In 1692, Salem Massachusetts was going through a very unusual and difficult time. The small town was plagued with a condition known as hysteria. The town's people were at ends with each other over who was a witch, literally tearing the town apart. There were those few citizens who spoke out against the trials, but unfortunately skeptics weren't safe from the accusations and were the first to go. Many people say that the chaos continued because …showed first 75 words of 675 total…

…showed last 75 words of 675 total…in the girls at any point during the trials. Cotton stood up for the girls on many occasions, saying that they were being tormented by the devil and had no control over their actions. Even though Cotton Mather may have contributed to the chaos, he did it because he was trying to do what was in the best interest of his fellow Salem villagers. Cotton was simply a man with his foot in two eras.