Salem Possessed: The Social Origins of Witchcraft is an academic work that focuses on the Salem witch trials. The book, first published in 1974 by Harvard University Press, proposes an alternate explanation for the phenomena of witch hysteria and its particular significance to the town of Salem, Massachusetts. Critics praised the book for its novel take on this well-known subject. It falls within the nonfiction genres of popular culture, social sciences, and colonial American history. The book spans the years 1640 to the beginning of the eighteenth century, with a focus on the time of the witch trials from fall 1691 to summer 1692. The content is presented via third-person narrative, and all of the events are set in Salem Village. Despite having an intellectual and scholarly tone, the work is nonetheless suitable for a wide reading readership.
Boyer and Nissenbaum give a broad overview of what happened in 1692 in the first two episodes. Despite the fact that witch trials had almost disappeared from Europe, they were revived in the New World, especially among Puritan settlers. This was largely a result of theologians like Cotton Mather and Joseph Glanvill who advanced the idea that demons and bad spirits existed and that to reject their existence was to deny the existence of God.
Teenage and teenage females were particularly susceptible to the idea that there were witches living in Salem, with Elizabeth Hubbard, at seventeen, being the main proponent of the claims. Hubbard was one of four females who were visibly having seizures, which to bystanders did not seem usual or epileptic. In February 1692, three women were initially accused of being the witches who were to blame for these outbursts, making them all convenient targets for the Puritans: Tituba, an African American slave from South America, Sarah Osborne, a widow who occasionally attended church and offended them by remarrying, and Sarah Good, a destitute beggar.
From that point on, more and more individuals of the town were accused of being witches and appeared before local magistrates John Hathorne and Jonathan Corwin over the course of the following few months. By May, there were 62 people in care, and at least one had passed away while being held, Sarah Osborne. Sixty-two people were under care by May, and at least one, Sarah Osborne, had passed away while being held.
The accused were officially prosecuted in June by Crown’s Attorney Thomas Newton and Lieutenant Governor William Stoughton. Bridget Bishop, the initial suspect, was accused by a grand jury of leading a corrupt lifestyle and fumblingly tearing her coat. Bishop became the first person put to death as part of the Salem Witch Trials on June 10 after the magistrates deemed her guilty based on this evidence. 18 more people would be hung, including five men, while another was crushed to death and countless others passed away while being held. The last trial took place in May 1693.
The first church in Salem was built in 1639, and throughout the course of the next three chapters, the authors go back in time to describe the beginning of the town’s development as a whole. The separation between Salem Town, a thriving commercial center, and Salem Village, an agribusiness-based settlement, may be inferred as a topographical and sociological division in the area. Despite the division between the two distinct municipalities, there was still a cultural conflict within Salem Village because some families desired a closer relationship with the commercial Salem Town while others preferred to remain isolated in their horticultural economy out of fear of ceding control to Salem Town.
The Porters and the Putnams, two families that conveniently symbolized this widening difference, are examined by the writers in Chapter 5. John Putnam, 65, and John Porter, 46, the scions of every family, were successful and well-respected farmers. The Porter family, despite being led by a younger, presumably more contemporary patriarch, lived near to Salem Town and desired a greater relationship with that commercial neighborhood. The Putnams, on the other hand, steadfastly stuck to this course of action and adopted an increasingly insular attitude. The way Samuel Parris, the town preacher and an extraordinary but dubious person in the community, supported the Putnams was confusing.
Throughout the following sections, the writers examine the historical record surrounding the claims and discern evidence that these fighting families, their respective followers, and the financial ideas they represented are critical to understanding the Salem Witch Trials. For example, the Putnam tribe or its associates documented the great bulk of the grumblings accusing inhabitants of witchcraft. According to the writers, the Salem Witch Trials were caused in large measure by economic difficulties, as the agricultural Salem Village strove to counter the social changes brought about by the emergence of the more commercial Salem Town.
The authors assume a direct causal link between socio-economic conduct and individual behavior. In fact, the authors are able to link practically all human motivation to money. However, one may legitimately question if this practice obscures other, equally fantastic ideas, particularly ones involving misogyny. It goes without saying that women made up the majority of those accused of and put to death for practicing witchcraft. Overall, Salem Possessed is a fascinating look at the culture of Salem during this brief but disastrous period of hysteria.