Le Mccarthysm

Which Whitch is Which ?

1

The Mc carthysm

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The Puritains

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What is a witch?

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Witch hunt

Over View: Witche hunt

The salem witch trial.

In Salem, in the Massachussets, one of the most famous witch trials took place: the Salem Witch Trials.

In 1692, 200 people were accused of being possessed by the devil, according to a group of village girls.

This group of girls then accused women of the village of witchcraft who were condemned whether the facts were true or not.

This will lead to the public opinion turning against the authorities.

The history of witches

Thousands of years ago, people were forced to live much more primitive lives than we currently know today. Without the luxury of modern medicine and treatments, when a person was sick, ill or in pain there was little that could be done about it. Becoming ill was much more dangerous in those ancient days, and the ramifications of any sickness were frequently much more serious. During those early days, there were some sage women that learned the value of healing herbs, and other types of homeopathic treatments.

But with time, their knowledge appeared supernatural, they were frowned upon accusing the healing as being due to a contract with the devil.

What is a witch ?

ALL you have to know about It!

Over View: Witches

Witches, differents definition.

Today witchcraft is no longer reduced to "doing harm" and casting evil spells. Witches are now seen more as therapists concocting beverage to restore healthfor exemple like doctors.

Witches have in the past had a pejorative label as evil people contracting with the devil himself. at this time people said that they use witchcraft to harm people.

Over time the definition of witch was redefined to mean people who practiced witchcraft, as witchcraft could only be a form of spirituality without causing harm.

The Mc Carthysm

ALL you have to know about It!

The Mc Carthysm

ALL you have to know about It!

A geopolitical situation that causes a real paranoia in the American opinion, expressing a fear of communism and the Soviets.

The context

After the World War II, USA and URSS were allies, but USA were scared about URSS so they fear about communist.

In 1946, President Harry Truman established a temporary commission to investigate the loyalty of federal employees. The aim was to identify and remove subversive civil servants who were supporters of ideologies or so-called "totalitarian" regimes such as fascism, communism and Nazism.

Joseph McCarthy appeared on the American political scene on February 9, 1950, when he gave a speech in Wheeling, in which he denounced the presence of communists within the State Department. The expression "McCarthyism" appeared for the first time

Gaining national notoriety after The famous speech of Wheeling, McCarthy multiplied, in the following years, the accusations of contagion of the communist ideology within the State Department, but also within the administration of President Truman, the media distribution network (radio, television, etc.), the US Army and Hollywood, giving rise to investigations that contributed to create a climate of anti-communist paranoia, known as the "Witch Hunt", or "Red Scare"

People that we’re considered as communist have been isolated from society professionally (by being fired from their job) and socially (by being imprisoned). The president Hoover were tracking them and this is what we are calling to “Mc Cartysme”

In 1947, 10 writers and directors refuses to testify behind the House United Nations Committee about Un-American Activities. These people where blacklisted and its the reason why we talk about Hollywood’s blacklist.

At this time anyone can be accused, even wrongly, of communism and those in many sector like for exemple in the entertainment business as in the Hollywood industry. And it was the case with people that became : The Hollywood Ten.

Actor Adolphe Menjou declared: "I am a witch hunter if the witches are Communists."

It shows the way that communist were tracked and isolated. They were hunted like witches before.

Dalton Trumbo was born in Colorado in 1905. At the age of twenty, he left for California. he does odd jobs alongside his studies and at the end of these he writes articles as an independent journalist.

In 1933, he became editor of the magazine Hollywood Spectator,

In 1938, he became the highest paid screenwriter in Hollywood.

In 1941, shortly after the German invasion of the USSR, when the Communist Party USA had just made a turn on the question of going to war, "Johnny Got His Gun" ( his first major film) is out of print and the American far right is pressuring him

After that he were judge to join the communist.

Over View: Mc Carthysm

The Putirtains

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Over View: Puritains

Puritains had many things that were forbidden. Adultery, fashionable accessories, colorful clothes, dancing, playing card or even forest were forbidden. The non-respect of the prohibitions led to punishments.

If someone transgresses one of the many prohibitions, he will be punished. There were many punishments such as public humiliation, rejection, but most led to death:

Transgressors could be drowned, tortured, burned with fire, beheaded and those mostly publicly

The Puritans had many principles, standards and values.

- They believe in predestination

- They found spiritual meaning in basic events

- They believe that forest is the home of the devil

- They believe that colors was the print of the devil.