Salem Witch Trial- Christy Ann Martine She’d stroll through the village, Eyes fixed on the ground. When greeted the girl Scarcely uttered a sound. Since her parents death A few years back, She’s lived on her own In no more a shack. Her hair as red As the fire of hell, In the thoughts of men Her innocence fell. They’d follow her in The light of day, Besot by her Peculiar way. They’d leave their wives In the dark of night, To spy as she danced Beneath the moonlight. One woman swore by God That she witnessed, Her reading a book Of magic wicked. No wonder her husband Held such foolish notions. Possessed by this witch And all her love potions. When questioned, the girl, She could not tell, What power had she, If not by spell. Could take hold of a man, | Lead him into temptation, If not by witchcraft Or some incantation. Her persuasion rooted In evil they deemed. Her protest heard By way of her screams. When they put her inside The old metal pot, It’s with the will of the devil Himself that she fought. It was said that her fate would be redeemed, If her body stayed below the surface. Named pure again in the eyes of God By those who stood to bear witness. Fully submerged, She struggled for air, Sinking the angel With fire for hair. With bibles in hand, They gathered around Together they shouted While watching her drown. Redemption then granted, Her sins pronounced clean, By the men who condemned her, To death,at sixteen. |
This poem is set in the time of the witch hunts ( February 1692 - May 1693 ). Many young women and midwifes were killed during this time period. I like this poem because in the tenth stanza the tone shifts to a more desperate tone. It's a rather sad poem, but it shows how ruthless history was. She was sentenced to death for how attractive men found her and the wives couldn't do anything to stop their husbands. These trials mostly took place in colonial America ( Salem village, Salem town, Ispwich, Andover ). This poem has a lot of feeling in it, it has a more melancholy tone to it. There is an ABAC rhyming scheme in each stanza.