Description
This book provides a much needed synthesis of the major schools of thought and recent scholarship on the Salem witch trials. It places the trials into context of the Great European Witch Hunt and of witch hunting in 17th century New England within an accessible narrative format that is as dramatic as it is informative. Through its narrative format it captures the the drama of the time and the event.
Table of Contents
1. "A Biography of a Terrible, but Perfectly Normal Superstition"
The Origins of European Witchcraft
The Development of European Witchcraft
The Great European Witch-hunt
A Summary View of Witch-hunts in England
2. "Having Familiarity with the Devil"
Witch-hunts in Seventeenth Century America
Witch-hunts in Seventeenth Century New England
Some Notable Witch Trials in Seventeenth-Century New England
The Pattern of Witch-hunt Activity in Seventeenth-Century New England
3. "The Evil Hand" is upon Them
A Glimpse at Salem's Past
The First Signs of the Devil
The Hearings Begin
4. "Is Not this a Brand Plucked from the Burning?"
The Cases of Martha and Giles Corey and Dorcas Good
Deodate Lawson's Lecture Day Sermon
Sarah Cloyce is Charged
Mary Easty is Summoned
The Pace Quickens
5. "If They are Let Alone, We Should All be Devils and Witches"
The Cases of Elizabeth and John Proctor
Mary Warren Tries to Recant
Bridget Bishop and Abigail Hobbs Are Charged
Seven of the Nine Are Formally Charged
The Ordeal Begins for Mary and Philip English
The "Black Minister" is Apprehended
Dorcas Hoar is Jailed
6. "God Will Deliver Us Out of the Hands of Unmerciful Men"
The Case of George Jacobs Sr.
John Willard Changes Sides
Daniel Andrew Is Charged
The Carys Escape
John Alen is Arrested
The Andover Witch-hunt
7. "God Will Give You Blood to Drink"
The Court of Oyer and Terminer Is Established
Bridget Bishop is Tried
The Court Completes Its First Session
The First Mass Execution and Its Effects
8. "What a Sad Thing it is to See Eight Firebrands of Hell Hanging There"
The Case of George Burroughs
The Proctors Are Condemned
The Cases of George Jacobs Sr., John Willard, and Martha Carrier
The Hangings of August 19
The Trials of September: The Cases of Martha Corey and Mary Easty
9. "It were Better that Ten Suspected Witches Should Escape, than that
One Innocent Person Should be Condemned"
Voices are Raised in Opposition to the Trials
Phips Dismisses the Court of Oyer and Terminer
The Jails Are Emptied
The Superior Court of Judicature
The Magistrates and the Court of Oyer and Terminer, Guilty As Charged?
10. "Ruined in the Mistaken Mismanagement of the Terrible Affair
Called Witchcraft"
Cotton Mather and His "Wonders of the Invisible World"
Salem in Ruins
The Repenting Begins
Settling Up
Epilogue.
Notes.
A Select Bibliography.
Appendix.
Index.
Purchase Info 
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Story of the Salem Witch Trials, The, CourseSmart eTextbook, 2nd Edition
Format: Electronic Book
$28.99 | ISBN-13: 978-0-205-69030-5
