The Puritans and the Salem Witch Trials: Understanding Identity and Hysteria in 17th Century Massachusetts

2. Identity • What does this article tell you about the Puritans? • What do you already know about the Puritans? • How might your identity be different if you had been a Puritan in the 1600’s?

3. What do you know about the Salem Witch Trials or about The Crucible?

4. Salem, Massachusetts, 1692

5. Puritans

6. Puritans • A sect of Christians • Immigrated to colonies from England escape religious persecution • Intolerant of others

7. Puritan Society • Disapproved of idleness and frivolity. • Had a strong social hierarchy. • Religion at the center of society. • Strict punishments for transgressors.

8. Puritan Society • Living in a wilderness with harsh conditions. • Dependant on farming. • Starvation and sickness real threats. • Frequent skirmishes with Native Americans.

9. Puritan Society • Survival depended on hard work. • Community , social order, hierarchy necessary for survival.

10. Religious Beliefs • Suffering was often seen as the result of displeasing God. • People believed that you could attract the devil’s attention by sinful behavior, also causing suffering.

11. Witchcraft • People of the time truly believed in the physical existence of the devil and witches on earth. • Witches had signed their souls over to the devil. He gave them special powers that they then used to torment their neighbors. • Ministers used books like the Malleus Maleficarum to find signs of witchcraft.

12. Witchcraft • Witches were often accused of: • Causing illness, especially of cattle and children • Ruining crops, milk, or tools • Stopping people from praying • Sending their spirits or “shapes” out to do various types of mischief

13. . . . . Witch Hunts • In slightly earlier times in Europe, witches were often found using the water test. • They were then burned at the stake. • These methods were NOT used on witches in Salem.

14. Salem Witch Trials • Evidence of witchcraft included: • Witch marks • The inability to pray • The inability to cry • The ability to calm the fits of the afflicted by touching them • Spectral evidence • People were tortured for confessions

15. Salem Witch Trials • Salem, 1692. Young girls (the afflicted girls) began falling into fits. • They accused people in Salem and surrounding villages of bewitching them. • Authorities believed them, arrested and tried those accused. • Hundreds of people were imprisoned, including children as young as four. • 19 people and 2 dogs were hanged for witchcraft. • 1 man was pressed to death with stones. • At least 5 people died in prison.

16. Salem Witch Trials • Many unafflicted adults also gave testimony against the witches. • When a witch confessed, she had to name other witches to prove that her confession was sincere. • If a witch confessed, she was allowed to live, because she had repented. • If a witch did not confess, she was hung, because she refused to repent.

17. Hysteria The Salem Witch Trials are seen as an example of mass hysteria.

18. Arthur Miller, playwright and author of The Crucible, with his wife, Marilyn Monroe.

19. Characters Salem John Proctor Elizabeth Proctor Mary Warren Rev. Samuel Parris Abigail Williams Betty Parris Tituba Rebecca Nurse Francis Nurse Giles Corey Martha Corey Thomas Putnam Ann Putnam Ruth Putnam Mercy Lewis Rev. John Hale Deputy Gov. Danforth Judge Hathorne

21. Barbados Massachusetts

22. Tragic Hero • A person that is, in general, bigger, better, stronger than most. • Has a major flaw. • This flaw leads to the character’s downfall.

23. Sumptuary Laws

26. Arthur Miller • Wrote The Crucible in 1953 • It is historical fiction. • Based on historical people and events, but some details have been changed.

27. The Cold War

28. The Red Scare

29. Senator Joseph McCarthy

30. McCarthyism

31. The House Un-American Committee

32. McCarthyism

33. Edward R. Murrow and CBS

34. Overarching Questions • Is there a difference between serving justice and sustaining the order of the court, and if so, what is it? • What is the difference between a crowd and a community and how is this important to the play? • When is safety in numbers a good principle to follow? When is it a bad principle? • Why have a court system with lawyers and a jury? Why not just a judge? • How did Miller change historical events or people to make the play tragic? Why weren’t the actual events tragic enough? • Why is The Crucible an appropriate title for the play? • Where does all social, political and moral authority in 17th century Puritan society come from? Who has the least authority? How do the events of the trials uphold or subvert this power structure?

35. Motifs • Truth/Lies • Betrayal/Loyalty • Guilt/Innocence • Power/Subjugation • Fear/Courage

36. Terms • Hysteria • Scapegoating • Opportunism • Conjuring • Goody / Goodwife / Goodman • Meeting/ Meeting House • Poppet

38. Overarching Questions