Tragedy in Salem

Salem, Massachusetts in the year of 1692 was the scene of a terrible tragedy. The events that took place ended with the loss of twenty-four lives. The village was rife with accusations of witchcraft which caused hysteria that escalated into the trials of many women and men. There are different theories for the cause of the Salem Witch trials, of which economic, social, religious, and political circumstances are involved. A combination of factors is the most likely cause of the hysteria that followed the illness of two young girls.

The origins of the hysteria that overcame Salem Village began in January 1692 when the young girls, Betty Parris and Abigail Williams, began to display bizarre behavior. The Religious Movements Homepage, University of Virginia, described the state of the girls as “having fits of convulsion, screaming, and hallucination (para. 8).” A doctor examined the girls and could not come up with a natural cause for their affliction.

In light of the Puritanism of the village and the belief that Satan was just as real as God, the community came to the conclusion that they were bewitched. When pressed to reveal who had bewitched them, the girls accused three women, Titbua (the Parris family slave), Sarah Good, and Sarah Osborne. This began the horrifying months of accusations and trials in Salem Village.

The strongest theory of the cause of the tragic events is the stringent Puritan code that the villagers lived by. The church was the foundation of life in 17th century New England. Most of the people in Massachusetts were Puritans and the lifestyle was very strict. Puritans believed that all sin should be punished and it was actually against the law not to attend church. The Puritans kept a firm connection between church and government and thus could control the activities of the community.

Any misfortune was looked upon as God’s will and the community would not help the unfortunate. Under these conditions, the accusation of witchcraft was a very serious one, punishable by death. The Puritan leaders must have felt compelled to stamp out any vestige of Satan within the community. The community had other problems at this time and the possibility of witchcraft afoot would have caused much fear and panic.

Another theory for the cause of the tragedy is the fact that the community at this time was divided into two parts; Salem Town and Salem Village. Salem Village (also called Salem Farms) was treated separately because the citizens were mostly poor farmers. “Salem Town was a prosperous port town at the center of trade with London. Most of those living in Salem Town were wealthy merchants (Discovery Education, 2006).”