Historian Stacy Schiff on the Salem Witch Trials

Guest: Stacy Schiff

[From the Radio Times archive] In 1692, the Massachusetts Bay Colony was consumed with fear and paranoia. Its Puritan residents found themselves in a fight against the devil, as young women and children were thought to have succumbed to witchcraft. Pulitzer Prize-winning author and historian STACY SCHIFF uses historical research to unpack the events surrounding the Salem witch trials in her new book The Witches: Salem, 1692. Schiff gives voice to the mostly women and few men who were convicted and executed and explores how religious fervor and desperation can lead families, neighbors and friends to turn on their loved ones. She also raises questions about how the legacy of the Salem Witch Trials shaped our country. Schiff returns to Radio Times to talk with Marty about this fascinating episode of American history. They spoke last month.