Salem Witch Hunt Research Paper

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Aaron Kim Kim 1 Mr.Cross English II Honors 9/29/15 The “Witch Hunt” in American Society Throughout American history, the “witch hunt” had become a staple event that has affected the world tremendously. the “witch hunt” was described as a search and persecution of a supposed witch. During the time period, the number of supposed witches had skyrocketed as a ripple effect was initiated causing many of the citizens to accuse others for multiple reasons. Ever since 1692, American society and culture has been forged by the “witch hunt”. Economical, political, and social aspects have all been altered by the Salem Witch Trials/Hunt,…show more content…
In The Crucible, many of the citizens in Salem exploited and abused the idea of witchcraft in order to gain an economical benefit for themselves. As Giles is accusing Putnam of lying, “this man is killing his neighbors for their land!” This is a symbolic moment because it displays that Putnam wouldn’t mind killing off another citizen in order to economically benefit for himself (Miller 89). This quote relates to the country’s economical standpoint today because people all around the globe are willing to do anything for money, including prostitution, gambling, dealing with drugs, and stealing. In the same way, as Martha had been accused, “he buy a pig of my wife four or five year ago, and the pig died soon after. So he come dancin’ in for his money back.” Walcott had accused Martha because he believed that she bewitched all of…show more content…
As the Red Scare took hold in the United States, “A nationwide fear of communists, socialists, anarchists, and other dissidents suddenly grabbed the American psyche in 1919.” As time went on, the nation was weakened to a pulp as communists and anarchists were being brought up into conversations and in the community (Burnett 1). At the time, everyone was paranoid because the United States believed in capitalism, so a change to communism would’ve been a change that affected everyone in the country, and nobody likes a change that massive. When the nation was in hysteria, “Innocent people were jailed for expressing their views, and their civil rights were ignored.” The nation was grown and cherished by freedom, so jailing innocent people for expressing their own beliefs and views is immensely ironic (Burnett 1). Throughout history, civil rights have been a controversial topic that split the nation like a knife through butter. Those that have fought for their rights have been negatively affected as their trophy for winning the battle had been taken away. In the end, political and social perspectives have definitely been shaped by the different aspects of the Red

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