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Mental Illness In Salem Witch Trials

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Mental Illness in Salem Witch Trials Introduction Witchcraft is the practice of magic and the use of spells and the invocation of spirits. According to Salem Witch Trials, 2015, the Salem witch trials began during the spring of 1692, after a group of young girls in Salem, Massachusetts claimed to have been bewitched by several adults in the town. More than 150 people were accused and hung, including men, women, and children (Salem Witch Trials, 2015). There were three girls in particular that sparked the trials: Abigail Williams, Betty Parris, and Ann Putnam. Also stated in Salem Witch Trials, their behaviors changed drastically; they began to hallucinate, shout in church, have fits, not eat, not wake up, attempt to fly, and feel as if they …show more content…

It is where someone’s expectations influence someone else’s behavior and reaction to something. In The Crucible, Reverend Parris expected the girls to continue acting as though they were possessed and Abigail expected the girls to have a fit whenever she did, so that may have been why all of the girls acted out. The Placebo Effect goes right along with the Self Fulfilling Prophecy. The Placebo Effect is a change in a person 's’ illness or behavior that results from a belief that the situation is actually happening (Placebo Effect, 2015). If the girls truly thought that they were possessed by the devil, then they probably tricked their minds into believing that, therefore their bodies reacted in unexplainable ways. These two theories are both also possible explanations. How It Could Have Been …show more content…

In Europe in 1999, more than 100 students in Belgium got sick after drinking Coca-Cola. Scientists examined the beverage and saw that there wasn’t anything to cause real damage and that it was a case of mass hysteria triggered by the scare of mad cow disease and dioxin-tainted animal products (10 Incredibly Insane Cases of Mass Hysteria, 2014). Post traumatic stress disorder is often seen in soldiers that have come back from war. Commonly seen, when soldiers are back at home and hear a loud noise, they automatically take guard because they think the loud noise was a gun fire, bomb, etc (Two Stories of PTSD,

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Why did Salem experience Mass Hysteria in 1692? The Salem Witch Hysteria (SWH) was a major event that occurred from 1692-1693. The event comprised of widespread hysteria that many witches were working with the devil to destroy the puritans. It started when various young girls began to fall on the ground into convulsions and fits, screaming the names of various people and accusing seemingly random people of practising witchcraft.

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In Massachusetts during 1692, Salem Village underwent a time of grief, trial, death, and Witchcraft. The chaos in Salem Village began when young girls would have what they called “fits” and they would scream vey vulgarly and fall onto the ground and shake uncontrollably (Magoon 6). These fits frightened the surrounding people and the Doctors of Salem couldn't find a diagnosis. After studying and trying to understand the illness they had, the people of Salem came to the conclusion that these girls were possessed by the Devil (Magoon 7). The result would lead to one of the most recognized events in American History, the Salem Witch Trials.

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The Salem Witch Trials of 1692 in Massachusetts are historically known as the tragic event where many people were accused of witchcraft and 19 of those innocent individuals were found guilty and then executed. These individuals were accused by a group of young girls that claimed that they were ‘bewitched"or possessed by the devil. These girls were experiencing symptoms such as hallucinations, convulsions, etc. Doctors then could not diagnose this, so they turned to blame it on witchcraft. In 1976, Linnda Caporael, who is a historian, developed a theory that ergot poisoning was the cause of the Salem Witch Trials.

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When Elizabeth “Betty” Parris, Abigail Williams, and the other young girls started to experience strange fits and hallucinations, doctors struggled to find the cause, as Gale Encyclopedia of U.S. History explains, “The girls began having hallucinations and strange physical ailments, some of them babbling incoherently. Doctors were called in and diagnosed witchcraft”. Most of them had never heard of an extreme case like Salem was encountering, so it was hard for them to diagnose exactly what the problem was. Eventually, “they [doctors] deemed the symptoms to be so unusual as to be supernatural, essentially passing the problem on to religious leaders. From that point the problem was viewed as a spiritual one, and the ministers became involved” (Carlson 51).

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What Caused the Witch Trial Hysteria of 1692? Nineteen people hung and one was pressed to death but what for? Boredom and hatred filled people’s empty lives in 1692, especially in Salem. The biblical quote, “Thou shalt not suffer a witch to live” was taken seriously, and a feud between the east and west side of the town caused controversy.

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Due to religion, lying, and health problems, it caused the Salem Witch Trial Hysteria of 1692 to occur. Religion was important to the Puritans in their daily life. They would take every word from God and turn them into action. Without religion in their life, then the Puritans would not have come to New England. Religion was an extensive impact on the repercussion of the Salem Witch Trial.

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The lying caused the witch trial hysteria. In 1692,In salem massachusetts. The puritans believed of what they read in the bible and becasue of the fales accusations twenty people died. One of them was a man and he was pressed to death. The three causes of the salem witch trails were the dividing towns,lying,and age.

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Possible Medical Explanations to Explain the Afflicted Girls’ Behavior During the Salem Witch Trials in Salem Village, Massachusetts of 1692 Through 1693 Angela Weaver Kankakee Valley High School Possible Medical Explanations to Explain the Afflicted Girls’ Behavior During the Salem Witch Trials in Salem Village, Massachusetts of 1692 Through 1693 Angela Weaver Kankakee Valley High School Introduction Many are quick to judge the young afflicted girls of the Salem Witch Trials of 1692 through 1693, proclaiming that the afflicted were just desperate for attention, but there may potentially be actual medical explanations in the logic behind this bewitchment. Medical experts have found possible explanations for the young girls’ behavior.

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Hysteria During the salem Witch Trials in February 1692 and May 1693 there was a serious case of mass Hysteria. It started when a group of young girls were seen dancing in the woods and claimed to be possessed by the devil, and accused several other women in the town of practicing witchcraft (MacGowan, Douglas). At this time in the village many people had uncontrollable emotion because they were scared of the people that were accused of being witches, and of someone accusing them of being a witch. During this time of mass Hysteria if you were accused of being a witch, or practicing witchcraft you were going to be hung.

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“The infamous Salem witch trials began during the spring of 1692, after a group of young girls in Salem Village, Massachusetts, claimed to be possessed by the devil and accused several local women of witchcraft.” Along with many citizens falling ill and failing to improve, village doctor, William Griggs, diagnosed these women and men as possessed

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Ignorance of medical and scientific explanations: Puritan attitudes towards the witch trials were largely governed by the authoritative figures present at the time. Any medical explanation given was disregarded, thus showcasing how the villagers’ views could be easily manipulated. They chose to only consider two possible extremes for the cause of this outbreak; either the women were possessed or they were fabricating such behaviors. Chadwick Hansen describes the behavior of the bewitched being a 'neurotic syndrome '. It was known patients experiencing this disorder turned "their mental worries into physical symptoms such as blindness, paralysis of various parts of the body, choking, fainting, or attacks of pain"(The

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As word of the illness spread, more young girls started experimenting with forms of white witchcraft (Findling 159-160). This resulted in a growing number of girls behaving in the same odd manner. More symptoms were experienced by the girls including howling, spitting, and the feeling of being pinched (Jones n. pag.). The behavior of the girls in Salem Village, Massachusetts was similar to that of hysteria. According to Findling, hysteria is commonly referred to as temporary excitement or the victim’s loss of self-control.

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In the Salem Witch first instance of witchery is Betty/Elizabeth Parris, along with Abigail Williams when they started to scream and giggle uncontrollably, along with delusions, vomiting, muscle spasms, screaming, and writhing. William Griggs, a physician, diagnosed witchcraftery to the women. Soon, fueled by resentment and paranoia, more and more women were accused of being witches, while the community and system of justice piled up. The Trials had lasted from 1692 to 1693. Some women acted peculiar because of a fungus called “Ergot” that grew on cereals and wheat.

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The first four colonies of America were, New Hampshire, Massachusetts Bay Colony, Rhode Island, following with Connecticut. John Winthrop, Thomas Hooker, Roger Williams, along with Anne Hutchinson, were few of the founders of the first colonies. Centered around religion, after escaping religious persecution, these colonies based the way they lived their lives around the Bible, Church, along with the New testament. The Puritans emphasized religious obligations and followed strict guidelines pertaining to the Bible. They broke away from the church of England and became their own religion following the teachings of the Bible as well as the Old Testament.

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A group of young girls began to behave strangely, complaining of physical maladies, visions, and trembling, and babbling uncontrollably. They blamed their behavior on three village women who, the girls believed, practiced witchcraft upon them. (“Salem Witch Trials” Gale). Women who were accused of witch crafted were imprisoned, then hanged, drowned and stoned (Karlsen). Throughout 1692, 156 women were accused of witchcraft, and 20 of them were sentenced to death (Karlsen).

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