Salem Witch Trial Theories
Brennyn Mackey
2 May 2011
The Secret War of Salem
Exposing the Culprit behind the Mass Hysteria
The Salem Witch Trials were a series of infamous events that demand an explanation for their occurrence. The trials that took place in 1692 caused neighbors in the community of Salem Village in the colony of Massachusetts to turn on one another out of paranoia, accusing one another of witchcraft. According to Carol Karlsen, a longtime author of the subject, nineteen people were hanged and about 200 others were imprisoned (40). A few theories have been offered in order to explain the root of this mass hysteria. The theories in question need to be examined to see which holds the most credibility.
Most historians who have studied the subject agree on the chronological order of events that set this dark episode of history into motion. They believe it began in the household of Reverend Samuel Parris. Reverend Parris owned a West Indian slave named Tituba. Tituba would tell the young girls stories of her experiences in sorcery when the reverend was away. This small group of girls started with Abigail Williams, the reverend’s niece, and Elizabeth Parris, his daughter. Soon, a few girls from neighboring homes joined. Eventually, the girls began to exhibit exceptionally erratic behaviors. They would have hallucinations and convulsions. A physician checked the girls, but he failed to find a natural cause for their behavior. He attributed their ailments to a supernatural cause (Salem Witch Trials). The girls began to claim they were being afflicted by witches and started making accusations. Thus, the panic ensued. Those who have studied the subject of the Salem Witch Trials have very few disagreements on these events.
Though history may have documented the events, it has not presented a clear underlying cause to their occurrence. Why did the girls act in such a manner? Scholars have presented their own theories for this mystery. One theory that
2 May 2011
The Secret War of Salem
Exposing the Culprit behind the Mass Hysteria
The Salem Witch Trials were a series of infamous events that demand an explanation for their occurrence. The trials that took place in 1692 caused neighbors in the community of Salem Village in the colony of Massachusetts to turn on one another out of paranoia, accusing one another of witchcraft. According to Carol Karlsen, a longtime author of the subject, nineteen people were hanged and about 200 others were imprisoned (40). A few theories have been offered in order to explain the root of this mass hysteria. The theories in question need to be examined to see which holds the most credibility.
Most historians who have studied the subject agree on the chronological order of events that set this dark episode of history into motion. They believe it began in the household of Reverend Samuel Parris. Reverend Parris owned a West Indian slave named Tituba. Tituba would tell the young girls stories of her experiences in sorcery when the reverend was away. This small group of girls started with Abigail Williams, the reverend’s niece, and Elizabeth Parris, his daughter. Soon, a few girls from neighboring homes joined. Eventually, the girls began to exhibit exceptionally erratic behaviors. They would have hallucinations and convulsions. A physician checked the girls, but he failed to find a natural cause for their behavior. He attributed their ailments to a supernatural cause (Salem Witch Trials). The girls began to claim they were being afflicted by witches and started making accusations. Thus, the panic ensued. Those who have studied the subject of the Salem Witch Trials have very few disagreements on these events.
Though history may have documented the events, it has not presented a clear underlying cause to their occurrence. Why did the girls act in such a manner? Scholars have presented their own theories for this mystery. One theory that
Cited: Boyer, Paul, and Stephen Nissenbaum. Salem Possessed: The Social Origins of Witchcraft. Harvard, 1974. Print Buckland, Raymond Caporeal, Linnda. “Ergotism: The Satan Loosed in Salem?” Science Vol. 192 (1976) Web. 30 Apr. 2011. Hill, Frances. The Salem Witch Trials Reader. Cambridge: Da Capo P., 2001. Print. Morgan, Sheena. The Wicca Handbook: A complete Guide to Witchcraft and Magic. London: Vega, 2003. Print Orr, Tamra Blackbirch Press, 2004. Print. Saari, Peggy. Witchcraft in America. Detroit: UXL, 2001. Print. “Salem Witch Trials.” In Search of History. History Channel. A&E Television Networks, 1998 Spanos, Nicholas and Jack Gottlieb. “Ergotism and the Salem Village Witch Trials” Science Vol. 194 (1976) Web. 30 Apr. 2011.