{"id":3247,"date":"2019-11-04T06:00:49","date_gmt":"2019-11-04T11:00:49","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.basedonatruestorypodcast.com\/?p=3247"},"modified":"2024-02-06T15:52:44","modified_gmt":"2024-02-06T21:52:44","slug":"143-the-crucible","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.basedonatruestorypodcast.com\/143-the-crucible\/","title":{"rendered":"143: The Crucible"},"content":{"rendered":"\t\t<div data-elementor-type=\"wp-post\" data-elementor-id=\"3247\" class=\"elementor elementor-3247\" data-elementor-post-type=\"post\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<section class=\"elementor-section elementor-top-section elementor-element elementor-element-3d61820 elementor-section-boxed elementor-section-height-default elementor-section-height-default\" data-id=\"3d61820\" data-element_type=\"section\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-container elementor-column-gap-default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-column elementor-col-100 elementor-top-column elementor-element elementor-element-ea71bfe\" data-id=\"ea71bfe\" data-element_type=\"column\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-wrap elementor-element-populated\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-7616675 elementor-widget elementor-widget-html\" data-id=\"7616675\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"html.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t<iframe frameborder=\"0\" height=\"200\" scrolling=\"no\" src=\"https:\/\/playlist.megaphone.fm?e=LEFE1254866898\" width=\"100%\"><\/iframe>\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-0f74469 elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"0f74469\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t<h2 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">Resources<\/h2>\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-1f2d3cc elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"1f2d3cc\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<ul>\n \t<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.smithsonianmag.com\/history\/a-brief-history-of-the-salem-witch-trials-175162489\/\">A Brief History of the Salem Witch Trials<\/a><\/li>\n \t<li><a href=\"https:\/\/historyofmassachusetts.org\/salem-witch-trials-victims\/\">The Salem Witch Trials Victims: Who Were They?<\/a><\/li>\n \t<li><a href=\"https:\/\/books.google.com\/books?id=bOM-AAAAYAAJ&amp;printsec=frontcover&amp;source=gbs_ge_summary_r&amp;cad=0#v=onepage&amp;q&amp;f=false\">Records of Salem Witchcraft, Copied from the Original Documents<\/a><\/li>\n \t<li><a href=\"https:\/\/books.google.com\/books?id=an0PAAAAYAAJ\">Records of Salem Witchcraft<\/a><\/li>\n \t<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.thoughtco.com\/salem-witch-trials-judges-3530321\">Salem Judges Presiding Over Cases Accusing Witchcraft<\/a><\/li>\n \t<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.imdb.com\/title\/tt0115988\/fullcredits?ref_=tt_cl_sm#cast\">The Crucible (1996) &#8211; IMDb<\/a><\/li>\n \t<li><a href=\"https:\/\/allthatsinteresting.com\/abigail-williams\">How A 12-Year-Old Sparked The First Witch-Hunt In America<\/a><\/li>\n \t<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.thoughtco.com\/abigail-williams-biography-3530316\">All About Abigail Williams, One of the First Accused as a Salem Witch<\/a><\/li>\n \t<li><a href=\"https:\/\/quod.lib.umich.edu\/e\/evans\/N00488.0001.001\/1:3?rgn=div1;view=fulltext\">A brief and true narrative of some remarkable passages relating to sundry persons afflicted by witchcraft, in Salem Village: which happened from the nineteenth of March, to the fifth of April, 1692. \/ Collected by Deodat Lawson.<\/a><\/li>\n \t<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.biblegateway.com\/passage\/?search=1%20Samuel+28&amp;version=KJV\">Bible Gateway passage: 1 Samuel 28 &#8211; King James Version<\/a><\/li>\n \t<li><a href=\"https:\/\/allthatsinteresting.com\/abigail-williams\">How A 12-Year-Old Sparked The First Witch-Hunt In America<\/a><\/li>\n \t<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.thoughtco.com\/abigail-williams-biography-3530316\">All About Abigail Williams, One of the First Accused as a Salem Witch<\/a><\/li>\n \t<li><a href=\"https:\/\/quod.lib.umich.edu\/cgi\/t\/text\/text-idx?c=evans;cc=evans;rgn=main;view=text;idno=N00872.0001.001\">A modest enquiry into the nature of witchcraft, and how persons guilty of that crime may be convicted: and the means used for their discovery discussed, both negatively and affimatively, according to Scripture and experience. \/ By John Hale, Pastor of the<\/a><\/li>\n \t<li><a href=\"https:\/\/archive.org\/stream\/AModestEnquiryIntoTheNatureOfWitchcraft\/AModestEnquiryIntoTheNatureOfWitchcraft1702_djvu.txt\">Full text of &#8220;A Modest Enquiry into the Nature of Witchcraft&#8221; by Reverend John Hale<\/a><\/li>\n \t<li><a href=\"https:\/\/historyofmassachusetts.org\/abigail-williams-salem\/\">Abigail Williams: The Mysterious Afflicted Girl<\/a><\/li>\n \t<li><a href=\"https:\/\/web.archive.org\/web\/20180111023551\/http:\/\/salem.lib.virginia.edu\/texts\/tei\/swp?div_id=n107\">The Salem Witch Papers: John Proctor Executed, August 19, 1692<\/a><\/li>\n \t<li><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/The_Crucible_(1996_film)#Plot\">The Crucible (1996 film) &#8211; Wikipedia<\/a><\/li>\n \t<li><a href=\"http:\/\/www.sparknotes.com\/lit\/crucible\/summary\/\">SparkNotes: The Crucible: Plot Overview<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-1067960 elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"1067960\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>Disclaimer: Dan LeFebvre and\/or Based on a True Story may earn commissions from qualifying purchases through our links on this page.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-8d08010 elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"8d08010\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t<h2 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">Did you enjoy this episode? Help support the next one!<\/h2>\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-407835b elementor-widget elementor-widget-html\" data-id=\"407835b\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"html.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><a class=\"bmc-button\" href=\"https:\/\/www.buymeacoffee.com\/basedonatruestorypodcast\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.buymeacoffee.com\/buttons\/bmc-new-btn-logo.svg\" alt=\"Buy me a coffee\" \/><span style=\"margin-left: 15px; font-size: 19px !important;\">Buy me a coffee<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n\n<style>.bmc-button img{width: 35px !important;margin-bottom: 1px !important;box-shadow: none !important;border: none !important;vertical-align: middle !important;}.bmc-button{padding: 7px 10px 7px 10px !important;line-height: 35px !important;height:51px !important;min-width:217px !important;text-decoration: none !important;display:inline-flex !important;color:#ffffff !important;background-color:#FF813F !important;border-radius: 5px !important;border: 1px solid transparent !important;padding: 7px 10px 7px 10px !important;font-size: 20px !important;letter-spacing:0.6px !important;box-shadow: 0px 1px 2px rgba(190, 190, 190, 0.5) !important;-webkit-box-shadow: 0px 1px 2px 2px rgba(190, 190, 190, 0.5) !important;margin: 0 auto !important;font-family:'Arial', cursive !important;-webkit-box-sizing: border-box !important;box-sizing: border-box !important;-o-transition: 0.3s all linear !important;-webkit-transition: 0.3s all linear !important;-moz-transition: 0.3s all linear !important;-ms-transition: 0.3s all linear !important;transition: 0.3s all linear !important;}.bmc-button:hover, .bmc-button:active, .bmc-button:focus {-webkit-box-shadow: 0px 1px 2px 2px rgba(190, 190, 190, 0.5) !important;text-decoration: none !important;box-shadow: 0px 1px 2px 2px rgba(190, 190, 190, 0.5) !important;opacity: 0.85 !important;color:#ffffff !important;}<\/style>\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-6f84914 elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"6f84914\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t<h2 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">Transcript<\/h2>\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-45c548d elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"45c548d\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p><em>Note: This transcript is automatically generated. There will be mistakes, so please don&#8217;t use them for quotes. It is provided for reference use to find things better in the audio.<\/em><\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-b812b52 elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"b812b52\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>It\u2019s dark. Winona Ryder\u2019s character, a girl by the name of Abigail Williams, wakes with a start. There\u2019s a girl in the bed with her and with a little shake, Abigail wakes the girl.<\/p><p>Quietly, the two girls get out of bed and place pillows where they were just lying. They cover the pillows with blankets so if anyone were to peek in at them, they\u2019d think the two girls were still in bed. Then, they sneak downstairs and out the side door.<\/p><p>It\u2019s dark outside, but it\u2019s also light. It\u2019s the kind of lighting that makes you think perhaps this is very early in the morning. The camera cuts to another house and we see more girls sneaking out of their homes. Then, an overhead shot shows even more girls as they quietly make their way down the empty, dirt streets of the town. If you pause the movie you can see 12 girls at any one time on the screen.<\/p><p>Speaking of pausing, let\u2019s pause the movie ourselves for a moment here. Surprisingly, the movie doesn\u2019t give any sort of indication of time, date or location. I\u2019m assuming this was meant to be early morning only because of the dark, blue light that we see. Sort of like how I\u2019m assuming this is set in the 1600 or 1700s only because of the way the girls are dressed and the style of homes we see as they sneak out of town. As viewers, we\u2019re left to guess at this, though, because the movie doesn\u2019t give any sort of indication of a time or date.<\/p><p>So, before we continue further, let\u2019s turn to history to date what we\u2019re seeing here and give ourselves a geographical setting.<\/p><p>All this is happening in Salem, Massachusetts. Salem is located on the east coast of the United States. It\u2019s about 15 miles, or 24 kilometers, to the north of Boston and about the same distance to the south of Gloucester, Massachusetts. If that name sounds familiar, that\u2019s because the port of Gloucester is where the Andrea Gail was from\u2014that\u2019s the boat whose story we covered on episode 130 of Based on a True Story about the movie <em>The Perfect Storm<\/em>.<\/p><p>Our story today takes place a good deal earlier, though. The year is 1692. Salem has been in existence for 66 years and has quickly grown to being one of the most important seaports on the new continent. At this point, of course, the United States wasn\u2019t a thing yet.<\/p><p>As such, Salem was an English colony. More specifically, it was one of the settlements in the Massachusetts Bay Colony. Boston was considered another settlement in that same colony.<\/p><p>With that little bit of establishment of time and place, let\u2019s go back to the movie\u2019s storyline. The key plot point here in the beginning shows a young Abigail Williams and a number of other girls from Salem sneaking out in the night to the nearby forest. Once there, a slave named Tituba leads them in some sort of ritual. Tituba is played by Charlayne Woodward, by the way.<\/p><p>In the movie, it\u2019s not clear at first what the purpose is for this gathering of girls. They\u2019re positioned in a circle around a pot that\u2019s sitting on top of a fire. On the ground there\u2019s some sort of symbol.<\/p><p>We start to get a sense of their purpose when Tituba asks them what they brought. The girls each seem to have some flowers in hand. One by one, the girls kiss the flowers in their hand and put them into the pot that\u2019s boiling water over the fire. As they toss the flowers into the pot, the girls start naming names: Joseph Baker, Richard Wilkens, Daniel Hopkins, Daniel Poole, Adam Town, William Bridges, Jacob Poole\u2026there\u2019s a long list of names. Each girl names a different boy.<\/p><p>The ritual has gotten more intense now. Abigail hands Tituba a white sack of some sort. Tituba opens the sack to show a dead chicken inside. She takes the chicken and starts swinging it around, scattering the girls a bit.<\/p><p>As this is going on, the camera cuts to show a man walking through the trees. It\u2019s hard to make out his face because of the low light, but as viewers we can assume he\u2019s not part of the ritual the girls are doing.<\/p><p>Speaking of the ritual, Tituba has stopped spinning the chicken around and now she\u2019s chanting in some foreign language. The closed captions for the movie even just call this, \u201cChanting in foreign language.\u201d<\/p><p>This chant sounds almost like a song and the girls start swaying back and forth as Tituba chants. At this point is when we get confirmation of what you probably assumed was the purpose of this whole ritual.<\/p><p>One of the girls says, \u201cMake a spell on Joseph Baker, Tituba! Make him love me!\u201d Another calls out, \u201cMake Daniel Poole my husband!\u201d<\/p><p>Then, one of the girls asks Abigail who she wants. Without saying anything herself, another girl answers the question for Abigail. \u201cShe wants John Proctor. Get her John Proctor!\u201d<\/p><p>At this point, Abigail takes things to the next level. She whispers something in Tituba\u2019s ear. Tituba immediately begs Abigail not to do whatever she said. That\u2019s a bad thing!<\/p><p>Abigail takes the dead chicken and swings it over her head, then brings it crashing to the ground. We can hear the sound of bones cracking as the chicken hits the rocks surrounding the fire on the ground. Abigail wipes the chicken\u2019s blood on her mouth, presumably drinking some of it in the process. The girls all start screaming and laughing and even tearing off their clothes.<\/p><p>In the forest, we can see the man again. He\u2019s close enough now to see the ritual the girls are performing. He\u2019s also close enough to get a better look at the man\u2019s face. And even though the movie doesn\u2019t mention his name here, we can tell that this is Bruce Davison\u2019s character, Reverend Samuel Parris.<\/p><p>Seeing the Reverend, the girls all scatter. Reverend Parris looks into the pot, but it\u2019s impossible to see what\u2019s inside because of the steam. He pulls out the ladle. A dead frog is on the end of it. Revolted, the Reverend drops the utensil back into the pot.<\/p><p>In the background, we can see there\u2019s only two girls left by the fire. One is Abigail and another is the girl she left the house with earlier. The other girl is screaming something to the effect of, \u201cI can\u2019t move!\u201d<\/p><p>In the next scene, we\u2019re back at Reverend Parris\u2019s home. It\u2019s daytime now. Abigail is in the room with the girl who was screaming she couldn\u2019t move. It\u2019s here that we first hear her name: Betty. It\u2019s also here that we find out something is wrong with Betty\u2014she\u2019s asleep and she won\u2019t wake.<\/p><p>This whole opening sequence of the love spell ritual in the forest outside of Salem is\u2026well, to be honest, we don\u2019t know if it\u2019s true or not. But, it\u2019s probably not.<\/p><p>You see, there\u2019s a lot about the\u00a0 that we know, but there\u2019s also so much about the events surrounding the story that we just don\u2019t know. With that said, what we do know of the events leading up the Salem witch trials, the evidence suggests that it wasn\u2019t because of a love spell ritual being conducted in secret in the forest like we see in the opening scenes of the movie.<\/p><p>At least, not really.<\/p><p>We haven\u2019t come across him yet in the movie, but one of the real people who was there during the Salem witch trials was a man by the name of John Hale. He\u2019s called Reverend John Hale in the movie and he\u2019s played by Rob Campbell. The reason I mention John Hale now is because he wrote a book called <em>A Modest Enquiry Into the Nature of Witchcraft, and How Persons Guilty of that Crime may be Convicted: And the Means Used for their Discovery Discussed, both Negatively and Affirmatively, according to Scripture and Experience.<\/em><\/p><p>That\u2019s a pretty descriptive title, hah! He gives himself the title of pastor, by the way. Not much of a difference in the eyes of a lot of people, but there is a slight one since a reverend usually refers to someone in the clergy while a pastor is a more loose term for the minister leading a church.<\/p><p>But, since all the ministers are called Reverends in the movie that\u2019s what I\u2019ll call John Hale throughout this episode, too.<\/p><p>Reverend Hale\u2019s book was published in 1697, about five years after the events in the movie. I\u2019ll include a link to where you can find the full text of the book over on the page for this episode at basedonatruestorypodcast.com.<\/p><p>This is a quote from Reverend Hale\u2019s book where he gives us a clue as to what might\u2019ve been at the start of it all:<\/p><p><em>I fear some young persons through a vain curiosity to know their future condition, have tampered with the Devils tools, so far that hereby one door was opened to Satan to play those pranks. I knew one of the Afflicted persons, who (as I was credibly informed) did try with an egg and a glass to find her future Husbands Calling; till there came up a Coffin, that is, a Spectre in likeness of a Coffin. And she was afterward followed with diabolical molestation to her death; and so dyed a single person. A just warning to others, to take heed of handling the Devils weapons, lest they get a wound thereby.<\/em><\/p><p><em>Another, I was called to pray with, being under sore fits and vexations of Satan. And upon examination I found she had tryed the same charm: and after her confession of it and manifestation of repentance for it, and our prayers to God for her, she was speedily released from those bonds of Satan. This iniquity though I take it not to be the Capital crime condemned, Exod. 22. Because such persons act ignorantly, not considering they hereby go to the Devil; yet borders very much upon it: and is too like Sauls going to the Witch at Endor, and Ahaziah sending to the God of Ekron to enquire.<\/em><\/p><p>Did you catch the mention of the charm?<\/p><p>Reverend Hale mentioned one of the girls tried to use an egg and a glass to try to find her future husband\u2019s calling. Instead, she found a specter in the form of a coffin. Then, he says he discovered another of the girls tried the same charm.<\/p><p>So, what exactly does that mean?<\/p><p>What Reverend Hale is referring to is something known as a oomancy, or sometimes referred to as a Venus glass. It was thought to have been something like a crystal ball; something used to tell one\u2019s future.<\/p><p>Remember that scene in <em>Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban <\/em>where Harry is in Professor Trelawney\u2019s divination class and he sees the tea leaves at the bottom of his cup reveal the Grim?<\/p><p>Well, that\u2019s basically what this charm was. Except instead of tea leaves, they used an egg. The basic concept of this method of divination is to provide some sort of heat and drop an egg on to it. Then you read the shape the egg white takes when it starts to solidify. As Hale mentioned, the girls seemed to have been using this as a way of telling who their future husbands might be.<\/p><p>As the story goes, the two girls who started playing with this form of divination might\u2019ve been Abigail Williams and Betty Parris. They got scared when the egg white revealed the shape of a coffin, presumably predicting some horrible fate.<\/p><p>So, it\u2019s not likely they were performing a love spell ritual like we see in the movie. Instead, they were using eggs as a form of divination. Think about that the next time you crack an egg over your pan\u2014the shape you see when the egg whites hit the heated pan was one of the ingredients that went into the Salem witch trials hysteria.<\/p><p>On the other side of that, Reverend Hale\u2019s words also give us a peek into the mindset of Christianity of the day as he mentions the charm being the bonds of Satan. In fact, Reverend Hale\u2019s book opens with a scripture verse from Isaiah 8:19-20:<\/p><p><em>When they say unto you, seek unto them that have Familiar Spirits and unto Wizzards, that peep, &amp;c. To the Law and to the Testimony; if they speak not according to this word, it is because there is no light in them.<\/em><\/p><p>The witch that Reverend Hale mentions is also from the Bible\u2014the Witch of Endor. That comes from 1 Samuel 28:6-8 when the first king of Israel, Saul, sought out the council of a witch in the city of Endor. He asked the witch to, \u201cdivine unto me by the familiar spirit, and bring me him up, whom I shall name unto thee.\u201d<\/p><p>As that story goes, King Saul asked for the spirit of his old mentor and prophet of God, Samuel. But things didn\u2019t turn out so well when the spirit of Samuel prophesied the Israelites would be defeated by the Philistines the next day. And, so, you start to get an idea for <em>why <\/em>the Christians in Salem could see this as an example of cause and effect. Essentially, there are dire consequences for getting help from a witch.<\/p><p>There\u2019s a long list of other Bible verses that speak to the evils of witchcraft:<\/p><ul><li>Leviticus 19:26b, \u201cYou shall not interpret omens or tell fortunes.\u201d<\/li><li>1 Samuel 15:23a, \u201cFor rebellion is as the sin of divination\u2026\u201d<\/li><li>1 Chronicles 10:13-14, \u201cSo Saul died for his breach of faith. He broke faith with the Lord in that he did not keep the command of the Lord, and also consulted a medium, seeking guidance. He did not seek guidance from the Lord. Therefore the Lord put him to death and turned the kingdom over to David the son of Jesse.\u201d<\/li><\/ul><p>There\u2019s more, but the last one I\u2019ll reference comes from Leviticus 20:27:<\/p><p><em>A man or a woman who is a medium or a necromancer shall surely be put to death. They shall be stoned with stones; their blood shall be upon them.<\/em><\/p><p>For the purpose of our story today, that sort of Biblical story is exactly <em>why <\/em>the Christian leaders in Salem would\u2019ve forbade any sort of contact with witchcraft. Even something like using eggs for divination would\u2019ve been seen as the work of the devil and the penalty\u2026well, it\u2019s not good.<\/p><p>Going back to the movie, after the ritual in the forest we find out that Betty Parris isn\u2019t waking up. Reverend Parris tells Abigail to go get the doctor. So, she goes to get the doctor. Knocking on the door, a Mrs. Griggs answers. Abigail asks for the doctor because Betty won\u2019t wake up.<\/p><p>She\u2019s puzzled. She tells Abigail the doctor isn\u2019t in\u2014he\u2019s at the Putnam house because Ruth Putnam won\u2019t wake up, either. After this, the scene cuts to a girl in bed staring at the camera. Dr. Griggs waves his hand over her eyes, but they don\u2019t move. They don\u2019t blink.<\/p><p>Dr. Griggs goes on to inform the others in the room that he\u2019s never seen anything like this. There\u2019s no fever. No wound. And yet, she sleeps.<\/p><p>The others in the room are the girl\u2019s parents, Thomas and Ann Putnam, as well as Reverend Parris. In the background we can see Abigail Williams is there, too, as is Mercy Lewis.<\/p><p>When Reverend Parris tells the doctor about his Betty being the same, the doctor is surprised. Ann jumps to an answer.<\/p><p>\u201cIt\u2019s the devil, isn\u2019t it?\u201d<\/p><p>Dr. Griggs isn\u2019t so quick to jump to that conclusion. He simply says this may be a sickness beyond his skill.<\/p><p>But then, in the next scene, we see Thomas Putnam walking and talking to Reverend Parris. Thomas, too, seems convinced this is witchcraft. Parris begs Thomas not to jump to witchcraft that quickly. Thomas insists that Reverend Parris admit it <em>is<\/em> witchcraft. Parris replies by saying he needs time to think.<\/p><p>That\u2019s not really what happened. Of course, we\u2019ll never know the exact conversations that took place or the thoughts, beliefs and fears of the people in Salem in 1692, but as best as we can tell what really happened was that Abigail Williams and Betty Parris started having uncontrollable fits.<\/p><p>He\u2019s not in the movie at all, but another spiritual leader in the community, Reverend Deodat Lawson, wrote about what he saw. This is a quote from his book published in 1692 called, <em>A brief and true narrative of some remarkable passages relating to sundry persons afflicted by witchcraft, in Salem Village: which happened from the nineteenth of March, to the fifth of April, 1692.<\/em><\/p><p>That was just the title of the book. Hah!<\/p><p>Oh, and it\u2019s worth mentioning that despite the title of Lawson\u2019s book, Abigail Williams and Betty Parris started throwing fits in either January or February of 1692. A little later, Lawson recounted seeing one of those fits. Here\u2019s a quote from Reverend Lawson\u2019s experience:<\/p><p><em>On the Nineteenth day of March last I went to Salem Village, and lodged at Nathaniel Ingersols near to the Minister Mr. P. house, and presently after, I came into my Lodging. Capt. Walents Daughter Mary came to Lieut. Ingersols and spake to me, but, suddenly after as she stood by the door, was bitten, so that she cried out of her Wrist and looking on it with a Candle, we saw apparently the marks of Teeth both upper and lower set, on each side of her wrist.<\/em><\/p><p><em>In the beginning of the Evening, I went to give Mr. P. a visit. When I was there, his Kins-woman, Abigail Williams, (about 12 years of age,) had a grievous fit; she was at first hurryed with Violence to and fro in the room; (though Mrs. Ingersol, endeavoured to Hold her,) sometimes makeing as if she would fly, stretching up her arms as high as she could, and crying Whish, Whish, Whish! several times; Presently after she said there was Goodwife N. and said, Do you not see her? Why there she stands! And she said Goodwife N. offered her THE BOOK, but she was resolved she would not take it, saying Often, I wont, I wont, I wont, take it, I do not know what Book it is: I am sure it is none of Gods Book, it is the Divels Book, for ought I know. After that, she run to the Fire, and begun to throw Fire Briands, about the house; and run against the Back, as if she would run up Chimney, and, as they said, she had attempted to go into the Fire in other Fits.<\/em><\/p><p>The \u201cMinister Mr. P.\u201d mentioned is Reverend Parris and I\u2019m assuming the Goodwife N. mentioned is Rebecca Nurse, but I couldn\u2019t find anything to confirm that.<\/p><p>From Reverend Lawson\u2019s account, we not only get a sense for what one of Abigail\u2019s fits was like but we also get an idea for how she named others. That mention of Goodwife N., \u201cDo you not see her? Why there she stands!\u201d<\/p><p>One thing the movie got right, though, was that Abigail was living in the Parris house because her own parents had been killed. Reverend Parris was Abigail\u2019s uncle, making the Reverend\u2019s daughter, Elizabeth\u2014or Betty in the movie\u2014Abigail\u2019s cousin.<\/p><p>When the real Dr. Griggs examined Abigail to try to figure out what was causing these fits, he couldn\u2019t find anything wrong with her. Since these came after it was discovered she was using divination, it didn\u2019t take long for the idea that this was witchcraft to enter the picture.<\/p><p>Abigail wasn\u2019t the only one having these fits, either. Here\u2019s another excerpt from Reverend Lawson\u2019s book that explains how it spread. If you recall, the last excerpt mentions the 19<sup>th<\/sup> of March. This is from two days later on Monday the 21<sup>st<\/sup>.<\/p><p><em>The Number of the Afflicted Persons were about that time Ten, viz. <\/em><em>Four Married Women, Mrs Pope, Mrs. Putman, Goodw. Bibber, and an Ancient Woman, named Goodall, three Maids, Mary Walcut, Mercy Lewes, at Thomas Putman\u2019s, and a Maid at Dr. Griggs\u2019s, there were three Girls from 9 to 12 Years of Age, each of them, or thereabouts, viz. Elizabeth Parris, Abigail William and Ann Putman; these were most of them at <\/em><em>\u3008<\/em><em>\u25ca<\/em><em>\u3009<\/em><em> Examination, and did vehemently accuse her in the Assembly of afflicting them, by Biting, Pinching, Strangling, &amp;c.<\/em><\/p><p>You\u2019ll notice the mention of Mrs. Putnam being afflicted. That\u2019s not something we see in the movie.<\/p><p>Speaking of which, going back to the movie, we quickly find out one of the key drivers for Winona Ryder\u2019s version of Abigail Williams. That happens when we see Daniel Day-Lewis\u2019s character, John Proctor. He\u2019s called into town to attend a town meeting in which Reverend Parris mentions he\u2019s called for Reverend John Hale from Beverly.<\/p><p>As a quick side note, the town of Beverly is only about 2.5 miles, or about 4 kilometers, to the north of Salem.<\/p><p>According to the movie, Abigail Williams used to work for John Proctor and his wife, Elizabeth. The movie goes even further to say that Abigail and John had an affair and it was this affair that was the ultimate reason why Elizabeth Proctor fired Abigail and forced her to leave their house.<\/p><p>In fact, that\u2019s a very major plot point in the movie that runs through the entire movie.<\/p><p>And it\u2019s one that\u2019s entirely made up.<\/p><p>Although John and Elizabeth Proctor were real people, there\u2019s no evidence to suggest John Proctor had an affair with Abigail Williams. And that brings up something else the movie changed to make this affair much more plausible: Their ages.<\/p><p>Even though I don\u2019t know for certain the exact dates for when they shot the movie, we know Winona Ryder was born in 1971 and the movie was released in 1996\u201425 years later. So, Winona Ryder would\u2019ve been in her 20s when she played the part of Abigail Williams.<\/p><p>On the other side of the affair we see in the movie is John Proctor. He\u2019s played by Daniel Day-Lewis who was in his mid-40s during the shooting of the movie. That makes it an affair between a 20-something Winona Ryder\u2019s Abigail Williams and a 40s-something Daniel Day Lewis\u2019s John Proctor.<\/p><p>In truth, Abigail Williams wasn\u2019t quite 12 years old and John Proctor was almost 60 years old when this all happened.<\/p><p>You might have caught that mention of Abigail\u2019s age in Reverend Lawson\u2019s description of her fit. He said Abigail was about 12 years old. In fact, she was 11. Abigail was born on July 12<sup>th<\/sup>, 1680 and since the fit Reverend Lawson mentioned happened on March 19<sup>th<\/sup>, 1692, that means Abigail would\u2019ve been 11 years, 8 months and 7 days old.<\/p><p>And since John Proctor was born on March 30<sup>th<\/sup>, 1632, that would make him 59 years, 11 months and 20 days old on the account from Reverend Lawson on March 19<sup>th<\/sup>, 1692.<\/p><p>While the age difference alone isn\u2019t proof that there wasn\u2019t an affair between John and Abigail, as I mentioned a moment ago, there doesn\u2019t seem to be any evidence to suggest the two had an affair. Since the romance between John and Abigail is a major part of the movie\u2019s storyline, that can give you an idea for how accurate the rest of the movie is.<\/p><p>In fact, many historians believe the first time Abigail even met John was at the trials. If that\u2019s true, that would mean Abigail accused him of witchcraft without even knowing who he was.<\/p><p>Speaking of accusations, if we head back to the movie\u2019s timeline, the accusations begin.<\/p><p>We see it happen when Reverend Hale arrives in town. After Reverend Parris tells Hale about the dancing he saw in the forest\u2014Hale is shocked to find they allow dancing. But, don\u2019t worry, Parris tells Hale they don\u2019t allow dancing.<\/p><p>\u2018Twas secret.<\/p><p>As a little side note, it is true that early American Puritans were against dancing. Although, some historians might be quick to point out that they didn\u2019t believe it to be so evil like the movie seems to imply. They merely believed it was suggestive and they were against anything of a sexual theme. So, if they did dance, it\u2019d be at an arm\u2019s length.<\/p><p>In the movie, though, as Reverend Hale is trying to get to the bottom of what went on in the forest, he quickly starts to suspect something evil as Parris tells him about the boiling pot.<\/p><p>Hale gathers up all the girls and tries to get them to tell him what was going on as they danced around the fire in the forest. Were they casting spells? Did they drink from the pot?<\/p><p>One of the girls points at Winona Ryder\u2019s version of Abigail Williams, who quickly denies anything. Instead, she passes the blame and says it was all Tituba\u2019s idea. The scene cuts to Tituba\u2019s place and the men grab her to interrogate. Abigail is there and continues to point fingers at Tituba.<\/p><p>\u201cShe did this! She made me drink blood!\u201d<\/p><p>Reverend Parris whips Tituba as they try to get the truth out of her. When they say they\u2019ll hang her, Tituba confesses to being a witch.<\/p><p>As viewers, it\u2019s clear the choice Tituba had wasn\u2019t much of a choice at all. Confess to being a witch or we\u2019ll hang you. What would you do in that situation?<\/p><p>And while the movie is highly dramatized in how this all went down, there are some kernels of truth in there.<\/p><p>It is true that a slave named Tituba was one of the first accused. The charge against her was afflicting four girls: Abigail Williams, Betty Parris, Ann Putnam, Jr., and Elizabeth Hubbard.<\/p><p>Sort of like we heard from Reverend Lawson\u2019s account, the girls were throwing fits and claiming they were being pinched, bitten or strangled by invisible spirits. They claimed Tituba was one of those spirits. Tituba, in turn, blamed two other women in town: Sarah Good and Sarah Osborne.<\/p><p>Like the movie shows, Sarah Good was a homeless woman who had earned a bad reputation in town for begging for food and shelter from people. So, no one thought twice when she was accused of witchcraft. It made sense to them. Sarah Osborne also had a poor reputation in town. It wasn\u2019t for being homeless, but instead Sarah Osborne\u2019s bad reputation came from her marrying one of her servants.<\/p><p>Oh, and she also didn\u2019t go to church as much as people thought she should.<\/p><p>As for Tituba, well, she was a South American Indian and Reverend Parris\u2019s slave. Race and cultural differences certainly played a part in her accusation.<\/p><p>Ultimately, no one was surprised when these three were accused of witchcraft. No one defended them. They were different. As a result, it was Tituba, Sarah Good and Sarah Osborne that were the first three people arrested in what we now know as the Salem witch trials.<\/p><p>Back in the movie, we see there are more accused. A court is set up to get to the bottom of this. According to the movie, there are three judges, Judge Danforth, Judge Hathorne and Judge Sewall.<\/p><p>There\u2019s a montage of sorts as we see Sarah Good and Sarah Osborne arrested. Soon after is someone named Mary Sibber. She was upset that someone\u2019s goat was in her garden and because she yelled, \u201cDevil take you all!\u201d apparently that was enough reason for her to get locked up.<\/p><p>Then there\u2019s another woman and her daughter. The movie doesn\u2019t give us their name, we just see them as they happen to be nearby when a cart passes and breaks down. They must be witches, so they\u2019re accused.<\/p><p>Mr. Jacobs is next. We see a scene where Thomas Putnam is arguing with Jacob Proctor over the borders of their land, which butts up against each other. As Thomas is leaving, he sees Mr. Jacobs. In the next scene, Mr. Jacobs is accused in front of the court.<\/p><p>Ruth Parris, Thomas\u2019s daughter, claims that Mr. Jacobs snuck through her window. The elderly Mr. Jacobs laughs at this. Raising the two sticks in his hand, he points out to the three judges that he has to walk with two sticks\u2014how am I supposed to get through a window?<\/p><p>Judge Hathorne insists that Mr. Jacobs could\u2019ve sent his <em>spirit <\/em>through the window!<\/p><p>Mr. Jacobs is befuddled. How do you do that?<\/p><p>As Mr. Jacobs is talking, Ruth Parris gets close to one of the judges and whispers something to him. She claims she sees a black man on Mr. Jacobs\u2019s shoulder, whispering to him. Almost immediately, the other girls\u2014Abigail Williams, and so on\u2014start saying the same thing. They see the same spirit on Mr. Jacobs\u2019s shoulder.<\/p><p>Mr. Jacobs is sentenced to be hanged.<\/p><p>What we see in the movie here with this court and the three judges is quite disturbing. Do the judges already have an idea that these accused are all guilty? We see it almost right away when Judge Hathorne suggests that Mr. Jacobs\u2019s spirit might\u2019ve gone through Ruth Parris\u2019s window.<\/p><p>The only one the movie seems to imply might be concerned over what\u2019s going on is Judge Sewall. At one point he mentions to Judge Danforth that he didn\u2019t expect all their evidence of witchery to come from children. Danforth tells Sewall to remember the Gospel, \u201cFrom the mouths of babes shall come the truth.\u201d<\/p><p>It\u2019s almost as if the judges are <em>trying <\/em>to prove the accusations are correct.<\/p><p>They\u2019re hardly impartial.<\/p><p>All of that is\u2026well, it\u2019s a movie, so it\u2019s never going to be entirely true. But, there are some key elements in there that the movie got right.<\/p><p>Although it\u2019s interesting that Danforth in the movie quotes, \u201cFrom the mouths of babes shall come the truth,\u201d and implies it comes from the Gospels. That would be the books of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John in the New Testament and while the \u201cmouths of babes\u201d saying is a common one, that direct quote isn\u2019t from the Gospels.<\/p><p>The closest scripture from the four Gospels is Matthew 21:16 which says, \u201cAnd they said to him, \u2018Do you hear what these are saying?\u201d And Jesus said to them, \u201cYes; have you never read, \u2018Out of the mouth of infants and nursing babies you have prepared praise\u2019?\u201d<\/p><p>That scripture, of course, implies that the saying existed before Jesus said it. And it did. For example, while the Gospels are in the New Testament, in the Old Testament there\u2019s another scripture, Psalms 8:2, which says, \u201cOut of the mouth of babies and infants, you have established strength because of your foes, to still the enemy and the avenger.\u201d<\/p><p>But, Judge Danforth\u2019s apparent misquoting of scripture aside, the movie is correct in showing him there. Same with Judge Hathorne, whose first name was John. He was also there. So was Samuel Sewall.<\/p><p>The movie implies those were the only three judges the entire time: Danforth, Sewall and Hathorne.<\/p><p>And that is <em>not <\/em>correct; it\u2019s a simplification.<\/p><p>The truth is a little more complex, and it also gives us another glimpse into the overall historical accuracy of the movie.<\/p><p>The real Thomas Danforth came to the New World in 1634 from England to escape persecution of his Puritan beliefs. He was known as very conservative, and by the time 1692 rolled around, he was the acting governor of the Province of Massachusetts Bay. He was acting because, in 1688, there was what we now know as the Glorious Revolution.<\/p><p>Basically, a bunch of Puritan leaders revolted against King James II and established a governor over a new land they called the Dominion of New England. After the Glorious Revolution, the Dominion of New England collapsed, and the Province of Massachusetts Bay was re-established with Thomas Danforth as the governor.<\/p><p>So, it was Thomas Danforth who was essentially the man in charge when all this started happening in Salem in the early months of 1692. So, the movie got that right. But the movie shows Thomas Danforth there in Salem for the entire duration\u2014and that is <em>not <\/em>right.<\/p><p>Danforth\u2019s involvement in the trials ended in May of 1692, so he was only there for a few months. The others presiding over the trials for the beginning months of 1692 alongside Thomas Danforth were John Hathorne, Jonathan Corwin, who is sometimes listed as a Sheriff, and Bartholomew Gedney.<\/p><p>The last two of those weren\u2019t even in the movie.<\/p><p>But then, all that changed in May. As I just mentioned, Danforth left. The reason for that had to do with the Glorious Rebellion of 1688 that I mentioned earlier. More specifically it had to do with Thomas Danforth not being a fan of King James II. So, it was only a matter of time before he was replaced.<\/p><p>That replacement arrived from England in May of 1692.<\/p><p>The new governor\u2019s name was William Phips and when he arrived he set up a new court with some new people.<\/p><p>For the purposes of our story today, essentially Thomas Danforth was the only one that was replaced from the panel of judges. I\u2019m sure it was no coincidence that Danforth was the one who was outspoken against King James II, either.<\/p><p>Replacing Danforth\u2019s position as heading up the trials at Salem was a new chief magistrate, a man by the name of William Stoughton. He was the Lieutenant Governor beneath William Phips.<\/p><p>As you probably guessed, Stoughton wasn\u2019t in the movie at all.<\/p><p>But then again, neither were most of the other judges that came with the change in leadership in May of 1692.<\/p><p>The three judges who were in the court alongside Thomas Danforth stayed on. That\u2019d be Jonathan Corwin, Bartholomew Gedney and the only other one we see in the movie, John Hathorne.<\/p><p>And right now, you might be wondering\u2026but wait a minute, what about Samuel Sewall? He was in the movie!<\/p><p>Yes, he was. But he wasn\u2019t a part of the trials under Danforth. He joined in May of 1692, as did Nathanial Saltonstall, Peter Sergeant and Wait Still Winthrop.<\/p><p>Whew!<\/p><p>Okay, so basically the movie shows three judges. Danforth, Sewall and Hathorne. In reality, Danforth and Hathorne were there at the beginning of the trials alongside two other judges that weren\u2019t in the movie. In May of 1692, Hathorne and those two other judges stayed on while Danforth left. That\u2019s also when Samuel Sewall and five others joined the court.<\/p><p>And that doesn\u2019t even count some of the other little changes that happened. For example, how Nathaniel Saltonstall joined in May but resigned in June. Or others like Thomas Newton and Anthony Checkley who were the lawyers on the side of the Crown.<\/p><p>I can see why the movie simplified things, haha!<\/p><p>With all that said, in the movie we see Thomas Danforth and John Hathorne seem to be the primary drivers behind believing the girls while Samuel Sewall goes along with it\u2014but isn\u2019t so sure.<\/p><p>Again, this is an oversimplification.<\/p><p>You might think that just because the movie\u2019s incorrect in showing Thomas Danforth being there the whole time that perhaps his replacement, William Stoughton, might be better.<\/p><p>But\u2026that\u2019s not necessarily true.<\/p><p>At least, not as far as the fate of those accused. For example, in June of 1692, Rebecca Nurse was one of the women accused of witchcraft. We see that in the movie. What we don\u2019t see is that her trial ended with the jury declaring her not guilty.<\/p><p>It was Chief Magistrate William Stoughton who bowed to public outcry and requested the jury review the case again. This time, they found her guilty and on July 19<sup>th<\/sup>, 1692, Rebecca was sentenced to death.<\/p><p>As for John Hathorne, he\u2019s portrayed in the movie as someone who seems to buy into the belief that they\u2019re witches from the beginning. There\u2019s one scene, in particular, when Robert Breuler\u2019s version of Judge Hathorne is questioning Martha Corey.<\/p><p>He asks Martha if she\u2019s a witch.<\/p><p>She says she\u2019s not a witch.<\/p><p>Then she says she doesn\u2019t even know what a witch is!<\/p><p>\u201cIf you don\u2019t know what a witch is, how do you know you are not one?\u201d Judge Hathorne is smug in his response.<\/p><p>While the overall idea that Judge Hathorne seemingly already had the accused\u2019s guilt in mind like we see in the movie isn\u2019t accurate, that particular exchange was one that really happened. It\u2019s probably the most popular exchange for Judge Hathorne, although it\u2019s not with Martha Corey like we see in the movie\u2014it was with another accused, Bridget Bishop.<\/p><p>But, Bridget Bishop isn\u2019t even in the movie, so maybe that\u2019s why they changed it. Oh, and like a lot of the other things we\u2019ve looked at so far, the movie\u2019s version is simplified.<\/p><p>And we know that because we have the original transcripts. This comes from a book called <em>Record of Salem Witchcraft, copied from the Original Documents Volume 1<\/em> by W. Elliot Woodward and published in 1864.<\/p><p>Of course, I\u2019ll include a link to where you can read the entire book for free online on the page for this episode over at basedonatruestorypodcast.com.<\/p><p>But, for the sake of this back-and-forth, I\u2019ll save you the trouble of reading it. Unfortunately the transcript doesn\u2019t really mention who is saying what, but hopefully you can figure out who is Judge Hathorne and who is Bridget Bishop just from what\u2019s being said. For the most part it\u2019s pretty clear, and it gives you a sense of what it must\u2019ve been like in that courtroom with the afflicted girls seemingly being affected by Bridget.<\/p><h2>The examination of Bridget Byshop at Salem Village 19. Apr. 1692<\/h2><h3>By John Hathorn &amp; Jonath : Corwin esq.<\/h3><p><em>As soon as she came near all fell into fits.<\/em><\/p><p><em>Bridget Byshop you are now brought beore Authority to give acco of what witchcrafts you are conversant in<\/em><\/p><p><em>I take all this people (turning her hea and eyes about) to witness that I am clear.<\/em><\/p><p><em>Hath this woman hurt you speating to ye afflicted.<\/em><\/p><p><em>Eliz Hubbard, Ann Putnam, Abigail Williams and Mercy Lewes affirmed that she had hurt them.<\/em><\/p><p><em>You are here accused by 4 or 5 for hurting them, what do you say to it?<\/em><\/p><p><em>I never saw these persons before, nor I never was in this place before.<\/em><\/p><p><em>Mary Walcot said that her brother Jonathan stroke her appearance and she saw that he had tore her coat in striking, and she heart it tare.<\/em><\/p><p><em>Upon some search in the Court a rent that seems to answer what was alledged was found.<\/em><\/p><p><em>They say you bewitch your first husband to death<\/em><\/p><p><em>If it please your worship I know nothing of it.<\/em><\/p><p><em>\u2014She shake her head and the afflicted were tortured.<\/em><\/p><p><em>\u2014The like again upon the motion of her head.<\/em><\/p><p><em>Sam: Braybook affirmed that she told him to day that she had been accounted a witch these-10-years, but she was no witch the Devil cannot hurt her<\/em><\/p><p><em>I am no witch<\/em><\/p><p><em>Why if you have not wrote in the book, yet tell me how far you have gone?<\/em><\/p><p><em>I have no familiarity with the devil.<\/em><\/p><p><em>How is it then, that your appearance doth hurt these?<\/em><\/p><p><em>I am innocent.<\/em><\/p><p><em>Why you seem to act witchcraft before us by the motion of your body which seems to have influence upon the afflicted.<\/em><\/p><p><em>I know nothing of it. I am innocent to a witch. I know not what a witch is.<\/em><\/p><p><em>How do you know then that you are not a witch<\/em><\/p><p><em>I do not know what you say.<\/em><\/p><p><em>How can you know, you are no witch, and yet not know what a witch is.<\/em><\/p><p><em>I am clear: if I were any such person you should know it.<\/em><\/p><p><em>You may threaten, but you can do no more than you are permitted.<\/em><\/p><p><em>I am innocent of a witch<\/em><\/p><p><em>What do you say of those murders you are charged with?<\/em><\/p><p><em>I hope, I am not guilty of murder,<\/em><\/p><p><em>Then she turned up her eyes, and the eyes of the afflicted were turned up:<\/em><\/p><p><em>It may be you do not know, that any have confessed to day, who have been examined before you, that they are witches.<\/em><\/p><p><em>No. I know nothing of it.<\/em><\/p><p><em>John Hutchinson and John Lewis in open Court affirmed that they had told her.<\/em><\/p><p><em>Why look you, you are taken now in a flat lyre.<\/em><\/p><p><em>I did not hear them.<\/em><\/p><p><em>Note: Same: Gold faith that after this examination he asked Bridget Byshop if she were not troubled to see the afflicted persons so tormented, said Byshop answered no she was not troubled for them: Then he askt her whether she thought they were bewitch she said she could not tell what to think about them. Will Good and John Buxton junt was by and he supposeth they heard her also.<\/em><\/p><p><em>Mr Sam Parris being desired to take in wrighting the Examination of Bridget Bishop, hath delivered it as aforesaid. And upon hearing ye same and seeing what wee did then see together with the charge of the afflicted persons then present: Wee committed said Bridget Olliver.<\/em><\/p><p><em>\u2014 John Hathorne.<\/em><\/p><p>That\u2019s just the first examination of Bridget Bishop. It continues with another round by John Hathorne and Jonathan Curren\u2026and beyond. Again, if you haven\u2019t yet then go check out the original transcripts. It\u2019ll give you a good idea of what was being said and the back and forth.<\/p><p>And if you picture the scene sort of like we see in the movie, even though what\u2019s being said is different you can also imagine the group of afflicted girls repeating what the accused does\u2014like the transcript said when Bridget shakes her head, the afflicted \u201cwere tortured.\u201d<\/p><p>As the movie comes to a close, we see the affair between John Proctor and Abigail Williams come out in the open. Elizabeth Proctor is called to testify, but she doesn\u2019t know John has already confessed to the affair.<\/p><p>So, she lies about it. She thinks she\u2019s saving her husband. Instead, the opposite is true.<\/p><p>Of course, we already know that\u2019s all made up\u2014as I mentioned earlier, there\u2019s no evidence of an affair between John Proctor and Abigail Williams.<\/p><p>But the final sequence we see Winona Ryder\u2019s version of Abigail Williams in is when she flees Salem. She steals money from her uncle and disappears. The movie implies she took a ship somewhere.<\/p><p>Then, back in Salem, John Proctor at first signs a confession, then he takes it back. He can\u2019t bring himself to confess. The last scene we see is Daniel Day-Lewis\u2019s version of John Proctor on the gallows alongside Mary Pat Gleason\u2019s version of Martha Corey and Elizabeth Lawrence\u2019s version of Rebecca Nurse.<\/p><p>It\u2019s Rebecca who starts quoting the Lord\u2019s prayer.<\/p><p>\u201cOur Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be Thy name.\u201d<\/p><p>Martha and John continue the prayer with Rebecca.<\/p><p>\u201cThy kingdom come. Thy will be done. On earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread, and forgive us our trespasses as we forgive them that trespass against us.\u201d<\/p><p>The camera cuts to the crowd watching the hanging. Earlier when we saw people being hanged, the crowd was cheering and joyful at the deaths. This time, they\u2019re not. They\u2019re looking on in shock at the scene unfolding in front of them.<\/p><p>The prayer continues, \u201cLead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil\u2026\u201d<\/p><p>The camera zooms in on John Proctor. At this point, we hear a noise. If you have the closed captions turned on then you\u2019d see the movie tell us what that noise was: Neck snaps.<\/p><p>There are only two voices now.<\/p><p>John continues, his voice raising, \u201cFor Thine is the kingdom and the power and the glory\u2026\u201d<\/p><p>Another noise.<\/p><p>John\u2019s voice is alone now.<\/p><p>\u201c\u2026forever and ever\u2026\u201d<\/p><p>John\u2019s face drops from the camera\u2019s view. Another noise.<\/p><p>And just like most of this movie, there are parts of that that are true, parts of it that aren\u2019t and some parts that we just don\u2019t know.<\/p><p>Let\u2019s start with Abigail Williams. She\u2019s one of those \u201cwe just don\u2019t know.\u201d The reason for that is because everything we do know about all of this comes from the written records that have survived.<\/p><p>And after the trials, there simply <em>are <\/em>no written records that mention Abigail Williams. She seems to just disappear.<\/p><p>Did she steal money from her uncle and run away like the movie implies? Maybe. There are some stories that suggest she did exactly that. There are other stories that say she died just five years after the trials in 1697 at the age of 17.<\/p><p>In the end, we just don\u2019t know\u2026and we probably never will.<\/p><p>That brings us to the death of John Proctor. That is true, but it didn\u2019t happen the way the movie shows. Probably the closest part the movie got right was that Abigail Williams accused John\u2019s wife, Elizabeth. It was because John defended Elizabeth that led the accusations to turn to him, too.<\/p><p>One tidbit I thought was interesting the movie got wrong had to do with John\u2019s confession. When we see Daniel Day-Lewsis\u2019s version of John Proctor sign the confession, if you pause the movie you can see at the top the paper says: \u201cConfession of John Proctor on this 14 day of November 1692.\u201d<\/p><p>The real John Proctor was executed on August 19<sup>th<\/sup>, 1692. Unlike what we see in the movie, Martha Corey didn\u2019t die alongside John that day. She was executed on September 22<sup>nd<\/sup>, 1692. Rebecca Nurse also wasn\u2019t there that same day. She was executed before John and Martha on July 19<sup>th<\/sup>, 1692.<\/p><p>At the very end of the movie, we get some text on screen that tells us the Salem witch hunt ended after 19 executions. The reason it ended was because more and more accused people refused to save themselves by giving false confessions. Just like we see John Proctor refuse to do in the movie.<\/p><p>That number is true. There were over 200 people who were accused of witchcraft, but not everyone who was accused was arrested. About 150 of them were, though.<\/p><p>In the end a total 14 women and five men were found guilty and executed between February of 1692 and May of 1693.<\/p><p>Lest we forget, here are the names of the 19 people in the order of their execution:<\/p><ul><li>Bridget Bishop, June 10<sup>th<\/sup>, 1692<\/li><li>Sarah Good, July 19<sup>th<\/sup>, 1692<\/li><li>Elizabeth Howe, July 19<sup>th<\/sup>, 1692<\/li><li>Susannah Martin, July 19<sup>th<\/sup>, 1692<\/li><li>Rebecca Nurse, July 19<sup>th<\/sup>, 1692<\/li><li>Sarah Wildes, July 19<sup>th<\/sup>, 1692<\/li><li>Reverend George Burroughs, August 19<sup>th<\/sup>, 1692<\/li><li>Martha Carrier, August 19<sup>th<\/sup>, 1692<\/li><li>John Willard, August 19<sup>th<\/sup>, 1692<\/li><li>George Jacobs, Sr., August 19<sup>th<\/sup>, 1692<\/li><li>John Proctor, August 19<sup>th<\/sup>, 1692<\/li><li>Alice Parker, September 22<sup>nd<\/sup>, 1692<\/li><li>Mary Parker, September 22<sup>nd<\/sup>, 1692<\/li><li>Ann Pudeator, September 22<sup>nd<\/sup>, 1692<\/li><li>Wilmot Redd, September 22<sup>nd<\/sup>, 1692<\/li><li>Margaret Scott, September 22<sup>nd<\/sup>, 1692<\/li><li>Samuel Wardwell, September 22<sup>nd<\/sup>, 1692<\/li><li>Martha Corey, September 22<sup>nd<\/sup>, 1692<\/li><li>Mary Easty, September 22<sup>nd<\/sup>, 1692<\/li><\/ul><p>That number doesn\u2019t include a 20<sup>th<\/sup> victim. That would be Giles Corey, who is often listed separately because the movie correctly showed was executed by pressing\u2014or, being crushed to death by stones. Although his execution didn\u2019t have to do with refusing to say someone\u2019s name like the movie implies.<\/p><p>Instead, he was accused of witchcraft like his wife, Martha, was and Giles was the only one of the accused who refused to enter any sort of plea at all. He wouldn\u2019t say he was guilty, and he wouldn\u2019t say he was innocent. So, they tortured him by pressing because he refused to give a plea. That torture went on for three days before Giles died\u2026just three days before his wife, Martha, would be executed by hanging.<\/p><p>That number also doesn\u2019t include another four or five people who died while they were imprisoned during the trials, most likely due to illness or some other reason that happens when you\u2019re imprisoned in 17<sup>th<\/sup> century Massachusetts.<\/p><p>The text at the end of the movie implies that trials ended because so many people refused to confess. While it is true that a lot of people refused to confess\u2014after all, lying was a sin, too\u2014the real driver behind the end of the witch trials was in September of 1692 when spectral evidence was declared inadmissible in court.<\/p><p>Since most of the evidence up until that point had been based on the dreams and visions of those who had made accusations, the remaining people in custody ended up being found not guilty. The hangings on September 22<sup>nd<\/sup>, 1692 were the final executions of the Salem witch trials.<\/p><p>In the last few months of the trials, there were a few more warrants for execution, but Governor William Phips stepped in and pardoned them. Others were found not guilty and eventually released. The trials officially ended in May of 1693 when the final prisoners were released, a little over a year since the first of the trials began in February of 1692.<\/p><p>In the centuries since, countless people have tried to figure out the cause for the trials. Some have suggested it was a fabrication by greedy landowners. Those who suggest this theory point to a feud between the Putnam family and the Proctor family that had been going on for a while before the witch trials. There were others in the community who had similar disagreements going on that caused accusations, but we saw a hint at this when Thomas Putnam tried to take over Mr. Jacobs\u2019s land in the movie.<\/p><p>Others say it was a case of mass hysteria that started when Puritan beliefs collided with those in the community deemed to be outside the church and looked down upon.<\/p><p>Some of those at the heart of the trials apologized. Judge Samuel Sewall, for example, issued an apology on January 15<sup>th<\/sup>, 1697\u2014the same day that Governor Stoughton declared a Day of Official Humiliation as the entire community prayed and fasted and asked God for forgiveness for what they\u2019d done.<\/p><p>Five years later, the General Court in Massachusetts officially declared the trials were unlawful.<\/p><p>In an ironic twist, one of the girls who had thrown accusations around later claimed she had been taken over by the devil to do what she had done. 13 years after the trials ended, in 1706, Ann Putnam, Jr., apologized for her actions by saying:<\/p><p><em>I desire to be humbled before God for that sad and humbling providence that befell my father\u2019s family in the year about ninety-two; that I, then being in my childhood, should, by such a providence of God, be made an instrument for the accusing of several people for grievous crimes, whereby their lives was taken away from them, whom, now I have just grounds and good reason to believe they were innocent persons; and that it was a great delusion of Satan that deceived me in that sad time.<\/em><\/p><p>Five years later, in 1711, a bill was passed that officially restored the good names and rights of those who had been accused. Their heirs were also given \u00a3600 pounds for restitution. It\u2019s really tough to convert currency like that, especially since the United States wasn\u2019t even a thing then. But, as best as I can tell, that \u00a3600 pounds in 1711 would be roughly the same as $92,000.00 in today\u2019s U.S. dollars.<\/p><p>Then, for hundreds of years, much of the world forgot about the Salem witch trials.<\/p><p>It wasn\u2019t until Arthur Miller\u2019s play that the movie was based on, also called <em>The Crucible, <\/em>was released in 1953 that the trials were once again given the spotlight of the world. Four years after <em>The Crucible <\/em>hit the stage, in 1957, the state of Massachusetts officially and formally apologized for the events that took place in 1692.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Resources A Brief History of the Salem Witch Trials The Salem Witch Trials Victims: Who Were They? Records of Salem Witchcraft, Copied from the Original Documents Records of Salem Witchcraft Salem Judges Presiding Over Cases Accusing Witchcraft The Crucible (1996) &#8211; IMDb How A 12-Year-Old Sparked The First Witch-Hunt In America All About Abigail Williams, [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":3248,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[106,107,109,116],"tags":[151,153],"class_list":["post-3247","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-mystery","category-paranormal","category-religion","category-true-crime","tag-series-movies","tag-narration"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v23.9 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>143: The Crucible | Based on a True Story Podcast<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Ever wondered how much of 1996&#039;s The Crucible is historically accurate? 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