Salem Witch Trials Lecture Notes

Background and Context

• Time Period: February 1692 - May 1693
• Location: Salem, Massachusetts
• Population: Puritans (English Protestants)
• Environmental Factors:
  • Strict, isolated lifestyle
  • Frequent battles with Native Americans and French settlers
  • Fear of starvation and disease
  • Extremely cold winter in 1692

Key Events Leading to Trials

• Initial Incident:
  • Two cousins, Betty Parris (9) and Abigail Williams (11), began exhibiting strange behavior
  • Diagnosed by a physician as under "an evil hand"
  • Symptoms spread to other girls: contortions, fits, prickling skin
  • Accusations directed at three women considered outsiders

The Accused

• Sarah Good:
  • Poor, pregnant mother
  • Maintained her innocence
  • Husband testified against her
  • Daughter imprisoned, testified against her
  • Gave birth in jail; baby died
  • Convicted and hanged
• Sarah Osbourne:
  • Absent from church, involved in legal disputes
  • Died in prison
• Tituba:
  • Enslaved woman, initially denied accusations
  • Confessed under pressure, implicated others
  • Released in May

Trial Dynamics

• Confessions:
  • Some accused made false confessions to save themselves
  • Authorities favored confessions over thorough investigations
  • Church teachings influenced the justice process
• Evidence:
  • Accepted dubious forms, including "spectral evidence"
  • Juror bias: Many jurors related to accusers
• Repression:
  • Dissenters like Judge Nathanial Saltonstall faced suspicion

Consequences

• Executions: 14 women and 6 men executed
• Imprisonments: Over a hundred people imprisoned
• Spread and Suspension:
  • Accusations spread to neighboring communities
  • Trials suspended when governor's wife was accused
  • Sentences amended, prisoners released, arrests stopped

Theories and Speculations

• Possible causes for girls' behavior:
  • Hallucinations from fungus
  • Brain swelling condition
  • Actual cause remains unknown

Legacy

• Lessons:
  • Cautionary tale about groupthink and scapegoating
  • Illustrates the power of fear in manipulation of perception
• Historical Impact:
  • Remains a significant example of judicial failure and societal paranoia