History Buffs: The Crucible

Happy Halloween History Buffs! Tried thinking of an appropriate film that would best fit the theme of this classic holiday. But do leave in the comments below some recommendations of other historical films I could for next Halloween! 🎃

[JABRIEL]

"When it finally did end in 1693, it was only after it started to affect the elites", somethings truly never change.

[jacobcelmer]

Giles Corey saying, “More weight” while being tortured to death is one of the most gangster sentences ever penned.

[jongon]

I think the Simpsons summed up the Salem Witch Trials in one exchange.

Lisa: If they're really witches, why dont they use their powers to escape?

Homer: That sounds like witch talk to me, Lisa.

Lisa : Nevermind!

[pathutchison]

The Devil came up to Salem, and looked around for about 5 minutes. Then the Devil quickly went down to Georgia. Salem was already hell.

[als]

Glad to see someone FINALLY talk about the effect that King Philipps War had on the Puritan society. It explains a lot of the paranoia that they had. Especially since some of the young girls were survivors of families massacred during the wars.

[bstnoobever]

I was also taught in school that if you were to either deny or confess to witchcraft, your property was seized and was not passed down to your kin if found guilty. So a lot of accusations were from neighbors who wanted more land. This was an important note for Giles Corey who did not plea either guilty or not guilty so his estate was passed to his sons.

[AviRox]

A few years back, I got to visit Salem. A lot of it has unfortunately become highly touristy, but the Witch Trial memorial was very sobering. Individual markers to each victim, displaying names, dates of execution, and last words. Seeing Giles Corey and his famous "More weight!" was especially moving, he's one of my favorite minor historical figures. A man simply trying to do right by his wife and children, even to the point of death.

[ArrowsOfAthena]

Not sure if this part was covered in the video: But one of the reasons Corey refused to admit himself a witch is because those who confessed to witchcraft lost all of their lands and property - he claimed that he would rather die than have his family lose their lands.

[mindoablues]

I took a college class on New England witchcraft with Prof. Mary Morris. You covered many of the points this class touched on brilliantly. There are so many angles to this story, but they all build upon the context of this particular episode in history. My prof said that she did go up to visit Salem at one point, and during a tour her husband had to physically restrain her because the tour guide kept spouting out historical inaccuracies lol

[warlordofbritannia]

26:20
Fun fact about Bridget Bishop: One of her accusers claimed that she and a friend had bewitched him and his brother into doing ungodly acts with them, specifically while Bishop was a wearing a “paragon red bodice.” The two men were only freed of the spell when his wife came home.

[raulportela]

We were shown this film in high school, and though the teacher pointed out a lot of inaccuracies, I remember this film absolutely captivating me because of the sheer level of acting skill by the cast.

[seandawson]

Near everyone who got a high-school level education in the US has read this book or seen this movie. What a wonderful movie to feature on your channel!

[shironerisilk]

That scene about the walking sticks always gets to me. It's tragic and infuriating at the same time. True, real world horror.

The concept of the devil's mark is absolutely terrifying as well. Who doesn't have a single spot or mole in their entire body? Anyone could be accused of having one!

[jeffmcarthur]

I greatly appreciate that you point out that this sort of problem can exist anywhere, at any time. This is not just a story from the 1600s, or even the 1950s. The concept of "guilty until proven innocent, " or a lack of due process, is a collapse in justice.

[frank]

Winona Ryder is so brilliant in that movie! She's almost scary.

[tucker.]

I live in Marblehead, which is right next to Salem MA. They really take this seriously, and everything is witch themed, and the entire towns fame is centered around Halloween. There are literally thousands of people that flood the entire town the entire month of October.

The sad thing is, is that most people who visit just go for fun, and don’t think twice about 1692. These women that were killed in the trials did not want to be witches, and that scapegoating and groupthink is a dangerous lesson we could all learn from. Most people that visit don’t even think of this unfortunately.

[zemotheon]

My wife was a member of the church that once employed the Reverend Parris. The church was destroyed in a fire, but many of the stained glass windows survived, including the ones with John Proctor's name in it, as well as a plaque in his memory referring to him as a martyr.

[kathyastrom]

In working on my family tree, I’ve discovered several accused witches on it, all connected by marriage or blood. That really showed me how close-knit Salem and its surrounding region was. John Proctor’s sister Abigail was married to Thomas Varney, and his sister Rachel was my 11th great grandmother. Rachel was also accused, along with several Gloucester women connected to her son-in-law Hugh Rowe (my 10th great grandfather).

[ryanhall]

The whole fear of speaking out sounds like today. History repeating itself time and time again.

[nzcamel]

The real tragedy about the Salem witch trials is that it seems that we never learn.