Salem Witch trials

               

Ausitn Berdal

Miss Fordahl

English III

4/9/14

 

                During the 1600 everyone was coming to the new world. They heard there was a lot of new stuff to offer. A lot of people wanted to make the voyage and explore the new land. The ones that made it here were lucky. The men, women and children who were the new settlers were mostly puritans and Quakers.  Most puritans belonged to the Church of England. They all believed that what they have received and did was a gift from god. They were very religious and believed they were gods first chosen people. Most of the puritans they settled in the new world left their church left because they wanted to create their own new church and religion. They did this because the Church of England was to controlling and wouldn’t let them chose their faith. The Quakers did the same thing they wanted to leave the Church of England so they could have more freedom in their religion so they moved to the new land and started setting up their own colonies and spreading the word like they were told to do.

 

                 “The General History of Virginia” by John Smith.

                John Smith was 16 and left his family to become a soldier and occasional Private.  He did very well at this job and the Virginia Company had recognized it. Smith was named leader of the Virginia Company in 1608. Almost as soon as he was in charge a lot of conflicts broke out. Due to all of the conflicts Smith failed to colonize New England. It is believed that smith was captured by a tribe of Indians and a 16 year old girl led him to freedom. Her name was Pocahontas. After he escaped he was greeted by several hundred Indians and they admired him for his bravery. Smith died in 1631 in London.

                “Of Plymouth Plantation” by William Bradford

                This story talks about new settlers that were trying to leave the Church of England to make their own group of religion that wasn’t a democracy. It talks about how hard it was for them on their voyage. When they finally got to the new land they had a lot of troubles. None of them were prepared for the harsh winters and they had many encounter with the Native American’s.  At first the Indian’s didn’t like the new people but one day an Indian approached the new people and talked to them in fluent English. They made a treaty and began to help each other out. One point in the story it says one night they heard a bunch of noise in the bushes so the leader told several men to fire their muskets and it turned out to be a pack of wolves looking for an easy meal.

William Bradford joined the crusade for religious reform when he was 12. When he was 17 he joined the radical puritans who called for a break against the church. In 1620 he and his wife left behind their 4 year old son to make the voyage to the new world to start a new religious group. During the voyage a lot of disagreements broke out and Bradford became a leader. When they got to the new land Bradford was a strong leader he created a treaty with the Indians that lasted a life time. During his 30 years as governor he kept very well written documents about everything that went on.

                “Sinner in the hands Of an Angry god” by Jonathan Edwards

                This story talks about how the puritans believed they would all hell. It gives a description of hell and eternal damnation.  It talks about god’s wrath on people and how there is no way to escape his wrath. It says that all men are held in the hands of god waiting to be dropped in to the burning pit of hell. A lot of puritans did everything the rite way so they would not be dropped in the pit

Jonathan Edwards was born in Connecticut and enter what is now known Yale university at the age of 12 after he graduated he followed his father and became a puritan minister. When his grandfather died he followed he became the church pastor. Edwards inspired thousands of people in his church but he dismissed the church because he wanted to limit the people. Edwards died in 1758.

                The history of these stories create the Salem witch trials because the people were in a hard time and they believed anything they were told. People said that if you believed god was talking to you and that you did something to make them believe that you were a witch. I did not know much about the witch trials until I read these stories. I thought that they were very interesting and they taught me a lot. The crucible by Arthur miller was different because he talks about the people of the Salem witch trials and how the government black listed them. McCarthyism is the act of prosecuting without having proper evidence. This is what they did to the suspects of the Salem witch trials; nobody had proof of these people doing the thing they were thought to be doing. The government just believed they did this. I believe that the people back then were just crazy. Nobody can be a witch and be tried as one. They just were brainwashed by their own beliefs and did what they thought was rite but was actually completely wrong.