Salem Witch Trials Research Paper

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In 1692, an incredible event occurred that resulted in the death of many innocent men and women. This event was the Salem Witch Trials. According to an article, The Salem Witch Trials, “Rampant fear among the Puritans in the New England village of Salem sparked attacks against anyone who was suspected of witchcraft” (The Salem Witch Trials). The thing about the Europeans in early Massachusetts is that they were heavily religious. Witchcraft, in Salem, was considered a crime against Christianity that went beyond the law; normal legal actions were amplified, i.e. death by noose (The Salem Witchcraft Trials). During the Salem Witch Trials, innocent people were accused of crimes they didn’t commit and even tortured or put to death because of religious beliefs. The reason innocent people were wrongly convicted was all because of an unproved statement; a rumor. When several girls accused local woman of being witches, suspicions began to arise. This was the starting point of the Salem Witch Trial. Most undiscovered illnesses with the symptoms of hallucination, vomiting, or random muscle movement often cause people to…show more content…
Anyone convicted because of practicing witchcraft was usually sent to Gallows Hill to be hanged (Linder). “The first convicted witch, Bridget Bishop, was hanged that June,” says the article Salem Witch Trials. After Bishop, eighteen men and women were also hanged at Gallows Hill. Over 150 others were labeled witches over the following months (Salem). A man who was related to confessed witches was left in prison until late 1692. A man who refused to go to trial was killed by a large mound of rocks placed on a board on his chest. This man was eighty (Linder). Since it is said that witches practiced magic with the use of familiars, two dogs were accused of aiding convicted witches, and both were executed

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