Salem Witch Trials Dbq Analysis

What caused the Salem Witch Trials of 1692? This question has been asked for over 300 years. Although this is a simple question it does not have an easy answer. Overall, 141 people were arrested as 19 were hanged and one person crushed to death. Researchers describe the Salem witch trials as a series of court trials that were aimed at prosecuting persons who had been accused of witchcraft. The trials took place between 1692 and 1693 . Prior hearings of the Salem witch trials were carried out in several different towns. The major trial was conducted by the Court of Oyer and Terminer situated in Salem town . Several people were rounded up and charged with witchcraft. Some of those arrested died in prison. Of the accused, 14 women and 5 men were hanged. There were fears about religious extremists as many critics perceived witchcraft as being …show more content…
Many problems within the society were attributed to the witches living in the town of Salem. At the time of their arrest, most of them were found with things believed to be used to propagate their activities.
First off, The accusers were mainly crowds of young people mainly ranging under the age of 21 years old who were mostly unmarried. Many say that the accusations were because they were jealous poor people. According to Document E many of the accusers were on the poor side of the community while many of the accused were on the wealthier side. For reasons that no one is sure the Rever girls began to have strange and violent fits. Maybe the girls actually believed they were possessed but I think it was just a stunt they pulled for attention that got out of control when it was fueled by paranoid adults. The 17th century puritans believed in witchcraft