Brandon Pacente
Wrongfully accused research paper
Topic: Alfred Dreyfus Like many, Alfred Dreyfus was wrongfully accused for a crime he did not commit. He was charged with treason in September, 1894. He was accused when French Army Intelligence was found with other papers taken from a German military officer’s office. A quick investigation convinced an anti-Semitic chief Col. Sandherr that Dreyfus was the one who betrayed the French. Other than a somewhat similar hand writing style there was no solid evidence yet on October 15th he was arrested. His hearing was December 19-21; the court found him guilty and charged him with a life sentence. He was then sent to Devils Island to serve his sentence. Some were convinced that he was innocent
…show more content…
So they accused him thinking they found the right guy. They weren't trying to turn his life upside down, they were just trying to do what they though was right. And after people like Picquart found more information that proved Dreyfus's innocence the court still would not change their mind and admit that they were in the wrong. They felt justified in their actions because the army did not want to look weak, and look like they made a mistake. So instead they shortened his sentence which in their minds justified their …show more content…
From one point people were wrongfully convicted of crimes they didn’t commit. They then had to serve the punishment which for Dreyfus was a sentence on Devils Island, but for people in the Crucible most of them were hung. A similar situation occurred in the crucible when Hale, and Parris admitted to Dansforth that they could have made mistakes, and the accused might not actually be witches. Hale said “there is blood on my head”. But Danforth did not want to look weak so he stayed true to his word. This is like Alfred Dreyfus’s situation, evidence was found that proved him innocent but the court would not change their ruling they only shortened his sentence, this is similar to the Crucible because they would not exonerate the accused but would allow them to confess to gain their freedom. The Alfred Dreyfus case is similar to the Crucible in many ways; these two cases are also similar to many other cases because people are wrongfully accused
The Salem witch trials that took place in colonial Massachusetts led to a death toll of 20 people, 19 hanged and one pressed by stones. More than 200 people were accused of practicing witchcraft, or as some Puritans called it “the Devil’s magic.” In Arthur Miller’s The Crucible, a play based on true events, talks about the Salem witch trials, and who was accused and was executed. Although 20 people from the trials were executed effectively, within reason, only two individuals from The Crucible deserve to be pardoned from the crime of witchcraft, John Proctor and Giles Corey. John Proctor, a farmer and husband of Elizabeth Proctor, became accustomed to extreme predicament.
The Hellhole of Andersonville Andersonville, or Camp Sumter, stands out as the worst of the prisoner-of-war camps on either side in the American Civil War. The pressures on the South during the American Civil War created an environment in Andersonville that resulted in a large number of deaths. Prisoners were decimated by disease, dehydration, starvation, overpopulation, and execution during the fourteen months of Andersonville’s existence. It was one of the largest camps during the Civil War holding 45,000 or more prisoners.
The results of the trial in Stamford was that Mercy Disborough was temporarily convicted of witchcraft while Goody Clawson was acquitted. The consequences for Mercy Disborough were that despite months and jail and continued peer accusation, she was acquitted. The consequences for the townspeople are blurrier, but it is evident that persistent hysteria was not one of them. The results of the trial in Stamford were largely reigned in from the massive hysteria and mass convictions associated with contemporary witch trials by the law.
Cameron Oldfield Mrs. Brincks English III 15 November, 2015 The Crucible and Red Scare Imagine being thrown in jail, blamed for something that you didn't do .The Crucible, by Arthur Miller, is a story about how certain propaganda and false accusations can ruin lives, just like in the case of the Red Scare. Although 1692 the Salem witch trials and the Red Scare were over 200 years apart, The similarities are striking. both trials used intimidation, fear, hatred, and false accusations to ruin innocent lives. Both trials resulted in terrible outcomes, with both ending with innocent people being put to death and shunned from society.
This is shown again during interrogation and even in his trial. He answered questions willingly and simply claimed “he had done his duty” (pg.19). The police attempted to get any related anarchist information from him and were
Have you ever wanted to know what really happened in the Boston Massacre. It all started in Boston one fateful day. The British came to Boston and the people of Boston were not happy about it. By examining the boston massacre and the causes of it, It is clear that this was an important part in the revolutionary war. the Boston Massacre was that many of the colonist were upset by the fact that they had to share a house with a british soldier.
“Atzerodt had doubts about his assignment. He would not do it, he said,” (Swanson 27) writes James L. Swanson in his novel Chasing Lincoln’s Killer. George Atzerodt was a slow-witted German member of Booth’s band of conspirators. He enjoyed clothes, food, and fame as provided by John Wilkes Booth, and was involved in the inner Conspiracy, although he refused to take any actions. He was condemned an active conspirator by authorities and hanged for his alleged crimes.
Back in the late sixteen hundreds the people during that time are very strict on religion. During the time a colony in the Americas called the puritans believed in witchcraft. People that are accused are guilty till proven innocent. In the Crucible it portrays injustice by how Danforth is not following court that is ruled by religion, Abigail intimidating the court, and the accused not having proper court rights. The following reasons will explain why the crucible is injustice.
The Salem witch trials were a time period when any individual could be accused of witchcraft for numerous reasons. In The Crucible, Arthur Miller focuses on the deviation of the trials and how the town’s most religious and honest members of the community are tried with witchcraft. John Proctor, the town’s most honest man, is accused of being a witch and must decide if he should confess or not. Proctor’s confession will stop the town from rebelling and uphold the reputations of Deputy Governor Danforth and Reverend Parris. Hale also wishes for Proctor’s confession so he does not have to feel responsible if Proctor were to be hanged for his witchcraft accusations.
For example, Deputy Governor Danforth knew the truth behind witchcraft, but he refused to announce it because he feared that his reputation would be destroyed. Next, Abigail caused many people to be hanged so she denied the truth and kept her name clean. On the other hand, John Proctor died because he valued dignity, and decided not to live with a dirty name. All things considered, many characters in “The Crucible”, valued their reputation among other people more than the truth, which caused other people to get harmed and die. The Witchcraft Trials of 1692 were the cause of the death of a lot of innocent people because having a good reputation was very important to some characters in The Crucible, like Judge Danforth and Abigail.
Since the beginning of time people have gone through trials in court to either be proven innocent or guilty. In the Crucible by Arthur Miller a massive number of people were being convicted in Salem, Massachusetts because of the witch trials. The law of the land states that everyone is above suspicion until they are demonstrated to be guilty by legitimate evidence; in the play the Crucible if a person was accused of an unlawful act they were summons for being a witch and working for the devil without proper confirmation. Citizens in Salem were imposed to establish their innocent or be put to death, which caused conflicting issues in the village.
Danforth: Judge, Jury, and Executioner Judge Danforth’s position in the crucible is the Judge assigned to the proceedings of the Salem witch trials. Instead of treating this immense responsibility with the respect and restraint that is needed, Danforth abused his power by betraying the people of Salem and the Law. He did not listen to the people of Salem defending themselves before inevitably being sent to death; and he cared more about his reputation and the law than he did about peoples’ lives. Danforth was a ruthless power over the people of Salem he demanded respect for himself and the court; and nothing was more important than that.
Also, since The Crucible was written to be parallel to McCarthyism, the same idea is shown. The same situation can be seen in The Crucible as Arthur Miller was influenced by the events that occurred during McCarthyism. In the Crucible, anyone whose name that had been mentioned underwent an investigation and was asked to prove that they were not partaking in witchcraft. Because this task was impossible, the court made rash decisions such as sending people to jail or sentencing them to be hanged. This scenario is seen in the crucible when Rebecca Nurse is accused.
A small group of teenage puritans broke several rules and lied a seemingly innocent lie. That lie turns into a series of hearings where the defendant has two terrible choices. They can either lie and confess to witchcraft that they didn't commit, or hang. That one lie leads to 19 deaths. In Arthur Miller's The Crucible, many characters made crucial decisions that led to the disaster
This demonstrates irony due to the fact that many (if not all) of the accused were convicted of witchcraft with no proof, other than simple testimony and hearsay. The Court became a follower and just went with whatever the accusers were saying, even with the lack of proof, and that was fine with the Court. One would expect that the Court would accept their own witnessing of John Proctor’s confession, but the Court decides that they need proof. This idea can be transferred over to the 1950s in the United States, where instead of witchcraft, it was Communism and Socialism. A person who even somewhat agreed with Communism and used their 1st Amendment rights to convey their idea could be discriminated against and blacklisted from many jobs, and even if they were not a Communist, the same could happen even with little to no proof, just as the supposed witches are in The Crucible.