Salem Witch Trials

Salem Witch Trials

The Salem witch trials had taken place in Salem, Massachusetts from 1692 until their end in 1693. More than two hundred people in this settlement were accused of using witchcraft against others. About 20 of the accused had been executed because of this situation. These event have become known with injustice and paranoia among other things. The fascination of the even still amazes us today.

There was discrimination against these people for their "religion". This was that of Wiccans. They promote divine and oneness for themselves. Also paganism was discriminated against. Paganism is a polytheistic religion. This mean they believed in many gods.

There were many important events within the witch trials in Salem during that time period. In Jan. of 1692 three young girls were having odd episodes. These were believed to be caused by local "witches" Three were accused of witch craft and they were Tituba, Sarah Good, and Sarah Osbourne. But in 1693 5 were indicted on witchery charges but weer never charged. The remaining were either held in jail or released from the charges brought upon them.

There were many punishment for being a witch in this town. They used torture to get the truth out of them. They either crushed you with stones. This was when they layed a board on you and put rocks on top until the truth was told. You could have been burned at the stake if you were a woman practicing witchcraft. There was the possibility of hang or the iron maiden. The iron maiden was spiked so if inside and you moved you would be stabbed.

It is significant because it show the justice between people for just one situation that was thrown at them. This relate to To Kill A Mockingbird because the people who were persecuted for being different were like Boo. He never did anything to hurt anyone. People just decided they wanted to say things because one event happened to him to change his life.

Works Cited

Blumberg, Jess. "A Brief History of the Salem Witch Trials | History & Archaeology | Smithsonian Magazine." History, Travel, Arts, Science, People, Places | Smithsonian Magazine. Smithsonian, 24 Oct. 2007. Web. 01 June 2011. <http://www.smithsonianmag.com/history-archaeology/brief-salem.html >.

"Salem Witch Trials - New World Encyclopedia." Info:Main Page - New World Encyclopedia. New World Encyclopedia, 12 Sept. 2008. Web. 01 June 2011. <http://www.newworldencyclopedia.org/entry/Salem_witch_trials>.

"Salem Witchcraft Trials Salem Massachusetts." Boston Massachusetts Business Directory ::bostoncitylinks.com ::. Boston City Links, 2005. Web. 01 June 2011. <http://www.bostoncitylinks.com/salem.html>.