societies were not built on social justice and civility. How do these crimes of injustice serve people today? Understanding the issues that helped spark the witch-hunt outbreak in Salem, Massachusetts, which lasted well over a year (1692-1693), can help understand and perhaps avoid the mistakes that others have made throughout history. Much of what happened, if viewed in a religious sense, can be explained; it is easy to alienate a certain group in society if the members believe it is part of a process of cleansing the society of evildoers. The Puritans held the witch trials because they believed that the devil did among them. Their beliefs helped trigger the witch accusations and, unfortunately, women were the victims. …show more content…
Those convicted of witchcraft were mainly viewed as female misfits. These social outcasts left the male Puritan mind in fear and judgment without having prior evidence of any wrongdoing. Reading the trials of Susanna Martin, Mary Easty, and Martha Carrier reveals just how these independent and feisty women have caused fear among the Puritan society. As for Mary Easty, her eloquent plea addressing William Phips and the judge helped put an end to the witch accusations. . Her petition provides evidence that the majority of the cases were based on frantic accusations. If we consider the accusations and trials held for these women in Salem village, many of them stood on false hearsay. Modern psychology and medicine would have had a good explanation for the fits the teenage girls reportedly experienced. There may have been some individuals who believed and practiced witchcraft among the Puritans.. The witch trials ended after questions of validity and doubts

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