New
England in the 17th century was a society contrived of Puritan
settlers who incorporated their belief systems into the social structures in
which they upheld. Church leaders and political figures were essentially one in
the same and cases of blasphemy, or any other act seen as going against the
Puritan faith, were seen in the same legal light as instances of civic
misconduct. These settlers generally believed that the world around them was a
spiritual place and that the Christian God played a direct role in all matters
of fate and circumstance through predetermined providence. In such a society,
moments of crisis such as 1692’s Salem Village’s witch-hunt held much
complication and encompassed all levels of life. Closely analyzing the details
behind some of the accusations of witchcraft, such as the evidence presented
against certain individuals is necessary for historical analysis of the culture
and mentality of the New England colonists at this time period. In the case of
one of the first individuals to be accused of witchcraft, Tituba, one can
evaluate records of court proceedings and accusations to find out more about
how the colonists viewed outsiders, both from their ethnicity and their
society, as well as the extent to which this society was willing to seriously
credit supernatural possession as the cause for the afflictions.
Tituba
was a slave of Salem’s minister, Samuel Parris, whom had been purchased in Barbados.[1] She could be described as
Indian or African; however, records of slaves and their race were often relegated
to arbitrary distinctions based on skin color or physical appearance. It is to
be noted that Puritans did believe that Indians inherently worshipped the Devil,
therefore, it can be rightfully assumed that anyone a darker race than the
settlers were looked at with suspicion and caution. The villagers also had
prior attribution to Tituba and dark magic as stories of her knowledge of
witchcraft and the occult from her past were widely known.[2] Suspicions of direct
Tituba’s involvement in the Salem crisis came to light after the affliction of
Samuel Parris’ daughter and niece. After succumbing to drastic changes in their
temperament and exhibiting signs of what the colonists referred to as “fits”,
the young girls were determined to be bewitched, both by Salem’s residents and
the villages’ presiding physician.[3] The girls exhibited wounds
on their bodies believed done by agents separate from their own selves, and
evidence of witchcraft was thoroughly sought. Tituba was named as the inflictor
of the evil deeds by the young girls and was examined and questioned by the
presiding councils. Tituba admitted to being learned on the art of the
detection of witchcraft due to her being taught by her mistress in Barbados.[4] While being interrogated,
she would eventually confess that she was indeed bewitched and had allied with
the Devil to carry out his work and went into detail about how others and
herself went about with the molestation of the innocent and their convenience
with Satan.[5]
Her testimonies, however, varied over the course of her interrogations. There
were instances where Tituba denied all claims of witchcraft and instances where
she provided specific details on her meetings with the Devil, the convent made
between them, and the names of her accomplices. Her confession played a major
role on the credibility and necessity of both the accusatory trials and
concurrent witch hunts as her admittance provided evidence of the existence of
witchcraft in the community and prove that others were indeed hiding their true
selves. According to neighboring minister John Hale, Tituba’s confessions were
held as credible due to the consistency of her answers given during her
multiple interrogations, her repentant nature during her trial, and because her
confessions aligned with the accusations stated by her afflicted victims. Her
interrogations and subsequent confessions were regarded as a success by the
council as more suspects were brought to light and details of what the
allegiance with the Devil actually entailed emerged.[6]
The format in which the trials and
interrogations were performed can be seen as fundamentally flawed. Magistrates
presiding over the trials had no formal legal training, nor were they secular
or partisan in nature. Officials did prepare by researching legal and medical
surveys on the topic of witchcraft and dark magic, but theological principles
were the most important source of information to be taken into account in
Puritan Salem. Spectral evidence was assessed in virtually all trials and the
existence of witchcraft itself was implicit.[7] The accused were beaten and fervently
interrogated once taken in and execution was an inevitable fate to those who
were convicted of the crime or for lying about their involvement. Confession
with the provision of accomplices’ would oftentimes lead to lesser punitive
sentences and spare one from brutal execution, as was the case with Tituba.[8]
The Puritan view on women also played a role
in terms of bias during the witch-hunt. Through the Puritan interpretation of
the Bible, women were viewed as spiritually weaker than men.[9] Most of the accused were
women and few mentions of men being the cause for the afflictions are given in
the sources; only as victims. In Tituba’s case, she was at an even greater
disadvantage and her accusation was perhaps expected seeing that she was not
only a woman, but also a different ethnicity. “Indians”, as Tituba was
described, were cast as devil worshipping barbarians who, although had the
capability to be converted, were still associated with evil. Stereotypes
assumed by the colonists of Tituba’s ethnicity and her known involvement in
magic affairs, such as her witch-detecting urine cake,[10] made her not only a prime
suspect, but also a suspect who was seen as a way of exposing other witches.
The mentality the settlers had regarding Indians and the
certainty of Tituba’s involvement even before her admittance shows that they
more than likely saw Indians as an enemy to the integrity of Puritan and New
England society.[11]
The war-like mentality by ministers such as Deodat Lawson and others exhibits a
need for the elimination of all things evil and destructive to the church. Lawson’s
rhetoric of “devils” penetrating the church was also used in regards to Indians
attacking the lands of the settlers. These attacks were viewed as being
assaulted by the Devil himself.[12] Putting Tituba on the
forefront of the witch-hunt and as the primary conspirator with Satan himself,
could have potentially allowed lawmakers, who are also church leaders, to
systematically impose policies that would make it more difficult for the
integration of both Indians and people of African decent into Puritan society. Assimilation
of these people could now be seen as a threat to the threads of religious piety,
which were fundamentally woven into New England communities. Also serving as a
threat to traditional Puritan society was the diversity of values and
moralities. As new generations of settlers emerged as constructive members of
society and older generations phased out, new focus on economic advancement and
new ideas would diminish the importance of religious values of the community.
Such was seen as a decline in morality and as work by the Devil.[13]
Tituba’s circumstance of being an Indian slave woman simply
claiming to know about witchcraft in 17th century New England all
but guaranteed suspicions of her being part of the cause for the afflictions in
Salem if not the main instigator. Her confessions, however, brought forth by
fear or torture, were essential in providing justification for conducting more
witch trials and certainly expanded the longevity of not only the trials, but
also the paranoia associated with witchcraft. Tituba’s confessions confirmed the
theories of the believers and probably changed the minds of some skeptics
showing that the afflictions in Salem were not matters of circumstance but
truly signs of the Devil infiltrating their society. It must also be questioned,
what options did Tituba have once put on trial? She had no true social standing
in the community and had no supporter system to back her up had she remained in
denial of the allegations. She was made aware that her confessions could spare
her life; compromising the credibility of anyone’s confessions given such
propositions. Tituba’s cultural background also plays a part in why she
confessed. Perhaps she truly did believe that evil spirits were at work in
Salem. There is no indication that she was religiously assimilated into Puritan
life. In fact, she admitted to practicing magic and adhering to her cultural
routes and traditions.[14] With no real inclination
to adhere to Salem’s society, Tituba’s disconnect from the social system led to
her giving some of the most paranormal confessions of all the accused;
confessions that would later be deemed not worthy of execution with Tituba’s
ultimate fate left unknown to history. Tituba’s role was to both prove the
existence of witchcraft and to show the power of Christian redemption and hope
for the upholding of Puritan ideologies for years to come.
Works Cited
Godbeer, Richard. The Salem Witch Hunt: A Brief History with Documents. Boston/New
York: Bedford/St. Martins, 2011.
[1]
Godbeer, Richard. The Salem Witch Hunt: A
Brief History with Documents. (Boston/New York: Bedford/St. Martins,
2011)., 81.
[2]
Godbeer, 82
[3]
Ibid., 51
[4]
Ibid., 52
[5]
Ibid., 82
[6]
Godbeer, 53
[7]
Godbeer, 26
[8]
Ibid., 53
[9]
Ibid., 11
[10]
Godbeer, 52
[11]
Ibid., 17
[12]
Ibid., 19
[13]
Ibid., 19
[14]
Godbeer, 52
