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Essay on Witch Hunts
| Date: |
09-26-05 12:16pm |
| Subject: |
English |
| Word Count: |
482 |
| Page Count: |
1.93 |
Witch Hunts
Imagine what it would be like to be labeled a Communist for the mere fact that
you happened to sport a goatee? It happened in the 1950’s McCarthyism period!
Doesn’t this sound strangely similar to the Salem witch-hunts? Perfectly
normal people accused of being witches just because they were seen dancing
strangely in the woods. McCarthyism and the Salem witch-hunts were both attempts
by power-hungry people to diminish their competition without any concrete
evidence. The causes of the Salem witchcraft trails and “McCarthyism” were
irrational fears that witchcraft and communism were going to infiltrate society
if drastic measures were not taken. Once the idea that witchcraft might really
be going on got started, the behavior of normal citizens was open to suspicion
of witchcraft. Likewise, the real fear of a Communist take-over had Americans in
the 1950’s so frightened, some actually believed that there neighbors might be
spies because McCarthy was planting this suspicion so strongly into their minds.
Once the hysteria began, it snowballed out of control. In the Salem witch hunts
two young girls, Betty Paris and Abigail Williams, were exhibiting strange
behavior and were diagnosed to have been touched by the hand of the devil. When
pressured to reveal the witch or witches who had caused this, the young girls
named several outcasts of society. These accused witches were guilty until they
prove their innocence. Many were tortured until they confessed they were in fact
witches so they did not have to endure any more pain. A few who admitted their
guilt were spared, while the rest were quickly executed. These confessions
became the “proof” of the existence of witches. The hysteria of McCarthyism
began when Senator Joseph McCarthy landed a series of highly publicized
investigations that intended to bring forward Communists in the State Department
and Hollywood. McCarthy eventually let his “Red Scare” get out of control
and said the U.S. Army was concealing foreign espionage activities. His
accusations contained little evidence and McCarthy eventually fell into
disfavor. The Witch-hunts of Salem resulted in the execution of 20 individuals.
People accused of witchcraft were considered guilty until proven innocent, and
tests were devised to identify the guilty. Those who passed the treacherous
tests were considered witches and put to death. Eventually, the madness ended
but not before the slaying of twenty innocent people. The McCarthy Communism
scare turned very negitive toward Senator McCarthy when the hearings to
investigate whether the secretary of the Army was not cooperating to uncover
Communists in the U.S. military. These hearings were given a great amount of
media coverage and that did much to end the anti Communist “witch-hunt” led
by McCarthy. A resolution of censure against McCarthy was soon introduced in the
Senate. On December 2, 1954, Senator Joseph McCarthy was condemned in a vote of
a special session of the U.S. Senate for his conduct in Senate committees.
Bibliography
Garraty, John A. “The Rise of McCarthyism.” The Story of America.
Cincinnati, OH: Pantheon Books, 1990: 458-459. “McCarthy, Joseph Raymond.”
Microsoft Encarta Encyclopedia 99. New York, NY: Publishing, Inc., 1999. CD-ROM
“The Salem Witch Trails 1692.” 27 August 1997.
(14 October 1999).
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