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Phi Alpha Theta Pacific Northwest Regional Conference
Trials (Witchcraft) -- Massachusetts -- Salem -- History -- 17th century
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Full-Text Articles in Arts and Humanities
Familiar Ecology: The Demonization Of Spirit Knowledge In Early Modern England And Its Ecological Ramifications, Ryan P. Mealiffe
Familiar Ecology: The Demonization Of Spirit Knowledge In Early Modern England And Its Ecological Ramifications, Ryan P. Mealiffe
Phi Alpha Theta Pacific Northwest Regional Conference
Abstract: During the English witch trials of the mid-sixteenth century to 1735, more was on trial than just the accused humans before the bar. Witch trials also threatened an entire mental landscape, the beings that inhabited it, and their relationships with both the accused and the general populace. This ecological ontology coalesced in the other party on trial: the intersectional helpers known as familiar spirits. Spirits animated the natural world, intermingled with flora and fauna, and impacted many aspects of everyday life, representing a keystone species in popular conceptions of nature in early modern England. The assumption of malevolence present …
A ‘Confessed’ Witch: Tituba And Salem Witchcraft, 1692–1693, Brooke Nicole Nicholson
A ‘Confessed’ Witch: Tituba And Salem Witchcraft, 1692–1693, Brooke Nicole Nicholson
Phi Alpha Theta Pacific Northwest Regional Conference
Abstract: The Salem Witch trials in seventeenth century New England focused on poor women who defied the social order of Puritans. One woman in Salem history who stood out among the women accused of the devil's bidding was Tituba. She was an enslaved servant in the household of Rev. Samuel Parris of Salem Village. She was accused of practicing voodoo due to her otherness stemming from her African or Indian descent. Accused of witchcraft, Tituba “confessed” to having practiced witchcraft and testified against others, leading to their condemnation and execution. In my essay, I will explore this question: Given Tituba’s …