Talk:Salem witch trials/Archive 3

Archived of threads with no new additions after July 2009

Typo in first paragraph
Giles Corey's name is mispelled -- the "e" in his surname is missing. 71.179.45.145 (talk) 17:18, 11 October 2008 (UTC)

The surname was spelled in a variety of ways in the 17th century, including Cory, Corey, and Kory. Most of the surnames from this period have varied spelling in the primary sources, and there is variety, as well, in how current-day scholars reference them. Ogram (talk) 21:45, 3 July 2009 (UTC)

Tituba, Carib?
According to Elaine Breslaw's book, "Tituba, Reluctant Witch of Salem," Tituba was likely not a Carib. According to Breslaw, Carib's would not have been captured as slaves during this period due to imperial politics. Breslaw suggests that Tituba was an Arawak-speaking resident of Guiana in northern South America. See xxii and 3-20 in Breslaw's book. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 128.186.85.189 (talk • contribs) 16:00, 23 September 2005


 * Tituba was from Barbados. It is recorded that, in the 1670s, Samuel Parris purchased Tituba as a slave. Whether her husband, John Indian, was purchased before, after, or with her is not known. --Gingerseymour 03:04, 25 May 2007 (UTC)


 * bought Tituba as a slave and leid to the person who owned the house they rented saying they were servants. --71.232.78.102 (talk) 00:29, 8 April 2008 (UTC)


 * Tituba was actually a slave from India who had been captured to serve the daughter and two nieces of the town's most successful merchant and richest man, Sir William Phips. She was accused along with Sarah Good, whos daughter went with her to jail (Dorcas Good), and Sarah Osborne. Sarah Osborne died in prison, Sarah Good was hanged on July 19th and Tituba was left free. Dorcas Good was set free as well, being only five at the time. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 218.101.100.250 (talk • contribs) 06:55, 11 December 2005


 * Tituba was not left free, she was sold by her master Parris to pay for the jail fees that she had accumulated. Dorcas was set free, but took psychological damage, AFAIR. --Rck 04:48, 15 March 2006 (UTC)


 * Apparently Tituba claimed that Sarah Good and Sarah Osborne were her accomplices even though they denied the accusations of being witches. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 216.241.132.48 (talk • contribs) 22:48, 22 May 2007


 * I would have to disagree as Tituba was obtained in the West Indies, as Parris had past dealings in the West Indies. Also Natives were taken as slaves before the slave trade became fully entreanced. The Spanish built their entire empire on Native slaves and one of the first things that Columbus brough back were Native Slaves. The English were no different, as seen in the Carolinas, which had a large trade in Native Slaves before African slaves were introduced. I get my information from Nash, The American People, fourth edition. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 66.41.231.99 (talk • contribs) 21:53, 10 October 2006


 * After research I found that Tituba was not sold by her master Parris, she was left in prison after the events in Salem ended and someone else paid for her bail. I am also going to have to agree that Tituba was a South American Indian and was not from India and there are documents that Elaine Breslaw shows in her book that Tituba was a slave on a plantation in Barbados along with her husband John Indian, who were both bought by Parris and taken to Salem. (RayDugg (talk) 21:25, 19 December 2008 (UTC))

Trial by ordeal
How is there a Salem Witch page with NO USE OF THE TERM "Trial by Ordeal?" It seems just plain wrong. Xcviii 13:29, 5 October 2007 (UTC)

Trial by ordeal was not practiced in Salem, so why *would* it be mentioned here? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 68.1.179.207 (talk) 23:19, 8 December 2008 (UTC)

Reference in a Robin Cook novel
"Acceptable Risk", a novel by Robin Cook has a plot woven around this event. I feel you could do well to include this. Nitin (talk) 09:57, 28 July 2008 (UTC)

There is a separate article about Cultural depictions of the Salem Witch Trials in which the Cook novel is mentioned. Ogram (talk) 03:32, 25 August 2008 (UTC)

More on the theories section...
Should more be added to the theories section of this page? I am not even sure it should be titled, "Medical theories about..." but rather just "Theories of Possession..." where the different theories are discussed more in depth. I think the behavior of the afflicted girls is so unique that more attention should be paid on why they behaved the way they did. I would be interested in reading more in depth about not only the medical explanations but the social context these afflicted young teenagers were living in. I know links to different pages have medical explanations of bewitchment, but I would be interested in seeing more detail on this page with not only the medical explanations but how the economic and social context in 1692 with the Wabanaki attacks played a role... I was thinking about adding a page on the historiography of the actions of the afflicted starting with Boyer and Nissenbaum and the economic factors moving to the medical explanations from Caporael and Matossian and their counter scholars, Gottlieb and Spanos. The page would be kind of a collection of the sections that are randomly posted...let me know if you think that Wikipedia should avoid that or if it is something people would want to read on one collective page. Biggs05 (talk) 11:39, 2 December 2008 (UTC)

I was wondering if it was worth adding to the article about the girls possibly having HD (Huntington's disease) as mentioned on another article here on Wikipedia. It's still speculation, but could definitely be plausible. 71.2.32.7 (talk) 22:30, 27 January 2009 (UTC)

The Huntington's Disease stuff usually comes up referencing a poorly-cited paper that has circulated on the internet for some time, "The History of Huntington’s Disease and its relation to the Salem Witch Trials", by Andrew Barreto (See http://www.geocities.com/andrew_wfu/huntingtonfinal15.doc ), and the Huntington's article here on Wikipedia actually cites the case of Elizabeth Knapp of Groton, not involved in the trials at Salem. Ogram (talk) 21:58, 3 July 2009 (UTC)

True or False?
I'm reading a book and in it, someone named Sarah Goode, a poor woman belived to be a witch, was acused of being a witch. I'm out to know if this woman truely exists. If you know of her, please type in that you do. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 173.29.66.97 (talk) 22:54, 14 June 2009 (UTC)


 * Read the article, you will find Sarah Good is metioned extensively, and even has her own article.  Sp in ni ng  Spark  07:37, 15 June 2009 (UTC)

Identification Error
Mary Derich is identified as a sister-in-law of Elizabeth Proctor. Elizabeth and Mary were sisters. Elizabeth Bassett married John Proctor. Mary Bassett married Michael Derich. 68.35.51.94 (talk) 02:30, 4 July 2009 (UTC)

HOW did they die?
There was a paragraph that suddenly states they were cut down from trees. What the &*(& does that mean? Were they drowned? Burned at stake? Etc.? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 66.93.174.179 (talk) 19:39, 14 July 2009 (UTC)

The irony

The irony here is to much if you get what I mean

The wrong numbers
Not to be impoliet or anything but the acutal number of thosse acused of being a which during the salme which trial were 141 and all of them aresssted and 19 of them killed and they killed two dogs for being evolved or at least that the  belive what do think about that  is that aniamle abuse.

The Town of salme.

I think thought that the town history is deeper then just withc I mean there are alot of pirates and stuff and the I think of this as more of a blunder then a thing to promote I mean the town was being strung along by a bunch of little girls and that was their way of  haven fun and that cost 58 people their life 19 hanged and 39 died while in prsion and two dog  were killed all so thosse litttle bratz could bosst their populatirty and have a little bit of fun and the sad thing is that tibu was teaching them magic and withc crafft and so in all acualltiy they were the withcs not the poor peopel. In fact it was belived that the girls were just accussing the very relligos people which probable mad the game harder for the to sell and that always make victory sweetter. I think that the fayct the tibua got away was boguse any way seeing that she and her husband jhon indian were the one feeding the contaimnated bread that started the whole thing and relly the fact you could be let go for being pregnat did not make any sense at all seeing thet saw this all as devile work would that not make the kid the son of the devile. I think the town of samle should have kept a better watch on thing in the villge no matter how much they wanted freedom.

I think that the first acussen was from the bad bread but then I think the girls just wanted some sort of hypcodract with a wound carrien on with some gluple idoit listen to them and that a danger thing just look at the topic of what we are talking about Any way the main thing is that this all started with some bad wheat or barliy well to day 1it is harmllise. Any way did you know that salme is use that unfortante dark time in history to promote the town resturents and stuff like that. It is cool around hollween but I think that somtimes they over do it youy know what I mean. I think that the town has went from hateing the whitchs to spourting them with their spourting openly the witchs  and so the table have turn for real now from killing to spouyrting and markting the withc trade mark on the town. I mean the police bage and car have a withc in them how can they be proud of what they did tothose poor people and the whole town in the procse. I think this is a febale attemp to take somthing that had created mass histera in a huge town in New Enagland and try and redriect the atttieon on to somthing less that comes out poistive  do you think this is because they want to laugh at their mistake and make a quick buck or just wanting to make  money pleas give me you thought pleas I relly need them

p.s sorry about the spelling it never was my strong suit if u know what I mean

—Preceding unsigned comment added by 76.119.189.100 (talk) 00:44, 31 July 2009 (UTC)