Are Witches Present in The World?

I don't believe witches exist.  There is always an explanation for how an event occurred besides witches.  Scientists have made it possible to investigate situations and find out the real reasons why events occur.

In the play The Crucible by Arthur Miller, the characters immediately accuse witchcraft of being at hand when Betty Paris will not awaken from her slumber.  No one can figure out what is wrong with her, even the doctor.  Paris soon sends for Hale.  This man will declare if the devil is around in the town.  Hale soon interprets the situation and finds Tituba to be guilty of witchcraft.  He finds out Tituba had been in the forest the night before with Betty, Abigail, and several other girls.  Paris had seen Tituba chanting over the fire with a pot of stew.  A toad had jumped in the stew.  Tituba had also made Abigail drink chicken blood.  While all this evidence clearly points to the citizen’s outcry of witchcraft, witchcraft, witchcraft, there is another perspective to observe.  Before the play, Abigail has seduced and has had an affair with John Proctor.  Abigail is a virgin and 11 years old, while Proctor is much older and married to his wife, Elizabeth.  With this information, readers can begin to see Abigail has a motive.  The motive is to get rid of Elizabeth and have John Proctor as only hers, her husband.  So, Abigail goes to great lengths to make this happen.  She asks Tituba to come up with a way to get rid of John Proctor’s wife.  Tituba’s answer is the dance in the forest and to drink chicken’s blood.  Through this further perspective of the situation, readers can conclude that witchcraft is not found in this play.  Witchcraft does not exist.

 

Today, there are still killings being committed over supposed witchcraft issues.Tanzania is one of these places.The weather is the cause of it all.If there is a flooding or drought, the native people accuse the old women of the village of witchcraft and slaughter them. 

 

People look to the supernatural, witchcraft, in times of great despair. When they are unable to explain why a certain phenomenon is occurring, the scapegoat card, witchcraft, will be used. Further education of these people is required to help them realize there are other explanations beyond their knowledge of why events are occurring. People should not die from the ignorance of others.