Why did the Puritans come to America? What level of individual freedom do you see in Salem? What level of order? What happens when one or other gets out of balance? When does order become autocratic?
The Puritans came to America essentially because they did not like the church of England and wanted to practice their own religion, which was possible in America. Before the trials, freedom in Salem depended on money. Those who had land or money normally had more freedom. The landowners were the ones with slaves and other help. Individually, people had a decent amount of freedom. Before the trials, order was at a high level. Almost everybody went to church and there were certain punishments for crimes. Once the trials started, that was when the imbalance started. The trials gave power to people who normally did not have power. The power shift caused a change in the level of order and therefore changed individual freedoms. It is like a domino affect, when one falls, the rest fall. Order becomes autocratic when one person is more powerful than the rest of the community.
I agree that the power shift was when the people who usually had no power suddenly had power over any member of the community. This caused the whole system to collapse and people to get unfairly treated. People who were used to having individual freedoms once accused, no longer had them.
I agree that the power shift came when the trials started and the people with the new powers liked it. Normally young girls in a society such as Salem would have almost no freedom. Then Abigail and the group of girls discovered that when they accused others of witchcraft, people listened. Abigail then used this new power for her own personal agenda.
The Puritans came to America because The Puritans had a more extremist view of protestantism. They had a belief that in America they would be able to establish their own religious capital where they could worship as the pleased. When they arrived they were able to practice their strict guidelines on living a Puritan lifestyle. The Puritan lifestyle was very restricting; dancing was prohibited as well as excessive drinking and writing books. Everyone in Salem knew the Puritan way of living. Every citizen were held accountable to maintaining their code of living, so that code was enforced by each citizen. Whenever a citizen got suspicious, they would report their suspicion. At first, it was working just as they planned, but when some of the rules started to bend and break, their order of establishment began to crumble. From the beginning, the power was autocratic. The people put most if not all their power in the hands of the judges.
I agree that the purtian society was autocratic from the beginning and as a result there was no ability for growth within the community. With no ability to adapt and change rules within society there is more and more chance for corruption to occur. in the end, this was exactly what happened. Change is an undeniable part of all life and if not accepted change can cause disagrreements and problems that can rip apart a community.
The Puritans came to America essentially because they did not like the church of England and wanted to practice their own religion, which was possible in America. Before the trials, freedom in Salem depended on money. Those who had land or money normally had more freedom. The landowners were the ones with slaves and other help. Individually, people had a decent amount of freedom. Before the trials, order was at a high level. Almost everybody went to church and there were certain punishments for crimes. Once the trials started, that was when the imbalance started. The trials gave power to people who normally did not have power. The power shift caused a change in the level of order and therefore changed individual freedoms. It is like a domino affect, when one falls, the rest fall. Order becomes autocratic when one person is more powerful than the rest of the community.
ReplyDeleteI agree that the power shift was when the people who usually had no power suddenly had power over any member of the community. This caused the whole system to collapse and people to get unfairly treated. People who were used to having individual freedoms once accused, no longer had them.
DeleteI agree that the power shift came when the trials started and the people with the new powers liked it. Normally young girls in a society such as Salem would have almost no freedom. Then Abigail and the group of girls discovered that when they accused others of witchcraft, people listened. Abigail then used this new power for her own personal agenda.
DeleteThe Puritans came to America because The Puritans had a more extremist view of protestantism. They had a belief that in America they would be able to establish their own religious capital where they could worship as the pleased. When they arrived they were able to practice their strict guidelines on living a Puritan lifestyle. The Puritan lifestyle was very restricting; dancing was prohibited as well as excessive drinking and writing books. Everyone in Salem knew the Puritan way of living. Every citizen were held accountable to maintaining their code of living, so that code was enforced by each citizen. Whenever a citizen got suspicious, they would report their suspicion. At first, it was working just as they planned, but when some of the rules started to bend and break, their order of establishment began to crumble. From the beginning, the power was autocratic. The people put most if not all their power in the hands of the judges.
ReplyDeleteI agree that the purtian society was autocratic from the beginning and as a result there was no ability for growth within the community. With no ability to adapt and change rules within society there is more and more chance for corruption to occur. in the end, this was exactly what happened. Change is an undeniable part of all life and if not accepted change can cause disagrreements and problems that can rip apart a community.
Delete