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Cover of Salem Possessed: The Social Origins of Witchcraft

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Witchcraft, Wicca & Paganism

Salem Possessed

The Social Origins of Witchcraft

by Paul Boyer & Stephen Nissenbaum

An influential study that maps the Salem accusations of 1692 onto the factional, economic and geographical divisions of Salem Village. Boyer and Nissenbaum argue that tensions between farmers and the commercial town, and disputes over the village church, shaped who accused whom. Though later work has added other factors, the book remains a classic of community history and a standard text on Salem.

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