Crucible introduction thing by Connor Kliesch

City upon a hill

99059084 — 2024-11-18 21:32:39 UTC

The city upon a hill concept was created by Jon Winthrop, and it was the goal of the puritans. They wanted to be seen as a "guiding light" for Christians around the world and wanted to transform America into a role model for other countries. The city upon a hill concept taught that grace was a "free gift of salvation", and that total depravity, the idea that everyone is born a sinner and must achieve their entrance to heaven, was real. Puritans built schools and colleges to teach young men about these concepts and the word of god. I think the city upon a hill concept and its ideas will relate to The Crucible by causing unrest in the community, and making people uncertain of who is a pure and who is not.

Puritanism

99059084 — 2024-11-18 21:42:14 UTC

Puritanism was a "religious reform movement" that originally took place in the English churches. Puritans wanted to get rid of the Catholic church, but were stopped by the king, so, they fled to North America and brought their ideas with them. In America they established the Massachusetts Bay colony and practiced their beliefs safely. Eventually, these beliefs would lead to the witch hunt. Puritanism relates to The Crucible because I know the book is about the witch hunt/trials.

Witch trials

99059084 — 2024-11-18 21:53:31 UTC

This image shows "witches" being burnt at the stake. This was a common punishment for people thought to be witches. The witch trials were a period of hysteria and unrest, where people would accuse others of being witches. Often times these accusations would be rooted in spite or would simply be because somebody disliked somebody else. In courts, people thought to be witches were undressed and had their bodies searched for a witches teat, a third nipple, and accusers could cite "spectral evidence" as fact, which was evidence only the accuser could see or experience.

Witchcraft hysteria

99059084 — 2024-11-18 22:02:49 UTC

Witchcraft hysteria had many causes. People believed that Satan was real, and that he was constantly trying to cause ruin and suffering. Satan was blamed for disease, natural disasters, and bad fortune, and things like the frontier war with Indians and congregational strife in Salem were blamed on Satan. There was also the belief that Satan recruited people to work for him, which only made people more worried about people around them. People who "confessed" to being witches added to the credibility, despite the fact that those who confessed only did so to avoid death, since once they confessed they were believed to be in the hands of God for him to deal with. Outside factors like Tituba also contributed to the belief in witches, since she practiced witchcraft and influenced young women into joining her.

Calvinism

99059084 — 2024-11-18 22:16:01 UTC

Calvinism is a Protestant Christian theological tradition that originated in the 16th century and was established by John Calvin. Calvinism focuses on ideas such as predestination, authority of the bible, the grace of God, and total depravity. People who followed Calvinists believed in theocracy, a community governed by god. Calvinistic beliefs added to the hysteria of the witch trials because many of the beliefs and ideas of Calvinism lined up with those of the witch trials. Calvinism believed in witchcraft, so it made sense for Calvinism to play a big part during the witch trials.