The townspeople bear a lot of responsibility for jumpstarting the accusations and heightening the tension at the beginning of the play. There are rumors circulating that Betty Parris flew over Ingersoll's barn, and the Putnams -- a very powerful local and vocal family -- are absolutely convinced that witches are to blame for the deaths of their babies and the sicknesses of Betty and Ruth, their daughter, and they have clearly spread their story to...
The townspeople bear a lot of responsibility for jumpstarting the accusations and heightening the tension at the beginning of the play. There are rumors circulating that Betty Parris flew over Ingersoll's barn, and the Putnams -- a very powerful local and vocal family -- are absolutely convinced that witches are to blame for the deaths of their babies and the sicknesses of Betty and Ruth, their daughter, and they have clearly spread their story to anyone who will listen. The Putnams and others like them, townsfolk who are so willing to believe in witchcraft as the root of their problems rather than look to themselves for the cause, live in fear and become instigators of the hysteria that catches and spreads so quickly.
Further, when the court is in session in Act Three, the villagers, according to the stage direction which indicates that they are shouting and screaming, add to the feeling that the trials are a circus; they egg on the accusers as well as the judges. This is how hysteria works -- it affects groups who begin to adopt a sort of mob mentality where they act only on emotion. If the villagers were not so eager to believe, then they might have demanded better evidence; however, as a result of their intense desire to find a scapegoat for their anxieties and troubles, they are easily led and powerful enough to move the story along.
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