Cotton Mather, portrait by Peter Pelham, around 1700
The rest of this week, we're reading selections that deal with the infamous Salem Witch trials.
What exactly is the definition of a witch and/or witchcraft? Surprise--there's not just one definition.
Cotton Mather was a famous preacher in Boston, and much of his writing chronicles the history of the early Puritans. According to our anthology, the Norton Anthology of American Literature, shorter 7th edition, "He is often blamed for the Salem witchcraft trials...but he never actually attended one. His greatest crime was in not speaking out against those who he knew had exceeded the limits of authority. Mather saw the devil's presence in Salem as a final campaign to undermine and destroy religious community" (143). In the selections we're reading, Mather's stated goal is to chronicle the events as a historian rather than a theologian.
The woman in question is Martha Carrier. Examining her trial, as reported by Mather, in conjunction with bits of her biography, might help us question why she was accused of being a witch. Was it because she was an outspoken woman who questioned her place in the Puritan hierarchy? Was it because she was unjustly blamed for a smallpox outbreak? And, we might also ask why women in general were more likely to be accused of practicing witchcraft.
To see the progression of the witchcraft trials, check out this interactive website that shows the people involved over the entire month of March 1692. This website includes a variety of primary texts related to the trials. And this site includes useful narrative along with a timeline of events.
This National Geographic website includes a freaky interactive trial to simulate being part of the Salem witchcraft hunt and trial.
To plan a trip to modern day Salem, Massachusetts, look no further than the official tourist guide. Make sure to check out the Salem Witch Trial Memorial.
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