The Devil s Snare The Salem Witchcraft Crisis Of 1692

I chose to read In the Devil’s Snare: The Salem Witchcraft Crisis of 1692 for my book review. I chose this book because I have always been fascinated with the Salem Witch Trials and I wanted to learn more information about the trials. The author of this book was Mary Beth Norton, Norton is a professor at Cornell University and from reading her biography on the Cornell website I could tell that she was well versed in the Salem Witch Trials. Norton wrote In the Devil’s Snare in 2002; in the book’s introduction Norton states that her narrative â€Å"builds on the research and interpretations advanced in prior works on Salem; at the same time it disagrees with many aspects of those interpretations.† Norton also goes into detail to explain the†¦show more content†¦He thought that they must have some kind of illness. A few days later more â€Å"illnesses† started occurring to other women in town, Pair noted that this was no ordinary illnesse s. Reverend Paris wrote to fellow Reverend John Hale; who then later came to Salem to observe the girls. Hale wrote that â€Å"the children were bitten and pinched by invisible agents †¦.. sometimes they were taken dumb, their mouths stopped, their throats choaked and their limbs wracked and tormented.† Dr. William Griggs also observed the girls and he concluded that â€Å"they were under an evil hand.† One of the reasons that I chose to read this book was because I had prior knowledge of the Salem Witch Trials from reading The Crucible in high school. Reading The Crucible helped me when I read In the Devil’s Snare because I recognized a lot of the people’s names. In particular, I recognized the name of Titbua. Samuel Pairs’ daughter and niece accused Tituba for bewitching them. Tituba was believed to have had known people who were witches, but she denied being one. It is interesting to note that In the Devil’s Snare refers to Titub a as Reverend Pairs’s Indian Slave, when I read The Crucible and saw the movie; I always believed that Tituba was African. Norton states that â€Å"Many scholars have addressed these questions†¦. Every surviving piece of contemporary evidence identifies her as an Indian. Later tradition transformed her into an African or half African slave.† Since Tituba was an Indian thisShow MoreRelatedThe Salem Witch Trials : Crisis1601 Words   |  7 PagesThe Salem Witch Trials: Crisis in Salem Village Many people know of the Salem witch trials that took place in Salem, Massachusetts in the year 1692 spilling over into the year 1693. But for those who do not know, the Salem witch trials were a series of trials against men, women, and children accused of being a witch and or practicing witchcraft. 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