What caused the hysteria of the salem witch trials?

Answer 1

No. The trials have been linked by historians to the painful changes that Puritan society was experiencing at the time. Torn between the communal asceticism of their original goals and the commercial individualism that was starting to happen some responded with guilt and fear. They sought scapegoats that they could blame their moral loss. Salem Village had a history of bitter factionalism and resentment toward the more prosperous Salem Town which controlled the village politically. Many of the people chosen for trial were the outcasts and loners of the town/village. Many of the women were alone and had no male support.

Answer 2

Both the Puritan's fear of everything and Parris' hyping it up in the beginning aided the start of hysteria.

Answer 3

Two children that wrongly accused three women of bewitching them.

Answer 4

Of course