John Proctor was born in Suffolk, England, to John Proctor and Martha Harper. He moved to America at the age of three and was searched and examined by seven men. Proctor confessed verbally to witchcraft, but his wife, Rebecca Nurse, refused to confess. Proctor believed his affair with Abigail irreparably damaged him in the eyes of God, his wife Elizabeth, and himself.
Judge Thomas Danforth, who had seen the play before, committed Proctor to jail. Proctor was brought into court and examined for signs of witchcraft on April 11, 1692. During the examination, the accusers named John to be a “witch” as well. Both Elizabeth and John were sent to Boston and held. John Proctor defended his wife in public and was immediately arrested for participating in witchcraft with her.
John and his wife were both convicted of witchcraft on August 5, 1692. The couple were sentenced to the gallows, but Elizabeth’s sentence was delayed until the birth of her child. John and Elizabeth were prominent members of Salem society at the time of the Salem Witch Trials. They were executed for witchcraft and sentenced to death.
John Proctor did not agree with the witch hunt and was very vocal about his opinion. Mary Warren probably accused John Proctor of witchcraft simply because he knew he and Abigail Williams were the witches who caused the witchcraft hysteria. In “The Crucible”, John Proctor knew he and Abigail Williams were the witches who caused the witchcraft hysteria because John Proctor and Abigail Williams were involved.
John Proctor was accused of witchcraft for various reasons, including knowing that the girls saw the Devil or witches, knowing that the witch trials were a hoax, and knowing that the witchcraft was not real.
📹 What really happened during the Salem Witch Trials – Brian A. Pavlac
Dig into how the infamous Salem Witch Trials began and why they remain a cautionary tale of the dangers of groupthink and …
Why does Elizabeth protect John?
Elizabeth’s actions were motivated by a desire to safeguard her husband, despite his infidelity and betrayal. In the play’s conclusion, Elizabeth persuades John to falsely confess to witchcraft and renounce his identity.
What sin does Proctor admit to?
John Proctor confesses to committing adultery, having engaged in sexual intercourse with Abigail Williams but subsequently rejecting her. He is concerned that disclosing Abigail’s genuine intentions and immoral character may result in the loss of her influence.
Is The Crucible a true story?
The Crucible is a 1953 play by American playwright Arthur Miller, which is a partially fictionalized account of the Salem witch trials in Massachusetts Bay from 1692 to 1693. Miller wrote the play as an allegory for McCarthyism, a US government persecution of communists. The play was first performed at the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway in 1953, starring E. G. Marshall, Beatrice Straight, and Madeleine Sherwood. Despite receiving mixed reviews, the production won the 1953 Tony Award for Best Play. A year later, a new production succeeded, making The Crucible a classic and a central work in American drama.
The opening narration describes Salem, Massachusetts, and the Puritan colonists as an isolated theocracy in constant conflict with Native Americans. The narrator speculates that the lack of civil liberties, isolation from civilization, and instability in Massachusetts caused internal tensions that contributed to the events depicted in the play.
Why does John confess to witchcraft?
In Arthur Miller’s play The Crucible, John Proctor confesses to committing adultery with Abigail in an attempt to save the innocent victims of the Salem Witch Trials. This confession tarnished his reputation among the townspeople but was necessary to save the lives of the innocent. Proctor’s confession is a stark contrast to his reputation as a hard-working Christian man in Salem.
In The Crucible, Proctor must choose between preserving his reputation and upholding his integrity. He decides that the lives of the innocent people convicted were more significant than his own, and he confesses, knowing he will potentially face severe public scrutiny for his actions. This decision highlights the disparity between preserving one’s integrity and one’s reputation.
In the final confession of John Proctor, he must choose to maintain his integrity at great personal sacrifice. He must sign a confession that condemns himself and others convicted of witchcraft. Proctor initially agrees to sign the document due to his previous transgressions, but he knows it is wrong to lie even to save his life. He tears his confession in two, condemning himself to hang. Reverend Hale expresses shock at Proctor’s willingness to die to defend his honor, but Proctor proudly replies that he can.
In his crusade to maintain his integrity, Proctor decides to give up his own life rather than lie and condemn the innocent. In his final act, he decides to die with his honor rather than live in abasement. This decision illustrates the importance of maintaining integrity and the sacrifices that may be required to do what is right.
Arthur Miller’s play The Crucible portrays the importance of staying true to one’s moral compass and the dangers of succumbing to prevailing opinion. The Salem Witch Trials serve as an example of the dangers of succumbing to accepted opinion and not standing up for what one believes in. John Proctor’s story serves as a lesson for all, emphasizing the importance of standing up for what is fair and just.
Why does Elizabeth forgive John?
The protagonist acknowledges her own shortcomings that hindered her ability to forgive John. She recognizes that he is a morally upright individual who experiences feelings of remorse for the extramarital affair and expresses regret for her role in the deterioration of their marriage.
Does Elizabeth Proctor admit to witchcraft?
In The Crucible, Elizabeth is forced to testify about her knowledge of John’s affair with Abigail Williams. Despite knowing about the affair, she denies it in court out of love for John and to save his good name. Judge Danforth upholds the charge of witchcraft against her, as Elizabeth was caught in a lie. This parallels the efforts of the House Committee on Un-American Activities (HUAC) and the purpose of the Salem court.
In the play, Elizabeth knows she is pregnant well before she is arrested. In 1692, she was arrested and examined by Salem magistrates, where John was also present. Both were transferred to jail in Boston, tried, convicted, and sentenced to death. John was sent to the gallows two weeks later, but Elizabeth was not among them. She had refused to confess, but she had been granted a reprieve because she was pregnant. The court agreed to postpone Elizabeth’s execution until after the birth of her child, as taking the life of an innocent unborn child was against the Puritan sense of God’s justice.
The Salem court closed at the end of October, and in early February 1693, the governor ordered her reprieved for a second time. Elizabeth and her son remained in jail until May 1693, when she and the last remaining prisoners of the Salem debacle were freed.
In the play, John realizes the implications of Elizabeth’s pregnancy, and they are spared the gallows until after the child is born. Miller portrays a poignant scene in the last act, just before John is sent to the gallows, when he sees Elizabeth fully pregnant. Their affection for each other transcends the traumatic circumstances of the moment.
What is John Proctor’s guilt?
The Crucible is a play that centers around the moral struggle of its protagonist, John Proctor. The play revolves around three main dilemmas: his guilt over his adulterous affair with Abigail Williams, his hesitation to testify against Abigail to expose the truth, and his final decision to make the ultimate sacrifice.
John Proctor aims to expose Abigail’s spiteful character and her desire to replace his wife. He begs for Abigail’s forgiveness, knowing it would dishonor his name but deems it the only solution as people fell into Abigail’s manipulation. He fights for everyone, not just his wife, and defends others because he knows their innocence.
John Proctor’s internal conflict lies in his affair with Abigail, which he confesses to. He does not want to confess but must do so to expose Abigail’s real desires and why she accuses Elizabeth of witchcraft. This adultery is punishable, so he takes a big risk.
In summary, The Crucible is a play that explores the moral struggles of John Proctor, his guilt over his affair with Abigail Williams, his hesitation to testify against her, and his decision to make the ultimate sacrifice. The play highlights the complex relationships and challenges faced by individuals in the Puritanical Salem environment.
Why did John Proctor not confess to witchcraft?
In the play “The Crucible”, John Proctor, a man accused of witchcraft, is wrongfully advised by Hale to give a false confession to save his life. He signed the confession, proving his involvement with witchcraft, but later discovered that it would be nailed to the church door. Proctor felt that the publicity was unnecessary and wanted his friends not to be condemned for his actions. He chose to tear up the confession and maintain his reputation as an honest man, stating that he cannot judge another and will not join her ranks by hurting others.
John Proctor’s final stand is to protect his name and reputation in Salem, which would be blackened if he admitted to witchcraft. His ambition to secure his good name prevents him from testifying against Abigail. He understands that to truly have a good name, he must tell the truth, not lie, to save himself. He says, “I have given you my soul; leave me my name”. By defending his name, he musters the courage to die heroically.
In a theocratic society like Salem, where public and private moralities are the same, reputation plays an important role. Hale’s advice to lie to save John’s life was looking out for his well-being, but Proctor’s strong principle of reputation guided him to tell the truth and die with his good name. At the end of the play, John expresses that he sees some shred of goodness in John Proctor, implying that being honest was the sole thing he had done well in his life after all his sins.
Was John Proctor accused of witchcraft?
Elizabeth Proctor was arrested on April 10 and examined in the Salem Town meetinghouse on April 11. Several afflicted, including Abigail Williams, Mary Walcott, Mercy Lewis, and John Indian, accused her of witchcraft. Despite her claims of innocence, the afflicted writhed and screamed in her presence. John Proctor was also accused of witchcraft, and both were held for trial in Boston jail.
The authorities confiscated the possessions of the convicted person, presumably to pay for jail costs and support their family. Robert Calef’s account described the events at the Proctors’ home, where the sheriff seized goods, provisions, and cattle, sold some at half price, killed others, and put them up for the West Indies. Mary Warren, who vacillated between accuser and accused, was arrested and jailed on April 18. John Proctor’s son Benjamin was accused on May 23, and his son William and daughter Sarah on May 29.
How does John Proctor know the witchcraft isn’t real?
The Crucible is a play that explores the Salem witch trials as a time of great testing and purification for the townspeople. The play is named after the crucible, a vessel used for melting down and purifying metal, or a courtroom trial of great severity, where different elements react and something new is formed. The Salem witch trials serve as a metaphor for the townspeople’s true natures, as they undergo imprisonments and their true natures are revealed by the end.
The play does not use the term “crucible” in the play, possibly because the entire series of events acts as the purifying trial. The girls were caught dancing in the woods with Tituba, who was apparently performing love charms for them. It is unclear whether Tituba was practicing magic or if she made up the charms to keep the girls happy.
Tituba falsely confessed to save herself from being beaten to death, and the girls followed her confession, making up new lies. Abigail and others in the town later realized that an accusation of witchcraft was an effective way to punish people they were angry with.
What is John Proctor’s tragic flaw?
John Proctor’s tragic flaw is his pride, which leads him to refuse to admit to witchcraft, thereby compromising his chance of survival.
📹 The Dark History of the Salem Witch Trials
The Salem Witch Trials were truly a dark part of our history. With over twenty people being killed as a result of a year long hysteria, …
This all happened in Danvers, MA, not Salem. Also, it was not about religion, but about land grabs and persecution. Most of the accusers were from two families and they are the same families that seized the land of the hanged victims for chump change. You need to read up. All the victims were marginalized. Unmarried women, women of color, poor famliies, families living on the edge of the settlement. You also exaggerate greatly the conflict during this time – they were mostly at peace with Nashawe and Pennacook neighbors in that time.
Something I remember my English teacher told not to long ago was that when someone was put on trial the family was there. She also mentioned that for example you were burned and died from it you weren’t a witch and your family would feel relief that you weren’t one and move on with their lives even though you were killed. That part still baffles me.
It’s funny how you guys speak of the Salem Witch trials, because I happen to live near by it. And I can’t believe the city Salem at all has popularity. Still shocks me till this day, i heard from my mother that there used to be a man who was tortured to death. Whom had stones heavy as horses placed on his back, and the chilling thing was his last words were “More weight”
Some would say that the devil was indeed at work because of the absolute glee so many of these people took in destroying one another. And if that one lady who told the guy he’d drink blood was even Christian, cursing something isn’t unheard of. There’s multiple instances in the Bible where God curses something.
I recently learned that one of my ancestors, named Elizabeth Hutchinson, was in the Salem Witch Trials and was almost executed but then was given jail time instead. after learning this bit of information I’ve been perusal a lot of articles and documentaries about the Salem witch trials and your article is one of the most informative that I was able to find. Thank you for making such amazing content 🙂
A lot of this sounds a lot like Arthur Miller’s popular “The Crucible”, which no doubt is the reason the Salem Witch trials are such a gigantic part of our culture. The story has a lot of historical inaccuracies. Some of it is of course real, but I honestly have no clue how much. So I would just take a lot of the information presented with a grain of salt, as who knows how much was made up after reading the Crucible and twisting some facts to make shit seem crazier. I think giles corey was legit which is still the best part of the crucible so nice
New subscriber here! I found you through the EVP apps article, then saw the Salem article and was like yesssss. It’s so terrifying how identical the witch hysteria is to current year with people being bored and wanting to destroy people they don’t like… just because. With the footage, did you go to Salem yourself? I love to visit at least once a year (off season since Halloween season is too bonkers for me), boy oh boy, do I love it. And kudos for being the very few people who pronounce Tituba’s name correctly, hahah. I normally just visit the inner Salem area, but next outing, I want to check out Danvers since that was the original Salem Village where they all lived. If you ever want to make another Salem article (because there’s SO MUCH MORE there than I had ever realized and always learn more and more each time I visit), hit me up, I’d love to help with showing cool things to look into, give footage, whatever’s needed.
Im a practicing witch and every year the trials rolls around, we honor those who died. Its debated whether they were all witches (i don’t think any of them were but the curses could be very real as i believe that anything can happen if youre passionate/angry enough), but i honor them because many, if not all, were innocent and accused of crimes they never committed. It’s sad and it reminds me to be thankful for the times we live in. Though I’ll still get flack, at least i wont be killed for my practices
After my mom spent four years on our family’s entire ancestry, we found out a few awesome things. #1 I’m blood related to the first viking king. #2 I’m blood related to the Boleyn family. And #3 A blood relative of ours was burnt as a “witch” during the Salem witch trials. After my mom’s finding my dad now teases me about staying away from Salem because I’m Pagan. 😅
Tituba could have been an actual witch and cursed the town of Salem. Also she could have taught the kids witchcraft. If she did then she got away with it all. I’m surprised no one accused her of being a witch. Edit: Tituba was the first to be accused in Salem of witchcraft and she served a jail sentence and was released after.
Fun fact, Salem used to be much larger, it used to be Beverly, Peabody, and Danvers. And the current town of Salem does not really have any of thing from the time. And it is strongly believed that the majority of this happend in the current town of Danvers. Also the original gallows have not be found yet researchers are still debating its location. Oh and just fun little fact they also hung 2 dogs because they had the “evil eye”
For those who didn’t know George Burroughs was a priest that owed money to a very respected family in Salem, but the interesting part comes when he was about to be hanged, he started praying with no hesitation. Back in those days it was said that the Devil’s asssistants are vulnerable to prayers. But still it didn’t save him and he was executed, just because he owed money to a respectful family.
i hope the people of Salem build memorial for those victims of accused of witchcrafts, for them to rest in peace. Put on these words on the memorial : “For all That we ought not to have thought yet have thought” “All That we ought not to have said yet have said” “All that we ought not to have done yet have done” “And for all that we ought to have thought yet have not thought” “All that we ought to have said yet have not said” “All that we ought to have done yet have not done” “Please for give for all out faults. “
Women, Black People, Christians, Native Americans, Jews, Gays, Lesbians, And Other Races/People/Sexual Preferences Had It Very Rough Back In The Day. In Today’s Society People Seriously Cry Over Anything Stūpîd. That’s The Sad Part About It. Crazy Times…🤐 Edit: The Hemorraghing Of The Mouth May Be Because In Those Times They Didn’t Floss Or Wash Their Teeth?…Just A Thought. Someone Correct Me If I’m Wrong. And Maybe it Was Not a Hex Or Cursed. Witches Had Great Abilities With Medical Flowers/Teas And Herbs. So Maybe She Knew?…Idk. Now The Sheriffs Curse One, That One Is Spooky…lol.
You know, with the reputation and infamy this event has, and how I’ve heard it mentioned and talked about, the scale and scope of it is MUCH smaller than I expected. A few months and a couple dozen people. Still horrible that it happened, but the reputation makes it seem like it lasted years and that hundreds of people were killed.
Wow I live right next to salem mass it was even said that when we bought the house I live in that the same place used to be a house for slaves before they would get bought and a lot of slaves have died in my house supposedly and @ night a lot I hear weird noises and my door even slams shut by it’s self alot
We had a “Gypsy” place a “hedge of protection” over our county that was said to either prevent tornadoes from touching down or prevent the death of any person on/in Clark Co. and apparently the “spell?” has just recently expired not many days before we had our first tornado touchdown in 50 years 🤷🏼♀️
Of course we modern-day witches like Salem. For one thing, we know that no one there would dare to hurt us due to its history. That’s not true for a lot of places in the US where we have to stay “in the broom closet.” For another thing, when you believe in supernatural energy fields or at the very least the power of people, living near a spot where so many lives were extinguished in a short time is a hotbed for your craft. I want to visit Salem again now that I’m finally out of the broom closet for that reason, but I’ll stick to my local forests and beaches for spellcasting (which at the moment is brewing tea and putting twigs and herbs into little glass bottles)
we learned about this in school and i just want to add, that when these people got accused of being witches, they were guilty until proven innocent, which is the opposite of todays trials, in where you are innocent until proven guilty. Which in my opinion, is unfair, because the judges in these trials could just immedatly say that the person was guitly, even if they were innocent. Just another something to show how crazy these people were.
In my class the teacher taught us about this for a fun class. Our teacher told us that Paris’s Slave was telling the kids to act crazy for her intentions that people don’t know of. After all the girls were starting to act in that way she told them to put poison ivy on their arms and legs for more “signs of the devil” then told the kids to confess and say that it was her doing since maybe some of the kids were being tortured or taking the joke way to far. Thanks if you’re reading this btw!
Pretty good, Man. Now ya got me clicking on anything. Even things I already know about. I do this just because I’m curious to hear your take on them. Its like reading Mad magazine. One would think that, being Christian these people would know the bibles that they had at the time. The KJV wasn’t available until 1611 but there was Catholic version that included all of the 83 known books. I mention that because of the blood drinking thing. She was talking about a few verses in it like Revelation and the mark. It clearly states that anyone that takes the mark, will drink from ‘the cup of wrath’ as well as the ‘whore of Babylon’ who had a chalice filled with ‘the blood of the Saints. No, this was just another form of the Pharisees, full of hypocrisy. I am Christian and I make no bones about that belief. A Christian does not judge others by what they don’t know. This has been going on since the dawn of the church. The Ceasers did this because Christianity was a threat to their “divine” authority. Same idea. Anyone with any power (and control) is in constant fear of losing it. This was also a carry over from the inquisition. Although not directly related, the mentality was ingrained by the Church of England. Ergot is the base chemical that LSD is refined from and something allot of people don’t know is that, the CIA actually experimented with it in the 50’s before LSD was actually discovered. They did to an entire French town by feeding moldy bread to that population. The name of the town escapes me at the moment but it’s been declassified and those documents are available.
We have something similar over here in the UK near where I live “the pedal witches” they do alot of ghost tours on pendle hill now and is a big thing on Halloween. People used to be cruel back in the day, they would literally tie people up and throw them in the river, if they drowned, then oops they wernt a witch, and if the floated they where a witch. Obviously no 1 is gonna float if your tied up 🙄🙄
My 11th great grandmother is Susanna North Martin. She was one of the women hanged in Salem. She was in her 70s and accused of witchcraft 3 times. The third being her undoing. She was a very strong woman and refused to admit a lie and was said to be well spoken and defiant in a way that men didn’t like and still sometimes don’t like. My 11th great grandmother also scoffed at the girls who in her words “I would never fall for such folly”. I heard that Sarah good said that in the same wagon of my great grandmother on their way to the gallows. He had said to her “just admit it already youre a filthy witch.” Then she said the blood thing. Thats just what was passed down from my family. My 11th great grandmother was hanged in front of her children and grandchildren and upheld her innocence even as an elderly woman and even after being examined naked multiple times while they were looking for a teat that she fed the devil with. They apparently said her breasts look less full the second time they examined so they said she had fed the devil between the time they had examined her before… in jail…. but my family has always been lead to believe from our family stories that it was hysteria after many years of accusations and rumors. Like my 11th great grandmother was accused of giving birth in a barn to a DEMON BABY (in a barn because it was not her husband’s kid) and strangling the baby and while a person walked into the barn she said if he spoke of it he would also be strangled. But she already had kids and a husband and she had not been pregnant.
So on the way back to my home state from Maine, we actually stopped in Salem and let me just say, entering the town and knowing its history–it left me with a poor taste in my mouth. Entering the Salem MA, there was an eerie vibe to the place and walking through the cemetery (where those who perished due to the hysteria) left me mostly upset and kinda angry. The Salem Witch Trials is a fascinating time in history riddled with theories on what truly happened there. Were there real witches? Probably not. Are ley lines to be blamed? Maybe. But what I do know is the hysteria definitely caused people to accuse friends and family that they were witches. If you ever have the chance, it’s definitely a place to visit from a historical standpoint. (Also there’s a Harry Potter shop but I digress)
When it comes to the Salem Witch Trials I think it was a combination of all the above. With that being said, that doesn’t mean there wasn’t a tiny bit of truth to the whole ordeal. Who knows, maybe there were a select few who were in fact practicing witches. There could’ve been a few people or a small group that did practice witchcraft. If that’s true than a whole lot of innocent people were killed for nothing. It’s so difficult to honestly say what really happened and what the true cause was. At this point we can only speculate.
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I really really like your articles I can’t tell you enough LOL even if it’s some thing I know a lot about you explain it in a way that is still fresh that makes any sense and by the way I think that your body weight has nothing to do with psychedelics they affect your brain so it’s really more of like how you metabolize it children usually do have a higher metabolism though
I am probably one of the least religious people you’ll come across and I believe there is a scientific answer for everything. I think everything had a role to play in the event. From the strict religious beliefs to the hallucinogenic fungi. I think the pasture used the Fungus to make the children go mad, which led to a mass hysteria and innocent people dying.
John Putnam is my 11th great grandfather, (sadly) his daughter, Ann was one of the accusers. Giles Cory witnessed a deed of land bought by Thomas flint. My eldest relative whose last name is still carried today (by me) some of his land was absorbed into Flint land. Another fun fact, The other judge, John hathorne (my 9th great grandfather) was also the (2nd?) great grandfather to the famous author Nathaniel Hawthorne who added a W to his name to distance himself from his puritan relatives ! Last fun fact if I don’t have a boy the flint name will die ! (Which I think may be the right thing) hahaha
Just to make a it about clear on titubas heritage: she was a indigenous woman either from the Caribbean coast of Venezuela, Guyana Or Barbados. She was from a Arawakan Group(which is a umbrella term for people and a language native to the Caribbean and South America) but was only profiled as Black due to Racism,Colorism and Racial Biases and Racial Biased Profiling. She really didn’t told them about dark magic or Voodoo as she wasn’t a practitioner of it but she told them stories on her people’s spirits/deities and her practices as a indigenous woman.
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My ancestor was Joseph Capen, he was the puritan pastor of the church in Topsfeild MA ( right next to Salem). He was married to Pricilla Appleton, the Appletons were a very well known family who still run Appleton farm in Ipswich MA. He was one of the only well known people who stood up to the courts and all of his “friends” that were accusing these women of witch craft, pleading that they let them go. I have a few books about the Capens, one specifically is called Simply, Pricilla. It’s about Pricilla’s life with Joseph and building their home, which is STILL standing, me and my kids went and visited it last year. I do believe a lot of women died unjustly in those trials, but I do believe witch craft is real. My grandmother, whose mother was Lola Capen (daughter of John Capen) was a member of the Order of the Eastern Star witches in Massachusetts and she was veryyyy evil. She abused my mother until my mother was 14 and found my grandmother dead. I don’t want to get into too much detail but she used a gun to harm herself. My grandfather was the Captain of the police force at the time so it was an open and shut case. Sorry for the long post, this just is fascinating to me because since I was young I have known some of this stuff and always wondered why. Once I got into the genealogy of my family it made a little more sense.
Giles Corey was my favorite character in The Crucible/the true story/whatever. He’s like a 70-something year old in the 1600’s which, I would think would be like being 100+ today, and they’re trying to smash him and his last words were “More weight”.. Dude’s a boss. And it doesn’t matter if they had really cursed them with witchcraft or whatever – that’s bad karma to murder half your town for no reason – to smash an old man for not entering a plea, much less having been found guilty… So yeah, with the bad things that happened to them, I’d imagine God, karma, Voodoo demigods, the universe, etc – the whole team – was going to repay Salem for what they did to these people.
Puritan theology wasn’t what he taught he taught a perverted form, sorry I am a theology nerd and the puritans just believed in a more simple life but were often mocked for not blaming everything on the devil which caused a split. As for the blood I don’t think it was a curse I think it was God who punished him for killing innocent women people often think God changes between testaments. Not trying to preach but I don’t think they were witches just poor people accused by nut jobs.
If you’re interested in the first theory check out the book Poisons Of The Past by the scientist that advanced the theory. It’s not really disputed that grain was infected during grain shortages during cold and wet times, and that it often led to peasant rebellions, wars and disease. She pretty well backs up the stuff well enough in the book with dozens of proven historical examples. St Vitus’ dance, or dance hysteria, was often caused by ergot or other food poisoning they now say. Most historical examples of mass hysteria are now theorized to be caused by poisoning actually. Look into this book. At the time some things seemed outlandish that have now been proven or the evidence leans that way. Mass hysteria happening by coincidence is not a valid explanation. Even some religious phenomena like Jesus’ resurrection could be explained by it
Salem Massachusetts is my hometown. I was born and raised there and Lynn which is two towns over. Salem has a lot of history. It’s a creepy town. Walk around at night down a dark street and you’ll never feel alone. You should check out and do a article on Danvers State Hospital. Session 9 was filmed there before they turned it into apartments. It’s one of the darkest places on Earth. I dated a girl in the Putnam family in high school and a little after. Very old family.
They weren’t enemies of the Putnams… They were the half siblings of the elder Putnams who got daddies fortune when he died. They lived in Salem Village rather than Salem Town. They were also much poorer than the children of the first wife. Which was why their father gave them everything, rather than the eldest son, as tradition dictated. So no, they weren’t really enemies, but family.
My theory is that it was just a bunch of delusions because if you are raised your entire life believing that storytelling is from the devil and then you have someone who comes into your life and tells you stories of course are gonna be freaked out and think the devil is getting you because you’ve been brainwashed to think that since you were born
Ergot was disproven. Some other things messed about the situation is those who blamed others of witchcraft got to devide property and money between town and the accuser. To add to this if you denied or accepted accusation of witchcraft your possessions were taken this is why Giles Corey didn’t say anything besides more weight. The history went even more in depth; i learned a lot while I was in salem. Danvers is original salem if I’m not mistaken the current salem isn’t te same as the original if anyone visits. Just to blow some peoples minds the first witch trials in America actually took place in Connecticut. And the spot where witch hangings took place still exists today its called proctors ledge.