The Crucible and the duke lacrosse case compare because of the lack of evidence used against them. Danforth, which was the judge in Salem and Michael Byron Nifong, which was the prosecutor of the lacrosse case, were trying everything they could to accuse the people of their courts. For example, Danforth used what he heard based off Abigail Williams, which was a key part of the trials to accuse innocent people such as John Proctor or Elizabeth Proctor who were innocent. There were no witnesses or any type of proof showing that they were involved with witchcraft. This did not stop Danforth from hanging the accusers with the information he
In both the Rosewood Massacre and The Crucible the hysteria started from a rumor and false accusations. Theses accusations started from Fanny claiming a black man raped her to cover up an affair, while in The Crucible Abigail said innocent people were witches who were seeking revenge. The people in both The Crucible and Rosewood the people believed the girls with no questions asked, and many people either got hurt or killed in both. Just like in The Crucible John Proctor went against the law and even say “God is Dead” (Arthur Miller Act
Witches are women thought to possess evil powers. Ursula Southeil, famously known as Mother Shipton, was a witch with a large reputation. She was described as ugly and very disfigured. She was called Hag Face by the locals and her father was believed to be the Devil. Although her misfortunate appearance, she was often thought of as the female Nostradamus.
Causing many suspicion of demonic activity throughout the salem village, hysteria spread quickly as the population ascended to witchcraft creating the act of cynicism. Most conducted these suspicions though dissecting their physical and mental image meaning that most of the civilians would convert to supernatural explanations in order to assume the act of demonic possession and I quote “Good also had a reputation for holding a grudge and for muttering curses against those who crossed her, which would have alarmed her neighbours, not least because many people believed that such curses would work” ( The Salem Witch Hunt, p.69). This quote taken from Sarah Good’s bibliography confirms the suspicions of witchcraft as these sign were depicted as supernatural to the puritans perspective. Being fearful of the devil, most puritans believed that the abnormal should endure punishment as for these acts were created against the church law leading to christian ignorance and disbelief and I quote “They also show how easily people could become convicted that hostile neighbours were wielding occult forces against them”(The Salem Witch Hunt, p.69).
Such similarities include the false imprisonment of innocent people based off of prejudice beliefs and heavily biased justice systems. The Salem Witch Trials began in the year 1692 when several young girls in Salem, Massachusetts were acting so strange that they were believed to be under a witch’s spell (Schiff). When confronted, the girls began accusing others of practicing witchcraft (Schiff). Many people were soon accusing others or being accused of witchcraft; they were being accused for various reasons such as unexplained illnesses, failed crops, or a woman could even be accused if she could open something a man could not (Brandt, p. 38). As stated in Anthony Brandt’s article, An Unholy Mess, “Legally, spectral evidence was not grounds for convicting a witch.
Salem was surprised and scared of what happened during the 1690’s. Rosalyn Schanzer wrote the book Witches! The Absolutely True Tale of Disaster in Salem, which is a book that describes the life in Salem during the witch trials. The witch trials was a period of time when people accused others for being witches and using witchcraft. It was a devastating time for the Puritans.
The Salem Witch Trials started because two young girls fell into fits and convulsions claiming that they had been bewitched. Among the townspeople, these girls’ claims caused hysteria: “an uncontrollable outburst of emotion or fear, often characterized by irrationality, laughter, weeping” (dictionary.com). The whole town was scared of becoming “bewitched” or being accused of being a witch themselves by
Also some people were killed while stepping out of line but that happened at all the camps they were killed because of stepping out of line or mouthing the guards. The Bergen-Belsen Camp has Postwar trials and other camps do not have trails. The bergen belsen camp is one of the best camps in the holocaust time period it had many things that other camps did not.
The Salem girls should be punished for their acts of involuntary manslaughter because when they accused many of witchery even though they weren't witches, most of the accused were hanged. Evidence for this is during a conversation between Reverend Hale and Danforth , when Hale says “I have signed seventy-two death warrants”(Miller.239-243). Evidence shows that after many Court sessions the accused of the Salem girls were appointed to death by hanging which is involuntary manslaughter. The reason why Judge Danforth too should be punished, is that when Abigail left town with stolen money the trials should have ended but he kept continuing them. The evidence for Abigail leaving with stolen money is presented during a conversation between Parris and Danforth, when Parris says “My niece, sir, my niece - I believe she has vanished my strongbox is broke into....
All through history millions of individuals have been shunned, arrested, brutally tortured, prosecuted, and persecuted as witches. One would think that post colonization of the United States these unjust acts to human kind would have ended, but that was not so. In 1692 the Salem Witch Trials took place, an event that was a major catastrophe in United States history. It began when a group of young girls in Salem, Massachusetts declared that they were possessed by the devil and made accusations that several older women were practicing witchcraft and fraternizing with the Devil.
Throughout history there have been many instances where people were put in jail and even killed for no reason. Two examples of this would be The Salem Witch Trials and The Holocaust. These two events have their similarities and differences, but is ultimately the same situation. The Salem Witch Trials started in 1692 in the town of Salem,Massachusetts (Miller,1124). It all started with a group of young girls(Miller,1124).
Was The Crucible historically accurate? It was loosely accurate. A lot of the stories were definitely over dramatized. There were outrageous accusations on almost everyone. Here is how it all started.
The Salem Gazette has the news about the so called “Salem Witch Trials”. These trials began in January of 1692 in Salem, Massachusetts when Betty Parris, Tituba, Abigail Williams, and several other girls were found dancing in the forest, around a fire, in the middle of the night. This suspicious activity led to the hospitalization of young Betty Parris, and the rise of hysteria in our small, farm town. After questioning, none of the girls confessed until they were threatened to be punished.
Introduction George Jacobs Sr. said, “You tax me for a wizard, you may as well tax me for a buzzard I have done no harm.” Although his words were true, many chose to either believe this hysteria or turn the other way. He died along with many other women and men. This was just the start of the many terrors of the Salem witch trials. Yet if you confessed to being a witch then you had a better chance of living, but if you denied you would automatically get hanged.
The Witch Trials By: Natalie Boggs The Salem Witch Trials were a time between 1692 and 1693. It all started when two young girls who lived in Salem, Massachusetts started having theses fits out of nowhere one minute they would perfectly behaved children then the next they would start having these fits. The girls had claimed somebody had bewitched them and that they were possessed by the Devil. Many historians believed that the strange behaviors could be from the Rye the people in Salem had been eating but what the people of Salem didn't know was that there was a deadly bacteria on the Rye that could have caused the girls fits. I know that from research that the Salem Witch Trials where a time that many people claimed to be possessed by the Devil and they accused innocent people of bewitching them.