Salem Witch TrialsSalem Witch Trials – Gender and Power in the 17th CenturyThe year 1692 and early 1693 saw the prosecution and execution of ten- nine witches, an old man stoned to death, several accused witches dying in prison, and at nearly 28 years old, they were driven out of the infamous village of Salem (now Danvers, Massachusetts) because they believed they possessed the power to influence people to do what they wanted (Goodbeer, 2011, p. 2). Early 1692, the daughter; Elizabeth and niece; Abigail Williams, the first ordained minister of Salem Village; Reverend Parris experienced frightening episodes of screaming, voices and throwing objects. Another girl, Ann Putnam, also had the same experience and under the influence of magistrates Jonathan Corwin and John Hawthorne, the girls blamed their conditions on three women: Tituba, Sarah Good and Sarah Osborne for practicing witchcraft on them (Goodbeer, The Salem Witch Hunt, 2011, p. 14) “The Salem Witch Hunt” by Richard Godbeer reports on the proceedings of several cases of defendants, most of the defendants being women, and the McCarthyism paranoia that took over Salem Town. Two of the accused women; Good and Osborne pleaded not guilty but Tituba confessed to practicing witchcraft and that there were many more witches in Salem. His confession opened the door to other witch trials, with Governor William Phipps establishing a special court of Oyer and Treminern to handle witchcraft cases. The court's first case involved a respectable member of the church; Martha Corey was tried and convicted, which increased the paranoia of the people of Salem, believing that no one was safe if a church member could be a witch. The legitimacy of the evidence produced in court was questionable, with spectral evidence in the middle of the paper claiming that Burroughs was not nice to his wife and would not allow her to talk to other women. Another man, Giles Corey, was stoned to death despite his great age. What comes as a surprise to many is the fact that community leaders based the entire Salem trial process on the testimony of very young girls who were easily gullible and their testimony could be easily altered. This suggests that the girls were only seeking the attention they lacked in their homes with false experiences of hysteria. In conclusion, the Salem witch trials shed light on the perception of women in society in the 17th century and most religious and political leaders were men. Women were not allowed to hold high office or preach the gospel. This is a difficult issue that needs to be changed and the way men perceive women is turning around and giving them equal opportunities to their male counterparts..