Question

How does the structure of Mike kubic's article support the central idea of his claim in the Salem witch trials and other witch hunts

Answer 1

Kubic's article has three parts. In the first part, he gives the full account of the witch trials which took place in 1692. The author shows how convicted people were actually not guilty of the accusations. In the second part, he writes that how exactly 100 years later the mass execution of the enemies of the revolution in France, so called "Reign of Terror" followed the similar patterns. The paragraph about the mass execution of Jews is also mentioned in the article. In the last part named "Public Scares in the USA", Kubic somehow summarizes the culmination of these historic demagoguery giving the examples of resettlement of Japanese Americans, First and the Second Red Scares in 20th century America ans concludes that prevalence of prejudice was still on the agenda even after two and half century later.  

Answer 2

The trials were rapid. Any person who suspected that some unfortunate event or development was the work of a witch, could bring the charge to a native judge. The judge would have the suspected evil-doer halted and brought in for public cross-examination, where the suspect was advised to admit. Whatever his or her response, if the charge of witchery was believed to be reliable, the suspect was turned over to a higher court and brought before a grand body of people sworn to give a verdict in a legal case based on evidence submitted to them in court.

More of the evidence used in the court case was the testament of the accuser. If more proof was needed, the jury might consider the witch cake, a strange mixture that was made from wheatlike cereal meal and urine of the sorceress’ victim and fed to a dog. Eating the cake was supposed to wound the sorceress, whose cry of agony would deceive her secret individuality.