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How Did Witchcraft Occur In Salem, Massachusetts?

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The idea of witchcraft originated from unexplainable events due to stress and hardships, which demonstrates human tendency to place blame on other people for things beyond their control. Although Salem was not alone in its idea of witchcraft, it is definitely the most memorable. The Salem witch trials took place in Salem, Massachusetts in 1692 (2009). Tensions in the area were high in the colony due to disease and fear. This angst caused people to place blame on anything they could. Since religion was such a high priority in the colony, they looked to it for their answer. People were also doing physically unexplainable things. Modern medicine was not available and they did not have an explanation for diseases and other conditions like there are today. All of this fear and uncertainty led to the idea of witchcraft.
Stressors on the Conoly
Salem was originally settled by the Puritans in 1628. Their charter was revoked due to religious reasons in 1684. A new charter replaced the original one in 1692 (2013), which caused tensions in the air to be high and Puritans felt like there under attack. They had left England due to religious persecution and did not want to deal with the same issues in their new colony. This caused feelings of anxiety to fill the colony. …show more content…
They stayed together for protection. The colony was surrounded by Native Americans that were not exactly thrilled that the colonists were there. Native Americans were angry that colonists were taking over their land. If individuals left the colony, they were in danger of being attacked and killed by a Native American. The need for security caused the people to fear being kicked out of the society. They did and said whatever it took to stay in the protection of the group. This probably caused feelings of angst and fear. These feelings led to the idea of

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