The "Fits"

One of the things I’ve been thinking about recently related to this class are the convulsive fits that many accusers seemed to have when claiming they were under the influence of a witch.

In the case of Goody Glover, we read a detailed description. The Goodwin kids would have fits where “they would make the most piteous out-cries, that they were cut with knives, and struck with blows that they could not bear. Their neck would be broken so that their neck bone would seem dissolved unto them that felt after it” (American Witch p. 107). “They would have their mouths opened undo such a wideness, that their jaws went out of joint; and anon they would clap together again with a force like that of a strong spring lock. The same would happen to their shoulder blades, and their elbows, and hand–wrists… They would at times lie in a benumbed condition and be drawn together as those that are tied neck and heels; and presently be stretched out, yea, drawn backwards, to such a degree that it was feared the very skin of their bellies would have cracked” (American Witch p. 108). This complaint landed Goody Glover in jail.

In the Salem Witch Trials, the primary accusers were young girls having fits and claiming to be possessed by Satan. I believe it was Betty and Abigail who were the first in Salem to have fits of convulsing and being unable to speak. We’ve discussed in class if the fits could’ve been real, faked, or perhaps some sort of mass psychogenic illness. I’m still not certain what I believe. 

I did a little Google search to see What the fits may have looked like, but all of the images and drawings I found seem far more tame than the descriptions. The drawings seem almost like a woman has fainted. 

So I did my own drawing on what I think the fits of Abigail or Betty could have looked like. I tried to draw it in a more dramatic style with her head thrown back, mouth agape, writhing on the ground so hard her braids are coming undone.