In the overture, the use of data and warrants support the authors claims of the social structure of the Salem Puritans and how the witchcraft trials came to be. He lists the advantages and disadvantages of their society, but overall believes that their actions and consequences are part of a greater picture that they cannot escape, that absolute freedom and sovereignty do not exist. The author creates an image of insecurity, where the Puritans feared division but did things opposite of that and claims that the ominous society that the Puritans lived in contributed to the conception of the wilderness as being Satan's refuge and that all bad things that happened to them was a result of God's wrath. The Puritans were seen as a society that was unaccepting of change or unordinary occurrences. Ultimately, Puritans began to turn against one another with the hopes of ridding the community from the evil that would surround them, as they feared that which they did not know.
The invasion of privacy by the Puritan culture contributed to the hysteria of the Salem Witch Trials. Puritans created strict laws against anything "un-Godly" to maintain solidarity within the community. The author believes that the society they created allowed them to survive in the beginning, but ultimately led to their destruction during the Salem Witch Trials. The author implies that we are stuck in a paradox as only a select few are "chosen" for greater understanding and action and can pass this enlightenment to others who are stuck in the single-minded mindset of "the cave": "When one rises above the individual villainy displayed, one can only pity them all, just as we shall be pitied someday. It is still impossible for man to organize his social life without repressions, and the balance has yet to be struck between order and freedom"(7).
The invasion of privacy by the Puritan culture contributed to the hysteria of the Salem Witch Trials. Puritans created strict laws against anything "un-Godly" to maintain solidarity within the community. The author believes that the society they created allowed them to survive in the beginning, but ultimately led to their destruction during the Salem Witch Trials. The author implies that we are stuck in a paradox as only a select few are "chosen" for greater understanding and action and can pass this enlightenment to others who are stuck in the single-minded mindset of "the cave": "When one rises above the individual villainy displayed, one can only pity them all, just as we shall be pitied someday. It is still impossible for man to organize his social life without repressions, and the balance has yet to be struck between order and freedom"(7).