The back cover of the edition of the devil in massachusetts I read that Mrs. Starkey “applies modern psychiatric knowledge to the witch hysteria” that swept Salem, Massachusetts in 1692. While Starkey’s work is obviously well-researched and historically authentic, it is neither an investigation nor an evaluation. psychological with new knowledge. in the mass panic caused by several seriously disturbed young women. She poses question after question to the reader, but does not put any of her own conclusions or hypotheses to any of them.
the devil in massachusetts it is elegantly written based on Starkey’s research of royal trial transcripts, historical records, and contemporary publications. However, his penchant for asking questions, double negatives, and placing subordinate clauses at the beginning of sentences causes the reader to go back most of the time to reread passages to understand his message.
The absence of a meaningful dissertation on population may be a moot point in this post-9/11 world, regardless of what conclusions may be drawn from Starkey’s 1949 publication. Still, it would be interesting to know what caused several girls to die. , from eight to eighteen years old, suddenly suffered convulsions and claimed that they were being tortured by invisible imps. They ‘shouted’ at community members, mostly women, as their torturers.
Arrests were frequently issued and carried out to bring defendants before magistrates who strongly believe in the existence of witches. More disturbing than the girl-invented hysteria was the courts’ complete acceptance of ‘spectral evidence’, invisible witches and wizards observed ONLY by the afflicted girls. And they were not the only ones. The families of the defendants disowned her relatives when the mother thought she was related to a witch, even if the woman had never displayed any behavior remotely reminiscent of witchcraft to her. Others supported their loved ones and brought countless witnesses to testify on their behalf. Cooler minds did not prevail, as the screams and howls of pre-teen girls gave priority to the more informed and sane people.
Other towns in the Salem area, such as Andover and Ipswich, experienced similar episodes, but now sanity began to set in and these cases were dismissed as soon as they started.
The conceited preacher from Massachusetts, Cotton Mathers, was also caught up in the hysteria and, due to his own reluctance and guilt, was unable to rescue a man he believed to be innocent. In later years, he managed to link his name to saving the souls of convicted pirates, crime with more tangible and concrete evidence against the accused.
Despite the lack of new knowledge about the Salem witch trials, the devil in massachusetts it’s a great look at the mass confusion, terror, and murder in pre-colonial New England. It brings to mind the old adage about history repeating itself, but if Starkey didn’t enlighten us on the psychological reasoning behind panic, are we repeating it now? The days of hunting witches to hang or burn at the stake are over. But what about our current ‘witch hunts’ against people of a different race, religion or sexual orientation?
I guess the answer to the first question is ‘yes’.
