1. The Salem Witch Trials

2. Do Now With your small groups, answer the questions:
When you think of witches, what comes to mind?
2) What were the Salem Witch Trials? (Summarize)

3. The Salem Witch Trials
1692

4. Which Witch is Which? Witches and Witch-Hunts

5. Witch-Hunts Historical and International Context

6. Essential Questions Why did the Salem Witch Trials occur?
Why does mass hysteria occur?
How do people get caught up in a tragic event such as this?

7. Hysteria- (noun)- behavior exhibiting overwhelming or unmanageable fear or emotional excess (Merriam-Webster)

8. Our Goal
Analyze and interpret primary and secondary source documents in order to come up with our own theory as to why the Salem Witch Trials occurred.
Historians are still debating this
Discuss idea of the court room
Remind students of Pocahontas lesson
Emphasize that we are developing a deeper and more nuanced view of this event.

9. Historical Thinking Skills
Contextualization
Connecting developments to specific circumstances
Historical argumentation and use of evidence
Emphasize interpretation and synthesis

10. “A Brief History of the Salem Witch Trials”
Subtitle: “One town’s strange journey from paranoia to pardon.”
How does this help us understand the author’s point of view of the Salem Witch Trials?
Paranoia- irrational fear

11. What do we know?
1689 -King William’s War; Rev. Samuel Parris becomes minister of Salem
Jan Elizabeth Parris (9), Abigail Williams (11) and Ann Putnam (11) begin having unexplained fits
Mar Girls accuse Tituba, Sarah Good and Sarah Osborne
May Governor Phipps establishes Special Court of Oyer (to hear)

12. June 1692- First accused witch, Bridget Bishop is executed
Oct Increase Mather (President of Harvard) denounces the use of spectral evidence.
-Gov. Phipps prohibits further arrests and disbands the special court
May Gov. Phipps pardons all accused who are still in prison

13. Why did this occur?
Let’s begin analyzing our clues.

14. “Examination of a Witch”
When was this created?
What do you observe?
What message do you think the artist is trying to convey?
In what way does this contribute to our understanding of the Witch Trials? What are its limitations as a source?
“Examination of a Witch”
Painted 1853

15. “The Trial of George Jacobs”
What do you observe?
What do we know about this painting?
How does this influence what we take away from the painting?
“The Trial of George Jacobs”
Painted 1855

16. Rev. Samuel Parris

17. Arrest Warrant for Elizabeth Proctor and Sarah Cloyce, April 4, 1692

18. Map: The Geography of Witchcraft: Salem Village, 1692
What kind of a source is this?
What do you observe?
What questions does this raise?
How might it help us better understand the Salem Witch Trials?
The Geography of Witchcraft: Salem Village, 1692
Geographic patterns of witchcraft testimony mirrored tensions within Salem Village. Accused witches and their defenders lived mostly in the village's eastern division or in Salem town, whereas their accusers overwhelmingly resided in the village's western sector.
Copyright © Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.

19. Closure
Based upon your current understanding, summarize (2-3 sentences) why you think the Salem Witch Trials hysteria occurred.
Explain one thing you learned from the documents.
Write down one question that you have about one of the documents.

20. Assignment Analyze the remaining documents. For each document:
When was it created?
How specifically does it deepen or expand our understanding of the Witch Trials?
What cause does it suggest?