What has been suggested to explain the girls' actions?
In the early 1960s little girls of the Salem village commenced the exercise of fortune telling as much as the act was considered as demonic in the Puritan society. Within a short time, the girls started encountering strange illnesses, fits and they would contort their bodies into weird positions. Some of the afflicted girls included Abigail Williams, Ann Putman, and Elizabeth Parris. Elizabeth’s father, Samuel Parris, was a reverend at the village and was sure that prayers would cure the odd behaviors depicted by the girls but his efforts bore no effective fruits. A local doctor, William Griggs, was brought to diagnosis the girls and concluded that the cause of conditions was the “Evil hand” which he termed as witchcraft. Upon consultation with other ministers, they all came into agreement with the doctor’s diagnosis ( Loiselle, 2009).
What is said by Putnam in her deposition? Note whether you think Putnam's confession is really a confession, and if not, who or what does she blame?
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Ann’s deposition during the early 1960s was a testimony to having seen Goody Nurse’s apparition that immediate afflicted her. Putman claims that she was not aware of her name then and all that she knew was her sitting position in their meeting house. It testifies that it is since then that Ann began not only biting and pricking but also pinching herself. Additionally, during Rebekah's examination day, she reencountered the apparition and ended up torturing Putman and her afflicted fellows ( Loiselle, 2009) .
Ann Putman made a public apology in 1706 for the part had participated in during the witch trial. I would however not regard it as an actual confession. For a reason, she shifts the blame to another party and does not acknowledge herself as the one to solely blame. According to her, she felt that Satan deluded her to being an instrument of shedding innocent blood.
Describe your own explanation for the actions of these young people.
The weakening of the bodily powers for the young girls could have been pretty convincing to the villagers. However, I believe that this could have been due to the long-continued straining of their muscular and the nervous system during their attack episodes. Such vehement practices could have been detrimental to their constitutions. It is hardly impossible that such utmost power regarding imaginative and physical performance in crowded and heated rooms did not affect their health status.
Describe your experience going through the interactive activity.
It was quite a sad encounter especially because innocent children were being exploited to eradicate lives of others. At some point, I experienced anger towards the adults using the children for their benefits without keeping the children's health in mind. For instance, it is a sad affair when Putnam’s father maliciously exploits her to accuse Rebekah’s involvement with “witchcraft” only due to some land disputes that existed between the two adults. Ann’s father does this without considering her psychological wellbeing once she grows up and tries to come into the number of deaths she was somehow responsible for during the trials. In general, I felt that these innocent souls should be remembered as people and not wicked witches.
The Puritans were Christians, but how have things changed today?
The Puritans were firm believers of Christianity. In fact, they would pray for hours and probably attend 15,000 of preaching’s in a lifetime. However, some of them were involved in malicious acts. For instance, ministers at the Salem village are first drawn the diagnosis of the girls by religion though they all agree to the judicial proceedings. In today’s modern world, their perceptions have entirely transitioned to the better. Some of their values have been definitively abandoned due to the increased cross-cultural communication ( Loiselle, 2009) . For instance, this can be seen through increased levels of laziness and fornication. However much the system still exists the strict moral codes have somehow been discarded.
References
Loiselle, B. (2009). Salem witch trials . Toledo, Ohio: Great Neck Publishing.
