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Salem Witch Trials Rhetorical Analysis

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The Salem Witch Trials; Madness or Logic In Stacey Schiff’s, List of 5 Possible Causes of the Salem Witch Trials and Shah Faiza’s, THE WITCHES OF SALEM; Diabolical doings in a Puritan village, discuss in their articles what has been debated by so many historians for years, the causes of the Salem Witch trials. Schiff and the Faiza, purpose is to argue the possible religious, scientific, communal, and sociological reasons on why the trials occurred. All while making word by word in the writer’s testimony as if they were there through emotion and just stating simply the facts and theories. They adopt the hectic tone in order to convey to the readers the significance, tragedy, logic, loss, and possible madness behind these life changing events, …show more content…

She appeals to the readers with actual details that are raw and unnerving leaving the reader stunned with the 1692 events and how that year started a dreadful chapter in history for the town of Salem. She explains how boredom, rivalries, disputes, personal differences, cold weather, and ergot poisoning were some of the theories in order to show what historians have shared for years about what brought on the mass hysteria to the town. She shares with the readers how truly horrific, whatever the cause was, it had been for the towns people, “America’s tiny reign of terror, Salem represents one of the rare moments in our enlightened past when the candles are knocked out and everyone seems to be groping about in the dark, the place where all good stories begin.” The words of understanding and attempt to find the truth Schiff conveys by having each reason support the one before. She also gives the readers something to familiarize with by referencing Halloween, “Historical truths emerge only with time, after which they are ours, particularly on Halloween, to

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