Salem Witch Trials example essay topic

Hysteria What is hysteria? By definition, hysteria is a state of intense agitation, anxiety, or excitement, especially as manifested by large groups or segments of society. In a broader sense however, hysteria is a killer, the delitescent devil. More specifically, hysteria was the main cause of nineteen deaths in the Salem Witch Trials of 1692, and countless ruined reputations on account of Joe McCarthy. Hysteria does not just appear out of nowhere though.

There are driving forces such as revenge and abuse of power that bring about the irrational fear that can take over society. These are the issues expressed in Arthur Miller's The Crucible. The Crucible is paralleled directly to the Salem Witch Trials and indirectly to the McCarthy hearings of the 1950's. The story of The Crucible takes place against the background of the Salem Witch, trials but the themes lie much deeper. The main themes expressed in The Crucible relate to the events that occurred at both the Salem Witch Trials and during the McCarthy era. At the Salem Witch Trials, one hundred fifty people were accused of practicing witchcraft and nineteen of those were convicted and executed.

The evidence against these people was hardly substantial. At the McCarthy hearings, thousands of people were "blacklisted". Anyone who tried to oppose the accusations was also viewed as a Communist. No one was convicted due to the more advanced legal system; still, that did not erase the fear that was instilled by the allegations.

In 1692, the small town of Salem, Massachusetts was in a state of unrest. The farming families in the western part wanted to split from the town and form Salem Village. These separatists felt that Salem's increasing economy was creating individualism and taking away from the communal nature of Puritanism. The family leading these separatists was the Putnam family. They started a congregation under Reverend Samuel Parris, which only increased division between the two blocs. The children of Salem did not have many forms of entertainment, especially during the winter.

There were no movies or radios, and the adults were always busy with work. Many took to reading as a form of entertainment. The young people of the town became interested in books about fortune telling and prophecies. Some formed a circle led by Tituba, slave of Reverend Parris. Among those in the circle were Betty Parris, the Reverend's daughter, and Abigail Williams, his niece. When Betty and Abigail began acting strangely, and a physician could not determine the cause, he blamed it on witchcraft, thus beginning months of ludicrous accusations and executions.

Many in the Salem society readily accepted the witchcraft accusations because witchcraft was highly feared and frowned upon in the Puritan code. It was defined as entering into a pact with the devil in exchange for certain powers to do evil. Witchcraft was a grave sin because it denied the supremacy of God, and a crime because the devil was called upon to perform cruel acts against others. Betty and Abigail wished to take the focus off themselves, so they began accusing the "witches" who had "afflicted" them. The first three to be accused were Tituba, Sarah Good, and Sarah Osborne.

They were easy targets because of their low social status and lack of church attendance. As time went on, members of Salem saw how easy it was to accuse someone of witchcraft and revenge became a huge factor. Men with high military rankings, and their wives, were accused because of sour feelings over military losses. Religious leaders, such as Reverend George Burroughs, were accused if they did not follow the Puritan Code to the letter.

Abigail Williams accused Elizabeth Proctor of witchcraft simply because she harbored feelings of resentment towards her and her husband John. Personal vengeance was a main cause for accusation. Things really got out of hand when people were being hanged because their specters were causing a disturbance. As one man puts it, Bridget Bishop could be not be punished because of her nuisance chickens, but was hanged because her specter had escaped her yard and scared her neighbor, John Louder. The people of the town must have known how ridiculous these charges were but were afraid to admit it. They were afraid of what the "witches" would do to their families and ultimately afraid of being accused of witchcraft themselves.

No one was safe from the accusations and a person was almost guaranteed to be accused if they stood up to the court and accusers. It just goes to show how a little fear, a little panic, and a couple of wild teenagers can create a widespread hysteria and make this hysterical society cause its own downfall. A similar thing happened with the McCarthy hearings in the 1950's. It was not long after World War II, the cold war was taking place and Americans abhorred Communism.

There was an unspoken but very real fear of Communists and the possibility of them overthrowing the American government. Senator Joseph McCarthy saw this weakness in American society and used it create a rampant panic. Just as in the Salem Witch Trials, people grabbed onto these accusations because they were willing to do anything to rid the nation of Communism. Many people were instrumental in ingraining thoughts of dread and antipathy towards Communists in the minds of Americans. Among these was a little known Senator who would remain silent for long. Joseph McCarthy was a fairly obscure man from Wisconsin.

His name was forgettable, but his resentment was not to be ignored. By 1954, everyone in America knew the name McCarthy, and that name was affiliated with one of the most despicable times in history, the era of McCarthyism. McCarthy, and all others involved in the anticommunist movement, believed that all Communists act a certain way and all Communists act the same way. There were certain things that Communists seemingly did that set them apart from other people.

Communists were supposedly more intelligent and definitely more deceptive than the average American. It was believed that Communists destroyed their families and Communist mothers were both overbearing and neglectful of their children. This stereotype broadened the horizons, so to speak, and made it much easier to seek out and accuse alleged Communists. With such a general label, no one was safe from accusation, especially those opposed to the McCarthy movement. On February 9, 1950, McCarthy claimed he had a list of two hundred five Communists in the State Department. As the pressure was turned on, he changed the numbers and eventually was forced to give all the names on his list to the President.

McCarthy was desperate and scrambled for names. He accused anyone from Hollywood stars to renowned teachers; his own mother was not safe. Anyone who supported the war effort or was involved with China was accused. One man was sent to trial simply because he submitted his name to a list to sponsor war refugees in the Soviet Union. Another man was tried because he reportedly supported Communist China. No evidence was strong enough to convict any of the accused, but hundreds of reputations were ruined.

About one thousand government workers lost their jobs because of "political reasons". Thousands of other people lost their jobs as well because they were suspected Communists, or they sympathized with Communists. Many jobs were reinstated after the subversion of McCarthy but no one could reinstate a good name. In the Salem Witch Trials, and in the McCarthy hearings, deals were made stating that the accused would be freed if they would simply admit to their "crime". Many folded under the pressure and admitted to things they had nothing to do with. Many refused though and stood by their beliefs.

They wouldn't admit to being a witch or a Communist even if death was the penalty. This was one of the best and strongest themes presented in The Crucible. It is better to die an honest man than to live by the shame of a lie. Proctor strongest moment is when he denies his confession, refuses to give in to hysteria and screams "How may I live without my name? I have given you my soul; leave me my name". (Arthur Miller, pg. 143) Hysteria can take over a society in a second and there is hardly anything anyone can do to stop it.

People become caught up in the madness before they even really know what hit them. Once you are part of the hysteria, it is almost impossible to turn back. Something as simple as a teenager having fun, or something a little more serious, such as deep seeded hatred, can lead to a hysterical society. The best thing to do is commit one way or the other. You have to decide to go with the majority or stand up against it. There is no such thing as non-involvement.

John Proctor tried to stay uninvolved but eventually he had to be true to himself and his family and stand up for what he believed in. It ends up costing Proctor his life but he stopped the hysteria. By sitting on the sidelines, Proctor was indirectly contributing to the hysteria. Once he took responsibility, he was a proud man and the hysteria was put to an end. In the final scene of The Crucible, the minister pleads with Elizabeth Proctor to convince her husband to confess. She says "He has his goodness now.

God forbid I take it from him". (Arthur Miller, pg. 145). Hysteria can be started easily and spread like wildfire and can be ended just as effortlessly if one person takes a stand for what is right, no matter what the consequences.

Bibliography

Cited Miller, Arthur. The Crucible, New York: Penguin Books, 1976.
Robinson, Enders A. The Devil Discovered: Salem Witchcraft 1692, New York: Hippocrene Books, 1991 Shr ecker, Ellen.
Many Are the Crimes: McCarthyism in America, New York: Little, Brown and Company, 1998.
Sutter, Tim. "Salem Witchcraft: the events and causes of the Salem witch trials". 2000.
web [available]. (20 January 2001).