Ever since the age of four I have absolutely loved The Wizard of Oz. From the Tin Mans desire to obtain a heart, to the Cowardly Lions thirst for courage, I felt as though every single one of the characters was not only a friend of Dorothys, but also a friend of mine. Although most other children obsess over Dorothy and her sparkly red shoes, I took it into my own hands to fixate myself on The Wicked Witch of the West. To be honest, her spookiness did creep me out in the beginning, but after watching the movie almost three times a day, I began to love her. She was powerful, independent and unique, but why couldn't anyone else see that? I started to feel bad for her as she was all alone and all anyone ever saw was her long, sharp nose, green face and eerie mole. I wanted others to look beyond her appearance, regardless of if her actions to capture the four best friends traveling across the yellow brick road were mean, underneath all that creepiness, she was still a person just like everyone else. Eventually, I gave up on the movie but made it a point of mine to not only wear a witch costume every halloween, but also emphasize the fact that I wanted and was proud to be the Wicked Witch of the West. Although The Wizard of Oz is just a movie its meaning and deeper history is one that brings me to the point of the Salem Witch Trials. Despite the fact that we don’t know how or why the Wicked Witch of the West became a witch, we do know that her appearance and actions reflect many of the reasons as to why so many people, especially women, were accused and executed of witchcraft in 1692. 

Bridget Bishop, the first woman to be accused of witchcraft in Salem, Massachusetts, wasn’t ones typical idea of a witch. Her feisty, energetic personality would lead one to believe that her chances of being accused of witchcraft were slim to none. Unfortunately, those odds are far from right. Her unhealthy marriage to her husband, Thomas Oliver, escalated into the first scene of male dominance. Bridget was accused of calling her husbands name on the Sabbath, where both her and her husband were sentenced to stand on trial for their behavior. On top of the publicity of her offenses, Thomas Oliver also accused her of witchcraft because she was “a bad wife...the devil had come bodily to her…and she sat up all night with the devil.” Without a minute to spare, the court put her on trial on April 19, 1692, where she stated “I am innocent to a witch. I know not what a witch is.” Unfortunately, her case was not strong enough and she was hung on the gallows. Her story, although short and simple, is impactful on how we perceive the Salem Witch Trials because it reflects the true idea of gender inequality. As soon as her husband stated that he thought she was practicing witchcraft, her voice was not heard but rather killed.  Many other women underwent the exact same experience as Bridget Bishop. Being accused of witchcraft because one was loud, funny, emotional or jealous was not a motive but a symbol of power held by men used continuously against their wives, friends and neighbors. 

If you have ever seen the Wizard of Oz you know that the Wicked Witch of the West displays traits that highlight all aspects of the typical look of a witch. The mole, the green face, the age, the nose, and the jealousy come together to make up the common stereotype. But you may ask yourself, where did this originate? Of course, every great idea, whether it be Halloween or The Wizard of Oz, has a little bit of American history in it. Therefore, the common stereotype of a witch emerged from Salem, Massachusetts.

Women weren’t only accused and executed because their husbands, fathers, brothers, and/or neighbors felt jealous or scared but also because of their appearance, social status and wealth. In fact, it is said that women who were middle aged, and married but had no children had a higher risk of being accused by their neighbors and friends due to envy. During 1692, a women’s most important role in society was to have children and take care of her husband. Failure to do so, for whatever reason it may be, lead people to believe that your witchcraft spells cursed your destiny. Although accusing a woman of witchcraft just because she has a mole, or doesn't have kids is enough of a reason to justify the fact that the Salem Witch Trials exhibited gender inequality, other economic and religious motives played just as much of an important role.

Even though the time period of 1692 conveys the immediate thought of racism, it is crucial to understand that that injustice as well as gender inequality were both revealed during the Salem Witch Trials. Women, like Tituba, an Indian women from Arawak Village in South America, who were sold into slavery and constantly beaten, were always prone to being accused of witchcraft as soon as something in the house went missing, or if the clothes got sick. Although her story is quite different, her lifestyle and experiences are ones that many others can relate too. In Salem Massachusetts, there was a huge divide between the rich and the poor. Those who were wealthy lived in Salem Town, and those who were poor lived in Salem Village. Unfortunately, Salem Village did not have the resources, like churches and grocery stores, that Salem Town did, coercing people to walk three hours just to pray or pick up food. Nevertheless, the huge fuss over witchcraft found its way to Salem Village and thrived in that area due to the lack of power slaves obtained.

More importantly, barely any male slaves were accused of witchcraft, and if they were, it was because they knew a woman who had previously been accused or executed. It was known for women to immediately blame their slaves for witchcraft in order to save themselves from being accused. On top of this economic downfall, independent women who obtained money, land or goods from their fathers, brothers, or dead husbands were always looked down upon by other men. Dame Alice Kyteler is a good example of a woman who was accused by her four step sons of witchcraft. Jealous they she inherited her dead husbands money and they didnt, they told everyone in town that she tricked all of her former husbands into giving her money.

Although the separation between Salem Town and Salem Village manifest a huge religious aspect to the Salem Witch Trials, there is more to it than just the differences scattered between two areas. Puritan faith was the most commonly practiced religion in Massachusetts in 1692. Although its prevalence has almost diminished to this day, its beliefs are ones that reflect the whole idea around gender inequality and the Salem Witch Trials. Any women who followed Puritan faith, which was almost every woman alive at that time, had a very high risk of being accused due to the religions close relationship to the “devil.” Women were responsible for staying home, cooking, cleaning, taking care and enforcing Puritan beliefs to their children, and staying loyal to their husbands.

Moreover, independent women were always accused and spoken too in an abhor matter for the belief that they were promiscuous before marriage, one of the biggest sins in Puritan culture.

All in all, the fact that a woman could be accused of witchcraft because she had moles on her body which lead people to believe that the “devil” could enter her soul, she was middle aged, she was loud and energetic and/or she was not married and did not have children all related back to the Wicked Witch of the West. Her character in The Wizard of Oz exemplifies each and every one of these traits, but more importantly, she exemplifies a lonely, evil woman isolated in a world where everyone looks down on her. Although the Puritan faith, executions, and accusations are absent in this film, the idea of the witch is lucidly portrayed. It might seem as though the traits listed above were just reasons as to why women were accused, but that is precisely the point. Out of 59 people accused of witchcraft, 52 were women and only seven were men.

Out of 52 people convicted and hung of witchcraft, 26 women were convicted and 14 hung whereas seven men convicted and five hung. The injustice is truly astonishing and when reading that people lost their lives to this belief in witchcraft, you can’t help but feel sympathy. It doesnt matter if it was the the religion itself or the idea of witchcraft that put down women, it all falls under the category of discrimination. The Wicked Witch of the West and the plot of The Wizard of Oz may not represent gender inequality, but the concept of a witch, especially the Wicked Witch of the West, reflects the story behind the Salem Witch Trials, and the tons of women who never got the chance to stand up against it.