Similarities Between Salem Witch Trials And The Holocaust

Improved Essays
Mass hysteria is the common term used to describe a situation in which various people all suffer from similar hysterical symptoms – either from a phantom illness or an inexplicable event. The Salem Witch Trials and The Holocaust are both similar because they both are mass hysterias that have killed many innocent people.

The Salem Witch Trials occurred in the 1600’s, more than two hundred people were accused of practicing witchcraft and dealing with the devil (The Crucible). This all started because many young teenage girls started a rumor that people in their town were witches. They claimed to be possessed by the devil(The Crucible). Belief in the supernatural, and specifically the devils practice meant giving certain humans the power

Related Documents

  • Improved Essays

    In 1692, Massachusetts Bay Colony became a site of mass hysteria, defined by Merriam-Webster, as a situation in which a myriad of people behave or react in an extreme or uncontrolled manner as a result of fear or anger. This mass hysteria dispersed itself throughout the region of Salem, involving witchcraft accusations that ushered in a period of trials, torture, imprisonment, and executions. By the time the trials came to a halt, an astonishing 20 people were executed, while an additional 162 were accused of practicing witchcraft. All of this erupted on January 20, 1692, when the reverend Samuel Paris’ daughter, Betty, and niece Abigail Williams were labeled oddities. Some historians, such as Dr. Alan Woolf, a professor of pediatrics at Harvard…

    • 254 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    The Salem Witch Trials From 1692 to 1693 the Salem Witch Trials took place in Massachusetts. Roughly 25 people died from being accused of practicing witchcraft. Each person accused of being a witch was put to trial. First of all, the community was very religious, so if there was any weird behavior, it would be blamed on the devil. Second, anyone could accuse anyone of being witch, even with no evidence.…

    • 1299 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Great Essays

    Austin Bell Professor Schroeder Religion 321 25 November 2015 Salem Witch Trials The Salem Witch Trials are a very well known piece of American history that is still heavily researched today. These trials were held in Salem, Massachusetts starting in February of 1692 and ending around May, 1693. The trials consisted of a number of different Salem residents being accused of partaking in witchcraft activities.…

    • 1909 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Great Essays
  • Improved Essays

    The Salem Witch Trials took place in Salem, Massachusetts from 1692 until 1693. This event would cause the small puritan community to be on edges. The cause for this madness were wild accusations of a witch being in the midst of the community. The reason for this belief of witches was sparked when these two young girls related to the priest Samuel Parris, started to act bizarre in 1692. It was said that the Doctor believed the cause of the little girls behaviors were from something supernatural.…

    • 1511 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    “YOU’RE A WITCH!” “YOU’RE A COMMUNIST!” Imagine you’ve been brought to a court or government panel, even though you haven't committed any crime or been charged with one. You are questioned about your political or biblical values and are accused of disloyalty or of being a witch and are asked to incriminate your friends, neighbors and associates. If you don’t cooperate, you risk jail, losing your job, or are killed; this occurred during the Salem witch trials and the McCarthyism era.…

    • 1043 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    The fear that swept Salem, Massachusetts in 1692 was like a plague. Thousands of men, women, and children were put on trial for supposed witchcraft. Many innocent people were actually killed during these events. Everyone was on their toes about the mass of events happening in Salem. The Salem Witch Trials were unfair, odd, and caused way too much confusion.…

    • 1474 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    The last person someone would ever expect to turn on them is their neighbors, friends, or even relatives, but the people of Salem, Massachusetts often found themselves in this situation. In 1692, a small town called Salem on the coast of Massachusetts began a horrific time period which was named the “Salem Witch Trials.” Innocent people were being hung because of these girls that pointed their fingers at someone they felt like accusing. The witch hunts that occurred in Salem, Massachusetts back in 1692 were not the only witch hunts that plagued the history of the United States. Joseph McCarthy, a Senator from Wisconsin, led a group that intensely investigated and punished anyone being suspected of being communist or anyone that was for the…

    • 1064 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Superior Essays

    Mass hysteria has the potential to tear a community apart as demonstrated in The Crucible. What is hysteria? “It is defined as an overwhelming fear and excitement that overrides all logic, and is often enhanced and intensified by the presence of others who are acting out on that fear” (Campbell). That theme is common throughout the play written by Arthur Miller. From the beginning, where the witchery begins to John Proctor getting hung, the little town of Salem undergoes major changes.…

    • 1675 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Improved Essays

    ; they accuse Elizabeth, Rebecca, and Giles’s wife, and husbands are worried 6. What examples of mass hysteria exist today, and what qualities do they share with the hysteria in The Crucible? An example of mass hysteria would be Trump’s election as president. Many immigrants, specifically Mexicans, feared that their families would be deported or taken away from them at any moment. This is a quality that is shared in The Crucible- people fear that their families be taken away, killed, arrested, etc.…

    • 791 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Superior Essays

    Throughout history there have been wars, plagues and natural disasters that have killed millions of people. These people died fighting for their country, died from poor health or died because of the location in which they lived. However, the deaths that occurred during the Holocaust and the period of American slavery were completely different from them. These two events were periods in which millions of people died from starvation, exhaustion, or were murdered. People were ripped away from their homes and families and sent to camps to die.…

    • 1013 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Superior Essays

    After a total of four months nineteen adults and two dogs were hung for witchcraft. The town of Salem was made up of mainly Puritans. The Puritans have a very strict religion and the members are required to attend church on Sundays and to be able to interpret the bible or they would be frowned upon (“The Puritans”). They believed in a real sense of a divine God, with the fear of sin and divinity. When the court suspected a witch they immediately sent out a warrant for their arrest.…

    • 1230 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Superior Essays

    Two Horrific Events Based on Lies The Salem Witch Trials ended with about 200 people being accused of “witchcraft”, and during the Red Scare, over a thousand people were accused of being part of the communist party. The Red Scare and the Salem Witch Trials may have happened centuries apart, but were very similar in many different ways. The McCarthy hearings and The Salem Witch Trials were two very horrific occurrences in America 's’ history that were based on lies and a complete lack of facts and it is very important to learn about these events so that people can be better informed in the future. It is beneficial to learn about these topics together to gain a better understanding of each event.…

    • 1481 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Improved Essays

    The hysteria during the Salem Witch trials was very evident. 19 people were hanged for being accused of practicing with the Devil. Many people lost their lives due to religious reasons. There was also examples of hysteria like this during the Red Scare. In an article called, “Are You Now…

    • 1074 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Hysteria is uncontrollable emotion among a group of people. People in Salem began to turn on each other. Anyone that was accused of being a witch, wanted the person that made the inaccurate accusation to be punished. To get them punished they had to accuse them of something. It was all a huge cycle.…

    • 771 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Mass hysteria is the collective deceptions that cause fear and threat in a society. It is displayed by communities all over the world and can break relationships and or societies. In Arthur Miller’s play, The Crucible, the mass hysteria that occurred in Salem in 1692 is shown. The play, The Crucible, is about a Puritan society that faces a mass hysteria. It arises after a group of girls from the Salem community are caught dancing by Reverend Parris, and blame their actions on the Devil.…

    • 1422 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Improved Essays