The Affliction: Physical or Psychological?

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The Affliction:

Physical or Psychological?

Frank Lin, Period 1


        They were shameless in their claims. They were ruthless in their allegations. In the spring of 1692, a group of young girls set off a fire of immeasurable proportions in the sleepy town of Salem, Massachusetts, and when the smoke finally cleared more than a year later, twenty-four innocent men and women were left dead. The gentle Mary Parker, the outspoken Martha Corey, the pious Rebecca Nurse – no matter who the victims were, the girls pursued them with a relentless devotion. They mercilessly accused anyone they despised (and later, simply anyone) of witchcraft. In court, they screamed and moaned hysterically as soon as any glimmer of hope emerged for the accused. Their fitful cries sealed the fates of every single one of their victims, often serving as the only evidence that would condemn the innocent to hang. All this, and one cannot help but be confounded by one simple question: what caused the girls to go to such an extent just to see their neighbors die?

        At the center of the Salem Witchcraft Trials were three strikingly different individuals: Betty Parris, a shy, timorous, and reasonably conscience-guided nine-year-old girl, Abigail Williams, her strong-willed, domineering eleven-year old cousin, and Tituba, their house-slave and caretaker for most of the winter before the accusations began. Were these accusations a quest for attention? Or did these girls truly suffer from some inexplicable condition? Only after a careful study of these three figures can any reasonable conclusion be formed.

        One often-cited explanation for the girls’ outlandish behavior and subsequent onslaught of accusations was the explosive release of repressed fascination, or perhaps fear, of the supernatural and an intense and overwhelming guilt. The winter before the accusations began was long, cold, and harsh for the residents of Salem. It was during this time that Tituba began looking for “any opportunity to interrupt her work schedule and idle the time away with the children” (Rice Jr., 18). An indolent worker, Tituba frequently took breaks during the day to tell exotic stories to Betty and Abigail, both of whom were eager listeners. Because they were often left without the supervision of Betty’s father, Reverend Parris, who spent much of his time outside the home, Tituba began embellishing her stories with “tricks, spells, and voodoo chantings” (Rice Jr., 19).

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        It is easy to see why Betty and Abigail would be so enthralled by Tituba’s fantastic tales. Repressed by the rigors of Puritanism, and bored by the isolation of a long winter, the girls turned to Tituba’s storytelling as a source of much-needed diversion. And while both of the girls followed Tituba into an exploration of what was clearly dark and evil, it was Abigail who “actively urged Tituba to reveal more and more of her macabre knowledge” (Rice Jr., 20). This suggests the differences in the two girls’ characters; Betty feared God, the devil, and eternal damnation, while Abigail ...

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