The Salem Witch Trails, By Frances Hill - 933 Words

Frances Hill, a specialist in the Salem witch trails, once described the event as â€Å"providing an astonishingly clear and instructive model of the universal and timeless processes by which groups of human beings instigate, justify, and escalate persecution†¦the steps are easy to trace, by which a few deranged, destructive human beings led ordinary mortals down the dark paths of fear, hatred, and envy to demonize and destroy innocent victims.† These trials will most likely be an occasion where historians will always wonder how and why. How did the people of Salem begin to be affected by witchcraft? Why were they so willing to accuse each other, ultimately ending in twenty deaths? By looking into the history of the village and its’ social conditions, this paper will explore the possibility that Reverend Samuel Parris, in fear of losing his position within the community, used the Bible, his supporters, and the villagers’ beliefs to scare Salem into believing witchcraft was alive in their village. For thousands of years, Christian societies throughout Europe deemed witchcraft as a critical threat and imagined it as summoning evil powers. Witches were seen by the Christian community as â€Å"a conspiracy organized under the leadership of the devil.† There are quite a few references to witchcraft and sorcery in the Bible, the two most famous being Exodus 22:18 and Deuteronomy 18:9-14. These two verses have been used over the past centuries to solidify Christian belief that witchcraft isShow MoreRelatedA Delusion of Satan Essay980 Words   |  4 PagesHistory 101 A Delusion of Satan A Delusion of Satan, was written by Frances Hill and covers in the personal situations of the people in Salem during the Salem Witch Trials of 1692. The book opens up describing the intense and strict life style of the Puritan. Then we go into discussion of the town of Salem at the time, being owned by mainly the Putman family. The pastor there, Samuel Parris, has lived there in Salem since 1689. He resides with his wife, his children, niece (Abigail Williams)Read MoreSalem Witch Trials : A Series Of Events That Occurred3696 Words   |  15 PagesThe Salem Witch Trials were a series of events that occurred within the 1690 s in a puritan society called Salem Village. It started with people acting out due to unknown causes and sources. Citizens within Salem started to accuse the men and women who acted out as witches, increasing mistrust and hysteria within Salem. The numerous allegations lead to hearings and prosecutions of the people who were accused of witchcraft in colonial Massachusetts. The trials resulted in the executions of twentyRead MoreThe Salem Of Witch Trails2281 Words   |  10 Pagesit must been According to Blumberg, the Salem of witch trails was a really bad part of the United State. There were people who didn’t understanding why they were getting accused. This happed during 1692 and 1693 in Massachusetts. This happened during this time. The main parts that started and fueled the trials were politics, religion, family, feuds, economics, and the imaginations and fears of people (Sutter). The seeds of the hysteria is afflicted Salem village, Massachusetts were sown on JanuaryRead MoreThe Salem Of Witch Trails2303 Words   |  10 PagesAccording to Blumberg, the Salem of witch trails it was a really bad part of the United State. There were people who didn’t understanding why they were getting accused. This happed during the 1692 and 1693 in Massachusetts this was really happing during this time. The main parts that started and fueled the trials were politics, religion, family, feuds, economics, and the imaginations and fears of people (Sutter). The seeds of the hysteria is afflicted Salem village, Massachusetts were sown onRead MoreThe Salem Witch Trials : A Series Of Events That Killed Innocent People1881 Words   |  8 PagesThe Salem Witch Trials was a series of events that killed innocent people and brought fear to the community. The infamous Salem witch trials began during the Spring of 1692, located in Salem Village, Massachusetts. The people of Salem wanted to purge against anything that was considered remotely unholy. A group of young girls claimed that they were possessed by the devil and accused several local women of witchcraft. A special court was made due to this wave of hysteria that spreaded through colonial