Neri, Sofia Renee E.

November 9, 2020

11822295 HISTUSA A51

On the Account of Salem Witchcraft

The document is an account on what led to one of the first accusations in the Salem

Witch Trials, or as what the text calls as “the earliest symptoms of witchcraft” in Salem,

Massachusetts in 1692. It was written by Robert Calef, who we know little to nothing about.

However, his account is not merely one-sided and not only talking about the accusations and

what evidence/s have been brought up to support the accusations of witchcraft. As what the

introduction stated, Calef was rather critical of those who led the management of the crisis,

and he included Tituba’s confession of her master abusing her to come out as a witch and to

accuse other women of the same. It was able to show how

It was pitiful how they viewed women during these times when one single movement

that’s not socially acceptable or “normal” would lead to your death. Prejudice or

discrimination against women heavily colored the lenses of those who were handling these

cases that led to 19 unjust deaths. From this account, it is clear how there were no checks and

balances in the justice system they had during colonial America. It was a flawed system

where there is no way to examine if the evidence was real or the accusation was founded. We

can also gather that in the field of medicine, technological advancements are not yet available

to determine the “sanity” or what mental health issues lie on why these people or children

acted the way they did. Overall, this account was able to paint a picture of life during colonial

America, and specifically provided a narrative of the earliest instance of witchcraft in Salem

which led to the infamous Salem Witch Trials.