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Salem Witch Trials
- Stacey Schiff wrote "The Witches: Salem, 1692" in 2016, drawing parallels between social media and 17th-century witch hunts.
- Schiff highlights the Salem witch trials, where Puritans, driven by paranoia, accused over 200 people of witchcraft.
Puritan Literacy
- The Salem witch trial judges were well-educated and obsessed with legal theory, defying the stereotypical image of an ignorant mob.
- The Puritans were a highly literate community, and those most invested in the witchcraft delusion were often the most educated.
Rowling's Stance
- J.K. Rowling emphasizes a significant difference between her beliefs and her critics' interpretation.
- She points to the extreme hyperbole used against her, like accusations of wanting genocide of trans people.