The Salem Witch Trials

The Salem Witch Trials

The Salem Witch Trials in 1692 was a hysteria. My belief is that the trials were based on no authoritative fact. It was just random beliefs created by people wanting attention. The trials were cruel to mostly the unfortunate people who were poor or stood out in public. I just think its so ironic that the leaders let all that killing happen until it was pointing towards them and their family. When the girls were accusing the women and others, the leaders just arrested them and killed them with just the spectral evidence. They did not have or ask for concrete evidence. However when the girls indicted witchcraft towards their wife's and family members they decided that the girls were telling a lie. I just thought it was abominable. They did not even think twice about the others. All they cared was about themselves. It was definitely not fair to send just anyone to the trials.

I personally believe that the four girls were telling lies about the people they accused. The words of the four girls killed many, but in some ways I also blame the people who believed and supported the four girls. They let the kids blame whoever they wanted with no actual facts. I cannot understand how the adults could put someone's life on the hand of a fourteen year old girl. In my opinion, the girls were just wanting to get attention. And when they realized how to get it, they could not stop. They blamed anyone who were different than the "normal" people of town. For example they blamed a beggar, a lady who didn't go to the church. On top of that, they used methods that were just plain ridiculous, to prove that the accused person was a witch. They said that if you could stay afloat in the water then you were a witch and if you were to drown then you were not a witch. Another one of the method was the devil's mark on someone body. They would search for it then if they found one they would test it. If it bled then you were not a witch. Theses methods were not very accurate or pleasant. These way of searching for evidence was just not finicky.

From my point of view, the Salem trials were very iniquitous. The four girls were clearly telling fabricated stories. It is unfair to just accuse someone of witchcraft without substantial evidence. The four girls had no such rights. The people who tried and had to face the punishment were mostly innocent. Their life and reputation was ruined because of the false accusation from the girls. They were and are liable for the deaths of so many innocents.